The name is first attested in 1195 as "Burteg" and, around 1200, as "Burcheleia" which is more representative of other medieval attestations. The name derives from Old Englishburh, a 'fortification' and lēah an 'open space in woodland'.[1]
History
Cardigan Arms
Burley grew from a village in the late Industrial Revolution, and there are several streets including the word 'village' including The Village Street. The area from The Village Street in the west to the railway line in the east, and north of Burley Road forms the Village Conservation Area.[2] Parts of the original village can still be seen at the junction of Burley Road and Haddon Road, and around Burley Lodge. Most houses constructed in Burley were of red-brick, but were generally smaller and largely back-to-backs. Industrial and commercial buildings were also largely brick-built. There are some larger stone-built buildings on Kirkstall Road such as the ornate Cardigan Arms public house—although this largely pre-dates most of the buildings in the area—which at the time of its construction only Burley Village existed, with the Arms somewhat outside.[citation needed]
Mills along the River Aire were built towards the end of the 19th century, some of which remain standing. Housing for mill workers and others in surrounding areas followed, and homes were built further up the bank.[further explanation needed] Other industries in the area included printing, clock-making,[3] dairies and chemicals.
Before 1904, local government was handled by the civil parish of Headingley-cum-Burley. Thereafter, the area was incorporated into the parish of Leeds.[4] The ecclesiastical parish of Burley still exists. The boundaries of the ecclesiastical parish are very close to those of the postcode area LS4, so LS4 is often used as an indicator of being in Burley, although LS4 also includes a small area that is in the ecclesiastical parish of Kirkstall.
St Matthias' Church is situated to the south-east of the old village. Built in 1854, it is a stone church with spire, and was designated a Grade II listed building on 5 August 1976.[5] St. Simon's Church, funded by Edmund Denison-Beckett MP, was located on Ventnor Street [6] but was closed as part of a clearance scheme in the 1960s.[7]
Burley public houses and members' clubs include The Cardigan Arms, Bridgewater Arms, The Merry Monk (now closed),[8] Burley Social Club and Burley Conservative Club. There are three gyms, a 5-aside football centre and a nine-hole golf course. Burley Branch Library was open on Cardigan Road between 1926 and 2016, closing due to the poor condition of the building.
The main shopping area is on Kirkstall Road and Burley Hill, where there are shops and restaurants. Cardigan Fields leisure park complex contains a multi-screen cinema, a nightclub, a gymnasium, a 10-pin Bowling, a public house, and a supermarket.
Burley Model Allotments, in what was once a quarry, has more than 100 plots and is bisected by Beechwood Crescent. The allotments have existed since 26 August 1892 when Leeds City Council acquired the site. It was replanned in 1956 and 1957 and on 26 June 1958 they were re-opened as Burley Model Allotments by the Lord Mayor of Leeds.[citation needed]
Local artists open their homes as galleries to display their work as part of Triangle Art Day.[citation needed]
Housing
Village Terrace
Burley is characterised by red brick Victorian terraces including small back-to-back houses and through terraces. In the 20th century private houses were built including semi-detached houses around the Burley Wood. There are pockets of 20th-century council houses including a small estate of prefabricated concrete houses on Burley Road near the Yorkshire Television studios and an estate closer to Kirkstall.
Burley has a student population in private rented accommodation and in the mid- to late 2000s large scale student halls were built on Burley Road such as the former Opal Group now owned by CLV, Parklane Triangle, Unite Students and Iconinc.
Queens ARLFC play in the Pennine League Premier Division and have headquarters at Burley Social Club. Burley United play their games at West Park football fields, playing in Division 1 of the Sunday League. Burley RUFC play in Yorkshire Division 3 and play their matches next to Kirkstall Abbey.
Filmography
The Haddon Hall public house in Burley was used for the filming of the Beiderbecke Tapes.
Burley was the setting for the television drama Harry's Game, in which an estate (since demolished) in Burley was portrayed to be Belfast.[9] The Haddon Hall public house was used for filming in the Beiderbecke Tapes. Burley Park railway station is sometimes used as Hotton railway station in Yorkshire Television soap opera Emmerdale. Occasional scenes from Fat Friends were shot in Burley.[citation needed]
^A. H. Smith, The Place-Names of the West Riding of Yorkshire, English Place-Name Society, 30–37, 8 vols (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1961–63), IV 140-41.
^1911 Census of England and Wales, Table 13, 'Changes in the boundaries of civil parishes during the intercensal period 1901-11; effected under the provisions of the Local Government Acts of 1888 and 1894, and by Local Acts'.; LGBO 45137 via Vision of Britain. "Headingley Cum Burley Ch/CP over time". Retrieved 15 December 2019.
