Bramham the Village in Times Past

The shop just visible on the left is Tate's, a general store and before that Miss Brown's sweetshop. Just around the corner on the opposite side of Back Street, Mr and Mrs Bowman kept a fruit and vegetable shop.

On the left is the Village School. Further down can be seen the original garage building which was erected after the First World War. Before this Mr Sanderson sold petrol in cans which were stored in a brick shed on the same site. In those days petrol was only sold in cans as there were no petrol pumps. Mr Sanderson used to carry cans of petrol in a cart up to Bramham Cross Roads in the 1920's to sell to those taking part in the RAC Rally, as they had gathered up too much speed to stop in the village. Inside this building Mr Sanderson repaired and built bicycles and radios and sold batteries. The present garage building placed further back was erected in 1954. On the right of the picture is a house whose front room was used as a doctor's surgery until after the Second World War. The shop in the photograph was a tailor's which specialised in riding garments and countrymen's clothes.

Originally these premises were used by Mr Hudson, a corn dealer, and then by Ross Wood, a farmer, to grind cattle food and store implements for Laurel Grove Farm and Prospect Farm. In 1936 Batty's named it Jubilee Works and man­ufactured purpose‑made joinery there. During the Second World War Higgs and Hill, a Leeds building firm, subcon­tracted Batty's to make doors for the Barracks in Gibraltar. When Mr Batty retired he sold the lease to Higgs and Hill who used the premises to store plant and service their machinery. They later moved out, and it was bought for housing.

Taken before it was converted into houses. It is said that this is one of the oldest buildings in Bramham. The slope down to the beck is one of two cattle watering places in the village. The other, half‑way down Low Way, is now enclosed.