The parish of Leeds included the ten independent out-townships. It was one of the largest parishes in England covering some 21,000 acres. The townships became part of the borough of Leeds as a result of Charter of 1626. Peel’s Act of 1843 and Hook’s Leeds Vicarage Act of 1844 eventually divided the parish into separate parishes.
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.