The Society has a collection of contemporary abstracts, or copies, of legal documents, mainly abstracts of title deeds. These are handwritten, or typed, copies of legal deeds and documents prepared by legal clerks whose job it was to copy those items, in the days before photocopiers and scanners. Such abstracts would have been produced to a buyer’s solicitor at the time of a property sale, and if the original deeds were not to be handed over on completion, perhaps because part only of the title was being sold, the abstracted copies would have been marked that they had been examined against the original deeds. Those examined copies would then be retained by the purchaser in their deeds packet. If the original deeds were handed over on completion of the transaction, then the abstract became superfluous, and some such items have found their way into the Society’s collections.
| People involved, vendors, buyers | Land involved | Dates | |
| 1 | Trustees of Mr and Mrs Crosland’s Settlement (4 copies) | Burmantofts Land nr Stoney Rock | 1801-1864 |
| 2 | Trustees of the Burmantofts Freehold Land Society | Burmantofts Land nr Stoney Rock | 1855-1877 |
| 3 | (Deed of Trusts) C.E.Fraser to Arthur Middleton and W.Ramsden (in relation to Rev. Henry John Torre) | Burmantofts Land nr Stoney Rock | 1890 |
| 4 | Mr Charles Edward Fraser | Burmantofts Land at Black Bank | 1820-1891 |
| 5 | Mr George Evers and devisees of Mr James Naylor (3 copies + notes) | Burmantofts | 1825-1832 |
| 6 | Mr George Evers | Burmantofts | 1847 |
| 7 | Mr John Wade | Bowman Lane Leeds | 1734-1817 |
| 8 | Joseph Jowitt Esq (2 copies) (plus family tree, plan and notes) formerly Messrs Whitelock | Sheepscar (premises formerly belonging to Messrs Whitelock) | 1707-1837 |
| 9 | Mrs (Ann) Lupton (3 copies) Plus documents and notes relating to sales of land in 1830s | North Town End, Sheepscar-Lane – North Street/Wade lane | 1788-1830 |
| 10 | Sir John Beckett (2 versions) | Spring Gardens, North Hall, Burley Carr | 1793-1853 +1752-1831 |
| 11 | Mr George Lax | Belle Vue Road Leeds | 1827-1861 |
| 12 | Darnton Lupton and Arthur Lupton (two copies) | Wade Lane Leeds | 1783-1835 |
| 13 | Henry Wormald (Cole’s Title) (+ plan 2 copies | Park Lane North Side Leeds | 1721-1825 |
| 14 | Mr William Brigg | Upper Clay Pit House Closes nr Woodhouse Ln | 1796-1837 |
| 15 | Arthur Lupton (2 copies) | Camp Road and North Street Leeds | 1809-1839 |
| 16 | John Bischoff | North Street and Wade Lane (Camp Road) Leeds | 1740-1832 |
| 17 | Mr James Bischoff | Towncliffe Close, Leeds | 1748-1811 |
| 18 | Mr George Bischoff | Sheepscar Lane and Longbalk Lane (Wade Lane/Camp Road) Leeds | 1752-1835 |
| 19 | William Beckett (2 copies) | Quarry Hill, Leeds | 1765-1833 |
| 20 | Mr Edward Wray | Sheepscar, Leeds | 1808-1875 |
| 21 | Messrs Edward Wray and John Jackson | Sheepscar, Leeds | 1805-1872 |
| 22 | Messrs Edward Wray, John Jackson and William Smith (+notes) | Sheepscar, Leeds | 1834-1871 |
| 23 | Matthew Rhodes | North Town End, Leeds | 1756-1819 |
