The Round House (Leeds Commercial Van And Truck Rental Premises)

The Round House, originally an engine house and now used as a garage, was completed in 1847 and altered in the 20th century. The exterior was restored between 1990 and 1994. It was designed by Thomas Grainger, the line engineer, and John Bourne, the resident engineer, for the Leeds and Thirsk Railway Company. The building features red bricks of semi-shale type that have been pressed for a smooth finish and fired in a coal clamp, with stone dressings typically from Bramley Fall or Horsforth. The roof is slate-covered.

The structure has a single-storey polygonal shape with an annular plan. It includes a plinth and pilasters that define the bays, rising into a deep moulded cornice with a blocking course. The main entrance on the east side features a tall elliptical-arched doorway with incised, radiating voussoirs and a pedimented blocking course above the cornice. Each bay contains paired round-headed windows set in recessed reveals with rubbed brick arches; some early glazing remains, although there have been alterations and inserted doorways. The roof has skylights and slopes up to a ridge louvre, with the center of the polygon originally being open-roofed.

Inside, there is a brick arcade around the center, which once enclosed a turntable that was open to the roof. The arcade has arches that originally had wooden doors, allowing locomotives to pass from the turntable onto the stabling road, which includes a pit. The roof trusses are supported by the arcade and cast-iron corbels at the outer ends, featuring iron queen bolts and long diagonal braces, with tension members made of cast iron and compression members of timber. The roof is underdrawn with boards in places. The engine house was designed to accommodate up to 20 locomotives but ceased operation when the site was replaced by a depot at Neville Hill in 1898.