Vicar Lane is a street in the city centre of

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

, a city in England.

History

The street was first shown on a plan of 1560, with some buildings already lying on the street. The town's workhouse was built on its corner with Lady Lane in 1726, while at its junction with Kirkgate, there was an open area with pens for livestock taken to market. The road long marked the eastern edge of central Leeds, with back-to-back housing to its east. In 1857,

Kirkgate Market Kirkgate Market (pronounced ) is a market complex on Vicar Lane in the city centre of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest covered market in Europe and a Grade I listed building. There are currently 800 stalls which attract over 1 ...

was built, with its main frontage on Vicar Lane, and when in 1904 it was rebuilt, the opportunity was taken to widen the street. By 1909, it was regarded as one of the main shopping streets in the city. Shops included the Willis Ludlow department store. In 1930, a

bus station A bus station, bus depot, or bus interchange is a structure where city buses or intercity buses stop to pick up and drop off passengers. A bus station is larger than a bus stop, which is usually simply a place on the roadside, where buses can st ...

was opened, serving routes to towns north of Leeds and on the coast, only closing in 1990. In 1964, much of the street was made one-way, but in 2021 it reopened to buses and taxis in both directions.

Layout and architecture

The road runs north from a crossroads with Kirkgate, continuing the line of New Market Street. On its west side, it has junctions with Fish Street, King Edward Street, The

Headrow The Headrow is an Avenue (landscape), avenue in Leeds city centre, West Yorkshire, England. It is one of the most important thoroughfares in central Leeds, hosting many of the city's civic and cultural buildings, including Leeds Town Hall, ...

, Harrison Street, Merrion Street, and Merrion Place. On its east side, it has junctions with Ludgate Hill, Sidney Street, Eastgate, Lady Lane, North Court, and Templar Street. It ends at a major junction with the

Leeds Inner Ring Road The Leeds Inner Ring Road is part-motorway and part- A roads in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, which forms a ring road around the city centre. It has six different road numbers that are all sections of longer roads. Clockwise, the road ...

, where it merges with New Briggate, and the two continue together as North Street. Listed buildings on the west side of the street include the early-19th century General Eliott pub, early-20th century 49-51 Vicar Lane, the Victoria Leeds complex of arcades, and the Grand Arcade. On the east side lie Kirkgate Market, the early-20th century 50–56 Vicar Lane, 58 Vicar Lane, 60 and 62 Vicar Lane, Wrays Buildings, Coronation Buildings, County Houses, 90–94 Vicar Lane, the early-19th century Templar Hotel.{{NHLE , desc=Templar Hotel, including 6 Templar Street , num=1460722 , accessdate=23 October 2023

References

Streets in Leeds