| 24 | Devisees of Matthew Rhodes | North Town End, Leeds (purchased of Thomas Fenton) | 1756-1828 |
| 25 | Abram Rhodes +Abstract of Will and Codicil1838 | Sheepscar, Leeds | 1720-1834 (1838) |
| 26 | William Cadman and Robert Cadman (2 copies) | Sheepscar, Leeds | 1791-1864 |
| 27 | Devisees of Matthew Rhodes (+ notes) | Leylands, Leeds | 1710-1819 |
| 28 | Henry Wormald (Shann’s Title) | Park Lane Leeds (hereditaments near) | 1726-1826 |
| 29 | Henry Wormald (Stanhope’s Title) | Burley Bar, Leeds | 1733-1825 |
| 30 | John Blayds (with plan) | Hunslet Lane, Leeds | 1760-1826 |
| 31 | John Wormald and Henry Wormald | Drony Laith Farm (part) | 1701-1832 |
| 32 | Trustees of Christopher Wilson and Supplemental Abstract of Title of John and Henry Wormald | Drony Laith Farm (part) and Wellington Road, Leeds | 1701-1823 |
| 33 | (Abstract of Conveyance) Mr Richard Oastler to Messrs Teal, Kemplay and Teale | St. Peter’s Hill, Leeds | 1853 |
| 34 | (Supplemental Abstract of Title) Trustees of Mr Richard Kemplay | St Peter’s Hill and North Hall, Leeds | 1830-1850 |
| 35 | Mr. T.E.Upton | Park-Lane Closes, Leeds | 1719-1823 |
| 36 | William Thompson and the Executors of the late Mr John Lee (2 copies) | Park Lane Closes, Leeds | 1717-1810 |
| 37 | Devisees of the late William Thompson | Park –Row – building ground | 1815-1818 |
| 38 | Thomas Beckett | Bradford Street North Side (formerly Sparrow Hall Close, Tenter Garth, Cloudsley Close) | 1743-1830 |
| 39 | (Abstract of Deed of Partition) Mr Edward Wray and Mr John Jackson | Roundhay Road, North side | 1874 |
| 40 | (Indenture) Sir John Beckett to Richard Kemplay | St John’s church, Leeds (nr) – stable etc | 1817 |
| 41 | Mr John Bischoff (three copies, one with some restrictive covenants deleted) | North Town End, Leeds, two closes of land | 1741-1811 |
| 42 | Rev. Arthur Lupton | Nippit’s Farm, Mabgate, Leeds | 1764-1846 |
| 43 | Devisees of Arthur Lupton Esq (with plan and notes) | Nippit’s Farm, Mabgate Leeds | 1764-1867 |
| 44 | Richard Oastler and William Bracewell (purchased from Griffith Wright) (two copies) | Burmantofts, Near Fields and the Croft, Leeds | 1759-1826 |
| 45 | (Supplemental Abstract) Mr Joseph Leese | Burmantofts | 1832-1838 |
| 46 | (Continuation of Abstract) Richard Oastler and William Bracewell (2 copies) | Burmantofts | 1826-1827 |
| 47 | Mr Richard Oastler | St Peter’s Hill, Leeds | 1728-1825 |
| 48 | (Additional Abstract) Mr Richard Oastler (2 copies) | St Peter’s Hill, Leeds | 1844 |
| 49 | Messrs Oastler and Millington | Burmantofts | 1759-1826 |
| 50 | Robert Millington Esquire (with extracts from his will of 1852) | Burmantofts | 1842-1844 (+1852) |
| 51 | Trustees of Richard Oastler | St Peter’s Hill and Burmantofts | 1848-49 |
| 52 | Oastler and Millington (Further Abstract) | Burmantofts | 1859 |
| 53 | William Barker | Burmantofts | 1861-1872 |
| 54 | Mr John Jackson Junr. And Mr William Penrose (annotated) | Beckett Street, Leeds | 1826-1869 |
| 55 | John William Archer Esq | Potter Newton | 1855-1887 |
