Metropolitanisation saw Leeds extended to take in Otley, Pudsey, Rothwell and Wetherby. Many of the absorbed towns bitterly resented the move. The Local Government Reorganisation Act of 1972 created the new metropolitan authority which came into being on 1 April 1974. The population of Leeds increased to 738,931.
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.