New Street, later renamed Victoria Street in honour of Queen Victoria’s Jubilee in 1897, was a continuous terrace of houses built in the early 19th Century for tenants of the Duke of Devonshire’s estate which then later appeared in the Great Sale catalogue.
It is a remarkably fine & unusual example of no-expense-spared Georgian Architecture. The design incorporated blocked windows between each house serving no purpose other than architectural balance and symmetry.
Likewise, to help create the sweeping vista of the street, the downpipes from the roof guttering were unusually recessed into the wall then covered with wooden panels which originally would have been painted to match the stonework. Only a few of the panels have
been maintained.
When the street was repaved in recent years the Civic Society persuaded Leeds City Council to use a superior heritage paving to compliment one of the town’s architectural gems.
