Leader House
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Leader House is a
Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...
townhouse A townhouse, townhome, town house, or town home, is a type of terraced housing. A modern townhouse is often one with a small footprint on multiple floors. In a different British usage, the term originally referred to any type of city residence ...
located on Surrey Street in the city centre of
Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...
, England. It overlooks the busy Arundel Gate dual carriageway and is a Grade II
listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
.


History

The house was built in 1770 by the
Duke of Norfolk Duke of Norfolk is a title in the peerage of England. The seat of the Duke of Norfolk is Arundel Castle in Sussex, although the title refers to the county of Norfolk. The current duke is Edward Fitzalan-Howard, 18th Duke of Norfolk. The dukes ...
for his agent Vincent Eyre, however there is no evidence that Mr. Eyre actually lived in the house. In 1777 Thomas Leader leased the house, Leader was a
silversmith A silversmith is a metalworker who crafts objects from silver. The terms ''silversmith'' and ''goldsmith'' are not exactly synonyms as the techniques, training, history, and guilds are or were largely the same but the end product may vary grea ...
, originally from
Broxted Broxted is a village and civil parish in the Uttlesford district, in the county of Essex, England. It is situated north-east from Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire and north-west from the county town of Chelmsford. The parish includes the ham ...
in
Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...
who came to Sheffield to set up the firm of Tudor, Leader & Co. in 1762 with Henry Tudor. The firm's speciality was high quality
snuff box A decorative box is a form of packaging that is generally more than just functional, but also intended to be decorative and artistic. Many such boxes are used for promotional packaging, both commercially and privately. Historical objects are ...
es. The house became known as Leader House at this time and has continued to be called so up to the present day with the
Leaders Leadership, both as a research area and as a practical skill, encompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to "lead", influence or guide other individuals, teams, or entire organizations. The word "leadership" often gets view ...
emerging as one of the eminent families of Sheffield, becoming newspaper publishers and historians.''"Old Sheffield Town"'', J. Edward Vickers, Applebaum Ltd, , Page 9 & 10 Gives general history of house. Museums Sheffield
Gives history of Leader family.
In 1780 there was a reorganisation of the street plan around the house which resulted in the garden on the west side being spoilt, to compensate for this, the Leaders leased a garden plot on the opposite side of the house. In the late 1780s the house was enlarged at the rear and a bay window was added on the north side. Thomas Leader retired in 1797 but his family continued to reside there until 1817 with one of his sons Daniel living in the house for a time. In 1817 Leader House was sold to the Pearson family and between 1853 and 1873 Mr Pearson’s daughter lived there with her husband, the surgeon H. Brown Fisher. Charles Wardlow, owner of Wardlows Steel Company on Carlisle Street in Sheffield bought the house in 1872 and later his son Marmaduke lived there, spending large amounts of money to renovate and improve the building.''"Sheffield‘s Remarkable Houses"'', Roger Redfern, The Cottage Press, , Page 9 Gives general history of house. The house was sold by the Wardlows in 1920 and had several occupants in the following years including the silversmith company Thomas Bradbury & Son whose workshops were in nearby Arundel Street, and the accountants Joshua Worley & Sons who later moved to
Paradise Square Paradise Square is a Georgian square in the City of Sheffield, England. Located to the northwest of Sheffield Cathedral, the square is set on a slope and was formerly used for public meetings. History Paradise Square was built in the 18th c ...
. The house was purchased by
Sheffield Corporation Sheffield City Council is the city council for the metropolitan borough of Sheffield in South Yorkshire, England. It consists of 84 councillors, elected to represent 28 wards, each with three councillors. It is currently under No Overall Contr ...
in May 1938 and was designated as a
listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
in May 1952. On 20 March 1970 Sheffield Corporation applied to the Minister of Housing for Listed Building Consent to demolish Leader House so a modern circular
register office A register office or The General Register Office, much more commonly but erroneously registry office (except in official use), is a British government office where births, deaths, marriages, civil partnership, stillbirths and adoptions in England ...
could be built on the site. The project was strongly opposed by th
Hallamshire Historical Building Society
which resulted in a public enquiry being held in September 1970. On 27 November 1970 the Minister gave the decision that Leader House should not be demolished. The circular register office known locally as the “Wedding Cake” was eventually constructed on a site 100 metres to the SW and was demolished in 2004. Picture Sheffield
Gives history.
From 1970 Leader House was leased out by the Council and became part of the Sheffield Polytechnic which later became Sheffield Hallam University. In recent years the building has reverted to use by Sheffield City Council and is now the administration offices of
Museums Sheffield Sheffield Galleries and Museums Trust, known as Museums Sheffield is a charity created in 1998 to run Sheffield City Council’s non-industrial museums and galleries. Museums Sheffield currently manages three sites in the city: Graves Art Galle ...
. The late 1880s extension to the rear of Leader House is classed as a separate building with the address 2 Surrey Place, for many years it housed the Central Deaf Club, it is now used by The Source Skills Academy, a training and development organisation.


Architecture

Leader House is brick built with a slate roof with one brick and two rendered gable stacks. On the north side is the main
pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedim ...
ed door with
Doric Doric may refer to: * Doric, of or relating to the Dorians of ancient Greece ** Doric Greek, the dialects of the Dorians * Doric order, a style of ancient Greek architecture * Doric mode, a synonym of Dorian mode * Doric dialect (Scotland) * Doric ...
columns and a large canted
bay window A bay window is a window space projecting outward from the main walls of a building and forming a bay in a room. Types Bay window is a generic term for all protruding window constructions, regardless of whether they are curved or angular, or ...
. The house is three storied with a three window range at the front, these being twelve pane
sashes Sashes Island is an island in the River Thames in England at Cookham Lock near Cookham, Berkshire. It is now open farmland, but has Roman and Anglo-Saxon connections. The island is located between Hedsor Water and the present navigation cha ...
on the first two floors and six pain sashes on the top storey."''Pevenser Architectural Guides - Sheffield''", Ruth Harman & John Minnis, Yale University Press, Page 101, Gives details of architecture. Images of England
Gives architectural details.


References

{{SheffieldStructures Houses completed in 1770 Houses in Sheffield History of Sheffield Grade II listed buildings in Sheffield 1770 establishments in England