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History of Leeds - Poverty and Riches
Living in Leeds in the 17th Century
In 17th Century Leeds the houses of the rich and the poor existed side by side. The cottages of the poor were found in the yards and courts behind the houses of the richer occupants.
The wealthy merchants built themselves fine houses – like Richard Sykes' house on Briggate, and Red Hall, built by Thomas Metcalf just off the Headrow. They had comfortable, well furnished houses. The poor had to pay a hearth tax and these returns show us that two fifths of householders only had one hearth and were living on subsistence level. They were the labourers, servants, journeymen and poor widows. A further two fifths of householders had two or three hearths, and could afford to live in greater comfort; they were the craftsmen, shopkeepers and clothiers of the town. The remaining one fifth of households had four or more hearths and were the wealthy clothiers, merchants, retailers, clergymen, professional men, landowners and gentry.
It was necessary, for the dignity and good name of the town, for the leading townsmen to find ways of looking after the poor. A poor rate was levied on the inhabitants, and distributed by the Parish overseers of the poor. Another way of providing funds for poor relief was through charitable bequests and donations. A Committee of Pious Uses was set up in 1620 to oversee the administration of the charities, and to make sure none of the money was misappropriated.
The measures for providing for the poor were totally inadequate and became increasingly expensive for the wealthier townspeople of Leeds. It was thought that the cause of poverty was idleness, and that if people were forced to work then there would be no more poverty. So in 1636-7 the mayor, Richard Sykes, and other members of the corporation built a house to be used as 'a common Work-house’.
The new workhouse was built on the site of the old free school at the junction of Lady Lane with what is now North Street. It did not end poverty in the town, nor did the inhabitants earn enough money to support the workhouse and care for the poor. Many of them were too old or ill to work, and there were younger people and children who were unable to find employment to keep them out of the workhouse.
Another way in which the richer townspeople helped the poor was to build almshouses or hospitals as they were called. The principle benefactor of the poor was cloth merchant, John Harrison. Having built St John's Church, and rebuilt the Grammar School, in 1653 he built two rows of almshouses, each with twenty apartments to house 40 poor women. The almshouses were endowed with a yearly income of £80 to give each woman a small pension and the means to maintain the houses.
Despite the benevolence of the townspeople and attempts by the corporation to banish poverty with hard work there were still plenty of poor people on the streets of Leeds at the end of the 17th Century, just as there were rich merchants building their grand houses in the town. There were also the gentry, the titled families, who lived outside the town, but influenced those who lived within it such as Lord Irwin who lived at Temple Newsam House.
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