| 56 | Mr Emerson Crawford | Potter Newton – ‘New Town of Leeds’ | 1797-1862 |
| 57 | John William Hainsworth (+2 Abstracts of Conveyance to John Hainsworth 1842) | Calverley-cum-Farsley | 1858-1867 |
| 58 | Charles Kirkby | Sunnybank Estate (see 57) | 1726-1839 |
| 59 | Mr James Sigston (Supplemental Abstract of Title) | Portland Crescent, Leeds (formerly Sunnybank Estate) | 1840-41 |
| 60 | Julia Lyddon (+Plan now in wallet) | Mount Preston Estate | 1825 |
| 61 | Thomas Collett (+Supplement to Abstract) | Barwick-in-Elmet | 1776-1850 |
| 62 | Mrs Martha Spink | Little Woodhouse | 1742-1862 |
| 63 | William Williams Brown Esq. | Holbeck | 1722-1817 |
| 64 | Mr Jonathan Lupton | Sheepscar | 1732-1825 |
| 65 | George Vincent et al. | Marsh Lane/Richmond Hill, Leeds | 1765-1821 |
| 66 | Mr John Harrison Harrol | Marsh Lane/Richmond Hill (Leeds) | 1787-1826 |
| 67 | Mr William Thackray (+Plan in wallet) | Great Woodhouse | 1881 |
| 68 | Mrs Deborah Payne | Burmantofts, Leeds | 1790-1857 |
| 69 | Mr John Linsley | Quarry Hill, Leeds | 1704-1810 |
| 70 | James Bischoff Esq & Mr James Sigston | Jacob’s Close and Ing, Leeds | 1720-1813 |
| 71 | Thomas Whiteley (two copies) | Potternewton | 1788-1870 |
| 72 | Thomas Scholefield | Low Wortley | 1767-1840 |
| 73 | Ruth and Richard Sisson, Susanna Gill | Garforth and Barkston | 1621-1814 |
| 74 | Mr Christopher Graveley and Mrs Mary Turpin | Garforth | 1815-1849 |
| 75 | Mr Frances Sharp Bridges and Joshua Turner | Butts Court, Leeds | 1734-1809 |
| 76 | Messrs Lumb and Frances | Claypit Lane Leeds | 1827-1831 |
| 77 | Messrs Boynton & Allison/James Boynton Allison (2 Abstracts in 1) | Quarry Hill, Leeds | 1808-1809 |
| 78 | Trustees and Mortgagees of Mr John Edward Brook | Hunslet Lane | 1795-1839 |
| 79 | Rev.A.F.H.Scholefield (Supplemental A of T) | Garforth | 1815-1849 |
| 80 | John Eastwood | Woodhouse Moor(S.side) | 1639-1860 |
| 81 | Charles Kirkby Esq. | N. side of Park Lane Leeds | 1824-1860 |
| 82 | Mr Griffith Wright | Mabgate, Leeds | 1760-1823 |
| 83 | Andrew Fairbairn Esq | Woodsley Estate | 1859-1864 |
| 84 | Sir Andrew Fairbairn | St John’s Hill, West side | 1860-1864 |
| 85 | Messrs James Charles & James Smallwood (Supplemental A of T) | Land N of Burley Rd | 1875 |
| 86 | Miss Mary Knubley | Marsh Lane at Head, Leeds | 1760-1868 |
| 87 | Robert Capper Esq | Sheepscar Estate | 1720-1829 |
| 88 | Trustees of the late Thomas Strother | Woodhouse Lane | 1766-1826 |
| 89 | Michael Henry Scholefield | Barwick with Scholes | 1764-1853 |
| 90 | James Brown Esq, deceased | Harehills et al. | 1842-1894 |
| 91 | Mr Thomas Vince | Moorhouse, Garforth | 1755-1846 |
| 92 | Thomas Benson Pease | Sheepscar, Leeds | 1714-1838 |
| 93 | Mr George Lax | Meanwood Road, Leeds | 1873-1876 |
| 94 |
Over more than a century, the Society has built up a number of special collections, notably its archive, map and image collections, which have recently been re-catalogued to make them more accessible. These collections are housed in the Society’s library, based at the Leeds Library, 18 Commercial Street, Leeds LS1 6AL.