It was a Leeds suburb that once boasted ‘Prosperity Street’. Yet by the mid-1970s large swathes of Little London had been flattened to the ground leaving huge areas of waste ground. These photos show the impact of the demolition as locals walked around empty streets as houses around them disappeared forever. The images are a mix from the YEP archive and others published courtesy of photographic archive Leodis, which is run by Leeds Library & Information Service. They also run heritage blog The Secret Library Leeds, which provides a behind the scenes look at the Central Library and highlights from its special collections, including rare books hidden away in the stacks. READ MORE: Memories of lost Leeds pubs in Chapel Allerton, Chapeltown, Little London and Sheepscar LOVE LEEDS? LOVE NOSTALGIA? Join Leeds Retro on facebook YEP RETRO NEWSLETTER: Sign up for our free monthly email digest of Leeds nostalgia
1. Little London in the 1970s
February 1973 and large parts of Little London had been flattened to the ground. | YPN Photo: YPN
2. Little London in the 1970s
A young woman walks past Back Well Close View in February 1973 against a backdrop of demolition. | YPN Photo: YPN
3. Little London in the 1970s
A black cat peeks out as a man walks though the soon to be demolished streets of Little London in February 1973. | YPN Photo: YPN
4. Little London in the 1970s
A view taken from the car park of the Hobby Horse pub on Lovell Park Road in 1970, looking in an easterly direction across Sheepscar. | Leeds Libraries, www.leodis.net Photo: Leeds Libraries, www.leodis.net
5. Little London in the 1970s
A view taken from the car park of the Hobby Horse pub on Lovell Park Road, looking south-east in 1970. Waste ground beside the car park has since been redeveloped with new housing. The tower block to the right is the British Gas tower on New York Road. The view looks towards Quarry Hill Flats and Saxton Gardens in the centre. | Leeds Libraries, www.leodis.net Photo: Leeds Libraries, www.leodis.net
6. Little London in the 1970s
Flats of Oatland Heights, left, and Oatland Court, right located off Clay Pit Lane. These tower blocks date from 1971 so would have been recently built at the time. The view in between looks to more tower blocks in the background, in the Lincoln Green and Burmantofts area, possibly Marston Mount and Cherry Court in front with Brignall Croft, Gargrave Court and Scargill Grange behind. | Leeds Libraries, www.leodis.net Photo: Leeds Libraries, www.leodis.net