53°47′34″N 1°31′59″W / 53.792833°N 1.533027°W / 53.792833; -1.533027

Fearns Island (formerly Leeds Dam Island) is a small river island lying in the middle of the River Aire, between the banks of Leeds Dock and Leeds city centre. The island covers roughly 0.7 acres of land. The island acts as a break in the river, dividing the weir at Leeds Dam from Leeds Locks, a core lock in the Aire and Calder Navigation. Nowadays, the island and the lock are managed by the Canal & River Trust. The island falls at the centre point of Knight's Way Footbridge, built in 2007 to connect Leeds Dock with the apartments on the other side of the river. Leeds Dam was refurbished in 2017 as part of the Leeds Flood Alleviation Scheme.[1] The island falls within the council ward of Hunslet and Riverside and the parliamentary constituency of Leeds South.[2]

The northern half of the island was once home to various industrial sites, but eventually fell into disrepair in the 20th century. A proposal was put forward in 2010 to turn the northern half of the island into a nature reserve.[3] The plan went ahead, and buildings on the island were eventually demolished in 2016 and the area was given over to wildlife. As of July 2026, the nature reserve is currently undergoing renovations, including the construction of a pathway.[4] The island also hosts mooring posts for barges and other small boats along the river.[5]

Naming

The island takes its name from an old district of Leeds, Fearn's Island, named after the Fearn family that owned the mills in the area around Leeds Dam.[6][7] Unlike the old area, the name is typically spelt without the apostrophe. Historically the island is also referred to as Leeds Dam Island, as it acts as the western edge of Leeds Dam.[8]

The island is sometimes split on maps into North Fearn's Island and South Fearn's Island, with the North being the formerly built up part of the island, and the south being the area around the lock.[9][10] On many old maps, the island is simply left unlabeled, or labeled generically as Wharf.[11]

Very few newspaper sources from before the year 2000 refer to the island as Fearns Island, or typically by any name at all, so it's likely that the name was popularised by the Sea Cadets who were present on the island from the 1950s into the early 2000s.

History

Pre-21st Century

While a dam in the area was likely first built during the Middle Ages, the earliest record of industrial activity in the area is from 1636.[8] A lock was built between the island and what was then the north bank of Hunslet in the mid-1700s by the Aire and Calder Navigation Company, to act the western terminus of the Aire and Calder Navigation, allowing goods from Leeds to be exported to the wider world via the Ouse and Humber rivers which flow out into the North Sea via Hull.[12][13]

An Ordnance Survey map of Leeds from 1893, showing Steander and Fearn's Island labeled
An Ordnance Survey map of Leeds from 1893. Fearn's Island is labelled over an area of factories. The river island is simply labeled Wharf.

Across the river, the Nether Mills, previously owned by the Dunwell family, were acquired through marriage by Josiah Fearn, a wealthy salter and Lord of the Manor of Leeds.[14] Though Fearn would be tried for murder and hung in 1749, his descendants would maintain control of the mills.[15] This would lead to the area becoming known as Fearn's Island. Whether any of the Fearns had any control over the modern Fearns Island is unknown.

In the Industrial Revolution, the northern half of the island, the half large enough to house buildings, would become home to multiple manufacturing plants.[16] A small stone saw mill was present on the site during the 1880s.[17]

Leeds Dock was built on the adjacent bank in 1843, constructed for boats using the Leeds and Liverpool Canal and the Aire and Calder Navigation to transport goods and commodities from Leeds city centre out into the North Sea via the River Ouse.[18]

The island would eventually fall into disrepair in the 20th century. The industrial sites on the island were eventually vacated. The Sea Cadets would occupy the northern half of the island throughout the back half of the 20th century.[19][20] Ownership of the buildings in the area is occasionally falsely attributed to the similarly named Sea Scouts.[3]

At this time, control of Leeds Lock would be nationalised and put under the authority of British Waterways.

Regeneration

A notice sign referred to the island as Fearns Island, put up by the Canal & River Trust.
A notice sign referred to the island as Fearns Island, put up by the Canal & River Trust.

Leeds Dock, which too had fallen into disrepair, was put under the jurisdiction of the Leeds Development Corporation in the late 1980s. The area would be developed throughout the following decade, particularly following with the opening of the Royal Armouries Museum in 1996. A bridge over the island, Knight's Way Footbridge, was constructed in 2007 to connect the redevelopments at Leeds Dock with the apartments built on the other side of the river.[21] The swing bridge on the northern end of the island was taken down some time between 2006 and 2008.[22]

The Canal & River Trust took control of Leeds Lock upon their founding in July 2012. It is still maintained by them to this day.[23]

Following the 2015 Boxing Day Floods, the Leeds Flood Prevention Scheme began construction as part of a two phase scheme. The first phase was completed in 2017, with the construction of a moveable weir on the site of the old Leeds Dam.[1][24] The weir would go on to protect Leeds during the flooding in 2019.[25] The second phase of the scheme, constructed further up the river, was completed in 2024.[26]

Nature Reserve

In 2010, following a similar scheme in nearby Holbeck, a local proposal was made to transform the northern half of the island into a nature reserve, in response to the abandonment of the buildings on the island. The proposal went through, and the buildings were demolished in 2016. The area is now a nature reserve and is inaccessible to the public.[3]

