Yeadon Town Hall Honours The Peate Family

Yeadon Town Hall installed new clock faces and restored its clock mechanisms in January 2021. For the first time in years, the iconic clock is ticking once again. To celebrate, the team invited the community to suggest a new name for the Town Hall clock.

After receiving hundreds of suggestions, a shortlist was eventually put to a public vote. Many of the names listed honoured both past and present local legends, including Richard Hogg and William Hill who were both instrumental in the building of Yeadon Town Hall.

After totting up the votes, Yeadon Town Hall is now delighted to announce that the community has named the clock “Peates Clock” in honour of John Middleton Peate. The clock and bell were first erected in his memory, so it’s a fitting tribute to name the clock after him.

The Peate family are well known in the Aireborough district. Joseph Long Peate, who first donated the clock and bell, was one of three brothers who built and ran Peate’s Mill in Guiseley. His brother, Jonathan, lived in Nunroyd House which still exists in Nunroyd Park today. The family were benefactors, donating money to buy the land for Yeadon Town Hall, Nunroyd Park and much more.

Jamie Hudson, CEO at Yeadon Town Hall, says:
“The people of Yeadon really do love our clock! For many, it will always simply be known as the Town Hall Clock, but this competition has sparked a huge amount of interest and hopefully given everyone an interesting insight into just some of the iconic historical figures who have helped make Yeadon Town Hall what it is today. We’re very pleased to share the newly-restored Peates Clock with the community.”

Andrew Braid, a descendent of the Peate family, says:
“Almost anywhere you look in Yeadon and Guiseley you can see the name Peat(e) - there’s even one on the war memorial in the Town Hall. It’s wonderful to see the family name live on and we hope people will remember Peates Clock for many more years to come.”

A commemorative plate is currently presented in Yeadon Town Hall’s clock tower, with several photographs of the plaque and clock available to view on the Yeadon Town Hall website: www.yeadontownhall.co.uk