All History Matters by Carlo Harrison Taken from various documents held in the Archive Room, Yeadon Town Hall. Previously, the cloth was carried down to Leeds Cloth Hall (on site of General Post Office in City Square until it was demolished by Leeds Corporation in 1889). The Cloth Hall was governed by Trustees who decided the rules for sale of the cloth. Yeadon & Guiseley were represented by one trustee. Sales were for cash - on t neeal. Cloth also sold on stalls by producers that had served their apprenticeship. Sale day was Tuesday and the roads around Leeds would be full of hand-loom weavers who carried their pieces on their backs (if poor) by pack-horse or even cart. Wives and children watched anxiously for their return. Slater in his history of the Ancient Parish of Guiseley records that during a depression one weaver went to Leeds Cloth Hall every week for thirteen weeks without selling a single piece. No business was started in the Cloth Hall until a bell was rung. Haggling took place in whispers. After an hour and a quarter the bell rang again and all business had to finish. On a good day £30,000 might change hands a massive sum for those days. No wonder the wooded roads from Leeds were full of thieves. But when manufacturers like James Ives started up their own mills the domestic system on which the Cloth Hall depended declined & factories took their place. Also manufacturers disliked trading in close proximity to their rivals whose eyes often popped out like chapel hat-pegs to notice the patterns of their rivals. Thus they started renting special rooms & warehouses away from the Cloth Hall in which to display their wares. James Ives had a warehouse in Park Place until the company gave it up in 1907.
Posted on: Sat, 07 Jun 2014 13:38:53 +0000
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