Leeds University Great Hall, Clothworkers Court, Baines Wing

Details

LEEDS

SE2934NW UNIVERSITY ROAD 714-1/71/403 (North side) 08/10/70 Leeds University Great Hall, Clothworkers' Court, Baines Wing (Formerly Listed as: UNIVERSITY ROAD, University Of Leeds Leeds University Great Hall and Clothworkers' Court)

GV II

Formerly known as: Yorkshire College of Science. College buildings. 1877-1912. By Alfred Waterhouse and Paul Waterhouse, his son. The first buildings of the Yorkshire College and University of Leeds. Red brick laid in decorative courses and patterns, stone from Spinkwell Quarry for details, slate roofs. In Free Gothic Revival style. Near the centre of this asymmetrical group the low stone wall with railings and Gothic arch with inscription: 'TEXTILE INDUSTRIES AND DYEING THESE BUILDINGS KNOWN AS THE CLOTHWORKERS' DEPARTMENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF LEEDS WERE BUILT AND EQUIPPED AT A COST OF SEVENTY THOUSAND POUNDS/ BY THE WORSHIPFUL COMPANY OF CLOTHWORKERS OF THE CITY OF LONDON WHO PROVIDE AN ENDOWMENT OF FOUR THOUSAND POUNDS A YEAR FOR THEIR MAINTENANCE'. To left the 6-bay college range, the gabled right bay has blind arcading, coat of arms, 4-light window flanked by plaques with carvings of teazles, inscription below: THIS: BUILDING: WAS: ERECTED: BY: THE: WORSHIPFUL: COMPANY: OF: CLOTHWORKERS: OF: THE: CITY: OF: LONDON: 1879: FOR: THE: TEXTILE: INDUSTRIES: DEPARTMENT: OF: THE: YORKSHIRE: COLLEGE'; moulded archway to left and long wall with arcaded windows, small 2-light windows above; this fronts the north-light weaving shed block. To left (west) again are the 8-bay extensions, the gabled bay opened in 1900 and Paul Waterhouse's long addition with round archway, gabled upper storey and at left end a tall pyramid-roofed tower built 1909-12, a plaque at the base of the tower has another long inscription: 'SPINNING DEPART/ MENT EXTENSION./ THIS BUILDING WAS/ ERECTED BY MEANS/ OF A SUPPLEMENTAL/ VOTE OF »5,000 FROM/ THE WORSHIPFUL COM/ PANY OF CLOTHWORKERS/ OF THE CITY OF LONDON/ IN JULY 1910 SIR OWEN/ ROBERTS, LLD, DCL,/ BEING MASTER./ BY THIS GIFT THE/ AGGREGATE AMOUNT/ OF THE GRANTS MADE/ BY THE COMPANY FOR/ BUILDING AND EQUIP-/ MENT WAS RAISED TO/ THE SUM OF »75,000'. To right of the archway the gable end of the Great Hall,

opened in 1894 by the Duke and Duchess of York; gabled porch right, paired square windows, buttress between on ground floor, characteristic bands of stone, large Perpendicular traceried window flanked by towers with tall pyramidal roofs, louvred stages and bartizans at corners. The hall and first college building form 2 sides of the Clothworkers' Court, the N side of which is part of the Edward Baines buildings of 1885, 3 gables, mullioned windows; the range continues to E of the Great Hall, with the 3-storey 7-bay Edward Baines Memorial Wing, dated 1883, central tower with steeply-pitched slate roof and corner turrets, transom and mullion windows, gabled dormers, tall ridge ventilators. Extension west again of 3 storeys over basement, 3 gabled bays, large mullion and transom windows, 1900-1910. INTERIOR: western range retains original features including cantilevered stone stairs with cast-iron rail and Yorkshire rose motif, columns with Art Nouveau capitals; first-floor corridor added after 1880 to the original building has patterned glass in leaded windows; cast-iron spiral stair; former museum, now meeting room with stained-glass roundels repeating the teazle motif of the gable end; fine staircase of 2 flights with moulded ramped handrail, scrolled cast-iron balustrade with tendrils. Great Hall: staircase lined with Burmantofts tiles, including balustrade, columns, floors and walls, shades of brown. The basement originally housed kitchens and dining room, library on the ground floor, also lecture room, professors' common room, room for college societies. The large upper floor hall used for meetings, examinations, public lectures, it has a gallery at the S end, octagonal columns with floral capitals, panelled plaster ceiling, cornice with the 'YC' monogram. The Prince of Wales opened the Yorkshire College buildings in 1885 and Edward VII opened the last phase of brick buildings in 1908, following the establishment of Leeds University by royal charter in 1904. Full details of the history and use of the buildings are given in Gosden and Taylor, p.133. (Studies in the History of a University: Beresford, MW in Gosden, P and Taylor, AJ: Red Brick and Portland Stone: Leeds: 1975-: 133).

Listing NGR: SE2935634689

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

465631

Legacy System:

LBS

Sources

Books and journals
Gosden, P H, Taylor, A J, Studies in the History of a University 1874-1974, (1974), 133

End of official list entry

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