SecretLeeds - History, culture and architecture in Leeds

When you travel up Sharpe lane heading into Middleton, Just before crossing the motorway bridge, there is a large mound covered in large rocks in the field on the right . (It has a pylon very close) This I am lead to believe is indeed a burial site for those unfortunate folk of the 1600's who caught the black death. Aparently it has been untouched since this time as no one dare dig it up. Can anyone confirm this or know any other burial sites such as this, in and around Leeds.I am new to this site but it's cool - I love stuff like this

Do you mean this Phil?

Hi philAt the bottom of hunslet Moor..there was and maybe still is a tablet commerorating this local people who died as a result of the Bubonic plague...better known as the "black death"..from my memory it was located not too far from the Middleton railway..and the old hunslet vicarage..Cheers

Yes martyn, thats the spot

Not quite on thread so to speak but the large white building to the right of the mound at the junction I seem to remember had a sign in the late 70's early eighty's saying keep out official secrets act or some such. Any idea what it was used for. I remember getting chased of the field behind it in the summer hol's one year.

Isn't that whole area around Sharpe Lane destined for a massive house building project some time soon?Leeds Forest Village or something I seem to recall it being called in the YEP. I know there were massive local objections to it due to the lack of infrastructure etc, but (as seems to be the way nowadays) it was given planning permission anyway.I wonder how the developers will cope with a few hundred(possibly) diseased corpes being dug up?

Another point is the Henry Price student accommodation located on campus on Clarendon Road, the blocks are B, C, D, E.. where the A block should be is a car park which is higher than the ground level of the rest of the building.Rumour has it that whilst digging the foundations an ancient black death burial ground was found where block A should be, and it was not allowed to be touched so that explains the lettering starting at B.

The Large white building (that is being currently pulled down) was something to do with the Post Office but was also used during the war as Hmm, I forget now, but something military like a check point or the like. The housing development has started but is actually over the bridge on the left hand side. It apparently will strech up to middleton Circus and has something ridiculous like a 800 homes !

I cant remember where I heard it but as long as I can remember I have thought that one of Leeds' mass graves from the Black Death was under the cobbles where the City Varieties now stands.Anybody heard anything similar?

TomD wrote: I cant remember where I heard it but as long as I can remember I have thought that one of Leeds' mass graves from the Black Death was under the cobbles where the City Varieties now stands.Anybody heard anything similar? I've not heard that one, but I can remember as a kid being told there were "Plague" graves at Beckett Street Cemetery, in the top corner nearest the Sportsman Pub.Looking back I'm not sure if that would be right, as I'd guess the Black Death was over well before Beckett Street opened? Perhaps they were paupers graves and a legend got built up over time? Or could it have been some other disease - cholera perhaps?Certainly that corner of the cemetery has very few gravestones.