Bramley is a district in west Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is part of the City of Leeds Ward of Bramley and Stanningley with a population of 21,334 at the 2011 Census. The area is an old industrial area with much 19th century architecture and 20th centurycouncil housing in the east and private suburban housing in the west.
Etymology
The name of Bramley is first attested in the 1086 Domesday Book as Brameleia and Bramelei. The name derives from the Old English words brōm and lēah. Thus the name once meant 'open land characterised by broom'.
History
At the time of the Domesday survey, the nucleus of the settlement was probably located at Stocks Hill, and it developed in a linear fashion along today's Town Street. The surviving water pump and stone water trough on Stocks Hill remain from Bramley's medieval past. The accompanying blue plaque states "Stocks Hill, Bramley. This historic pump and trough are the last reminders of Bramley Village Green which was surrounded by medieval cottages and yards. The Green featured the stocks, pillory and an 8ft pillar which commemorated the holding of Leeds Market here during the plague of 1644-45". The area experienced an industrial boom and an associated population increase in the 19th century, mostly because of the development of the woollen textile industry in the early part of the century and due to the boot making and engineering industries in its later part. Much of Bramley was redeveloped in the 1960s and 1970s, albeit in an unsympathetic manner that damaged the historic integrity of the area and altered the appearance and the character of the town significantly. The Bramley Shopping Centre replaced the former town centre, and was Leeds' second purpose-built town centre after Seacroft town centre. Unlike Seacroft, the Bramley Shopping Centre replaced an existing town centre. The redevelopment replaced substandard shops and houses; many of the shops and cottages were dilapidated and in need of repair. From 2008, following a time of deterioration of the shopping centre, new anchor stores such as Farmfoods and Tesco took over existing premises or occupied new ones in the course of a general refit. The redevelopment of Bramley was condemned by English Heritage as one of the least sensitive redevelopment programmes in Yorkshire. In 2008 the Yorkshire Evening Post ran an article describing the redevelopment of a "once-picturesque area", and questioning the replacement of an historic Yorkshire town centre. Much of historical Bramley is now protected by the Bramley Town Conservation Area, which focuses on the area around Bramley Park across to Hough Lane.
Major John Geoffrey Appleyard DSO, MC and Bar Commando and SAS War Hero was born in Bramley in 1916.
Jamie Peacock MBE, English professional rugby league footballer who played for the Leeds Rhinos and the Bradford Bulls in the Super League, and captained both Great Britain and England at international level, was born in Bramley in 1977.