SecretLeeds - History, culture and architecture in Leeds

Does anyone have any photos or info about Craven House on Kirkstall Rd?

EBGB wrote: Does anyone have any photos or info about Craven House on Kirkstall Rd? I remember it being modernised and being given the neat tiled front sometime perhaps in the late 1940s or early 1950s - or was it even a brand new building at that time ??

ISTR it was a new tiled frontage on an old industrial building. My father always used to refer to it as "Queen Anne front, Mary-Anne back". Hard to believe that "Associated Dairies & Farm Stores" would go on to become ASDA, and later. Walmart. Thankfully, the Walmart influence in ASDA stores is visually pretty limited.

Thanks, that's what I wanted to make sure of....the link between Craven House and Asda/Walmart......Anyone know of any photos from before it was Arla foods, 1980's?

EBGB wrote: Thanks, that's what I wanted to make sure of....the link between Craven House and Asda/Walmart......Anyone know of any photos from before it was Arla foods, 1980's? I've a feeling it used to be a cinema before the Craven Dairies era.Alternatively it's possible it had a been a branch of Woolworths. At any rate there was definitely one of each in the vicinity.I'm sorry my recollection isn't clearer but the changes were about 1958 when I would have been about 10 and lived in Bramley.

[quotenick="Bramley4woodsI've a feeling it used to be a cinema before the Craven Dairies era.Alternatively it's possible it had a been a branch of Woolworths. At any rate there was definitely one of each in the vicinity Good clear recollections of the area Bramley4woods, but about a quarter of a mile out I'm afraid. Woolworths and the Embassy Cinema were on the same side, but were a few hundred yards the Kirkstall side of the railway viaduct, roughly approaching being opposite Haddon Place. On reflection, my own memory may be a bit hazy too - its just possible that Woolworths was built as a new construction in the gap left by a demolished Embassy Cinema.    

BLAKEY wrote: [quotenick="Bramley4woodsI've a feeling it used to be a cinema before the Craven Dairies era.Alternatively it's possible it had a been a branch of Woolworths. At any rate there was definitely one of each in the vicinity Good clear recollections of the area Bramley4woods, but about a quarter of a mile out I'm afraid. Woolworths and the Embassy Cinema were on the same side, but were a few hundred yards the Kirkstall side of the railway viaduct, roughly approaching being opposite Haddon Place. On reflection, my own memory may be a bit hazy too - its just possible that Woolworths was built as a new construction in the gap left by a demolished Embassy Cinema.    Oh well : Three tries for a Yorkshireman !Back to the drawing board ...My father used to work at John Collier's and was chronic sick with emphyseamia after about 1964 - ish. I remember my mother taking sick notes into John Collier's personell office the entrance of which was in an office on Kirkstall Road which had the same distinctive frontage but before it had the tiles. Perhaps that was it?The personell manager incidentally was a JP and quite approachable, in fact was frequently approached to countersign passport applications, provide references etc. for us.    

Blakey, your right about the Woolworth store. Seem to recall it was just about opposite St Mathias St, just up from the Murder shop . Newer style of construction compared to the surronding buildings. I have no memory of the Embassy cinema, but makes sense to me that the newer Woolis store could have replaced it.Cheers Yorkie    

Didn't the building that houses the Dulux Decorators Centre, on the same side as Arla but a tad closer to town, used to be a cinema?

Heres Woolworths, on the site of the Atlas (later the Embassy)http://tinyurl.com/3rlpffx