Powerful photos take you back to a Leeds suburb in the early 1900s

Woodhouse in the 1900s: Memories of the Women's Social & Political Union's Procession to Woodhouse Moor

It was march with a powerful message at its heart - 'Votes for Women’. The Women's Social & Political Union's Procession started at Leeds Town Hall and ended on Woodhouse Moor. Bands played on Woodhouse Moor where thousands of people, both men and women, had gathered to listen to the various speakers from the 10 platforms. One of the most famous of the suffragettes to address the crowds was Adela Pankhurst, daughter of Emmeline Pankhurst and sister of Sylvia and Christabel, all leaders of the British Suffrage movement. Also speaking was Emmeline Pethick Lawrence who in 1912 was arrested with her husband and Emmeline Pankhurst for taking part in a window smashing campaign. They famously went on hunger strike while serving prison sentences. The day on Woodhouse Moor was a great success and was was carried by a huge majority as reported in the Leeds Mercury. The image from July 1908 was in a collection of newspaper cuttings which once belonged to Leonora Cohen, a suffragette who lived in Leeds but gained notoriety when in 1913, in order to publicise her cause she attempted to break the glass showcase in the Jewel House of the Tower of London containing insignia of the Order of Merit. A note wrapped around the iron bar she used read "This is my protest against the Governments treachery to the working women of Great Britain." The main photo from this gallery is among a number charting life in and around Woodhouse in the early 1900s. The images are a mix Leeds Museums Service and Artemis as well as others published courtesy of photographic archive Leodis, which is run by Leeds Library & Information Service. READ MORE: Woodhouse in the 1910s - An age of innocence against a backdrop of war LOVE LEEDS? LOVE NOSTALGIA? Join Leeds Retro on facebook YEP RETRO NEWSLETTER: Sign up for our free monthly email digest of Leeds nostalgia

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