| Description | Site of Leeds Zoological and Botanical Gardens, opened 1840, changed management 1848, closed 1858. Built to provide elevated pastimes for the operative classes. Said by Sprittles (1969) and Taylor (1986) to run from Bainbridge Road to Brudenell Road along Cardigan Road. Comparison of the 1st edn. and modern OS maps, however, clearly shows that the former area of the gardens lies between Chapel Lane to the W and Norwood Terrace to the E, and between Spring Road to the N and Cardigan Lane to the S. Property boundaries between Spring Road and Richmond Terrace follow the line of the NE edge of the Gardens. Victoria Rd. in the 1850s ran up to the E boundary of the Gardens, and Cardigan Rd. appears to be a later addition related to the parcelling of the property into building lots after closure of the Gardens. Gardens designed by W. Billington with E. Davies; copy of the design in Leeds Reference Library (get reference). Conceived as containing, among other things, an orangery, several conservatories, an aviary, a zoo and two lakes. One lake is visible on the 1st edn. OS map, and the presence of the bear pit (PRN 3988) indicates that the zoo was at least begun.
The area was visited by Ian Sanderson (WYAAS) in October 1999, and was reported to be either built over or as part of gardens. Archaeological potential limited. |