Yeadon, West Yorkshire

A southern part of the town, north of Swincar Avenue on Kirk Lane and south of the A65 is in the Guiseley and Rawdon ward and the Pudsey constituency.Much of the area was later acquired by Bolton Priory and Kirkstall Abbey who exerted considerable power until the Dissolution of the Monasteries.In 1354 the villagers won a court case against Kirkstall Abbey over 300 acres of moorland between Yeadon Tarn (lake) and Horsforth, which now accommodates Leeds Bradford Airport.[3] Despite the English Civil War the area prospered and the population more than doubled to more than 400 during the 17th century, with 93 hearths (i.e. fireplace with chimney) recorded.The handwritten journal provides detailed insights into town life and the early Methodist Church in the district.[3] The watercourse became badly polluted by effluent from Bradford, Shipley and Bingley, leading to a successful court case against Bradrod Corporation in 1868.[3] Increasing social unrest and labour disputes in the early 20th century led to a major lockout and subsequent hunger marches in 1913.As a result of the dispute, the working week in the textile mills was shortened, and workers received a pay rise, although this fell short of the demands of the trade unions who in consequence streamlined their organisation.[5] Evidence of the medieval settlement is seen in fields to the north in Yeadon Banks which follow the strips of this time, and in the irregular and organic location of buildings around Town Street and Ivegate, described in 1878, as "a bewildering labyrinth of yards and courts and intricate lanes".[5] The geology is sandstone and millstone grit, which has been extensively quarried and used for buildings, and impervious shale and clay to the north, which allowed the formation of a natural hilltop lake, Yeadon Tarn, which was enlarged for industrial use.[5] In chronostratigraphy, the term Yeadonian—for a British sub-stage of the Carboniferous period—is derived from the study of a geological site at the brick and tile works in Yeadon.It is a Grade II listed building of coursed dressed sandstone, with slate roofs in French Gothic style, with a central tower with a clock.[20] Arthur Mee wrote "Though Yorkshire has many greater houses, it has few more charming than Low Hall on the fringe of Yeadon.[22] It was built in 1624, and has a porch added by William Sale in 1658, the stone believed to be taken from Esholt Priory following the Dissolution of the Monasteries.Yeadon falls into Leeds North West constituency, which is held by the Labour Party, represented by Katie White.The Avro factory next to Yeadon Aerodrome from 1938 to 1946 produced many of the company's wartime planes, including the Lancaster, Lincoln, York and Anson.