In March 2026, following repeated cases of anti-social behaviour in the nature reserve, there were plans by the Canal & River Trust to turn part of North Fearn's Island into a community space, likely a public garden. The plan received pushback from local councillors. Labour councillor Paul Wray expressed criticism towards the Trust for their lack of communication with local communities.[27] Green Party councillor Ed Carlisle has expressed direct opposition to any plans to reduce the size of the nature reserve.[28] Following backlash, in May 2026, the Canal & River Trust publicly released proposed plans to focus primarily on habitat improvements and repair work on and around the island, as well as improved safety precautions for the public areas.[4]

Legacy

Fearns Island has had a limited legacy in the area, having been described in local newspapers as a "secret island" that continues to inspire people's imaginations.[29] In 2023, a bar and restaurant opened in Leeds Dock named Fearns, taking its name from the island.[30] The Yorkshire Evening Post has also described the island as their fourth best location for picnics in Leeds.[31]

References

  1. 1 2 Morton, Jeremy (4 October 2017). "£50million flood defence scheme opens in Leeds". South Leeds Life. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  2. ↑ "ArcGIS Web Application". leedscc.maps.arcgis.com. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 Benn, Hilary (5 August 2010). "From reclaimed islands to urban meadows, nature nurtures us all". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  4. 1 2 "Cllr Paul Wray (@paulwrayuk) on X". X (formerly Twitter). 20 May 2026. Retrieved 22 July 2026.
  5. ↑ "Fearns Island Moorings – Gazetteer – CanalPlanAC". CanalplanAC - Canal Route Planner. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  6. ↑ "1600 – 1800". Discovering Leeds. 25 April 2022. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  7. ↑ Pullan, Margaret (28 October 2020). The Monuments of the Parish Church of St Peter-at-Leeds. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-000-15030-8.
  8. 1 2 Historic England. "Leeds Dam on River Aire (1375063)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  9. ↑ "Node: North Fearn's Island (5731039621)". OpenStreetMap. 26 July 2025. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  10. ↑ "Node: South Fearn's Island (5731039693)". OpenStreetMap. 26 July 2025. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  11. ↑ "Leeds - Yorkshire CCXVIII.6.8". National Library of Scotland. Retrieved 31 July 2026.
  12. ↑ "Behind the scenes open day at Leeds Lock". canalrivertrust.org.uk. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  13. ↑ "History of the Aire and Calder Navigation". www.penninewaterways.co.uk. Retrieved 14 August 2026.
  14. ↑ Pullan, Margaret (28 October 2020). The Monuments of the Parish Church of St Peter-at-Leeds. Taylor & Francis (published 2007). p. 205. ISBN 978-1-000-15030-8.
  15. ↑ Ward, Cæsar (2010) [1749]. The whole trial of Mr. Josiah Fearn, of Leeds, in the county of York; for the murder of Mr. Thomas Grave, at the Assizes, held ... on Friday, the 10th of March, 1748. Carefully taken down in court. 1749 (2 ed.). Gale Ecco. p. 7. ISBN 978-1171057031.
  16. ↑ "What remains of the Victorian-era Leeds community that was wiped off the map". Yorkshire Evening Post. 26 July 2022. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  17. ↑ "Leeds - Yorkshire CCXVIII.6.8". National Library of Scotland. Retrieved 14 August 2026.
  18. ↑ Media, Insider (1 October 2014). "Approval secured for "unique" Leeds plans - Insider Media". Insider Media Ltd. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  19. ↑ Survey, Ordnance. "Ordnance Survey - SE3033SE - B". National Library of Scotland. Retrieved 29 July 2026.
  20. ↑ "Aire and Calder Navigation". Leodis.net. Retrieved 29 July 2026.
  21. ↑ Pontist, The Happy (24 April 2018). "The Happy Pontist: Yorkshire Bridges: 23. Knight's Way Footbridge, Leeds". The Happy Pontist. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  22. ↑ earth.google.com https://earth.google.com/web/@53.793155,-1.53395924,25.42488742a,244.24090653d,35y,1.47588554h,0t,0r. Retrieved 14 August 2026. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  23. ↑ "Trust in the People – the Canal and River Trust – Civil Service Quarterly". quarterly.blog.gov.uk. 15 October 2014. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  24. ↑ "Construction of groundbreaking £200million scheme to protect Leeds from extreme flood risk is complete". Leeds City Council News. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  25. ↑ Millington, Matt; Johnson, Kristian; Ovens, Ruth (23 January 2025). "Live: Leeds trains cancelled and diverted but flood warnings lifted". Leeds Live. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  26. ↑ "Construction of groundbreaking £200million scheme to protect Leeds from extreme flood risk is complete". Leeds City Council News. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  27. ↑ Wray, Paul (5 March 2026). "Fearns Island - What is Actually Happening". Facebook. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  28. ↑ Carlisle, Ed (27 February 2026). "Disaster at Fearns Island (Leeds Dock)". Facebook. Retrieved 26 March 2026.
  29. ↑ "The all-day brunch venue named after an island in Leeds Dock waterway". Yorkshire Evening Post. 16 November 2025. Retrieved 22 July 2026.
  30. ↑ "New restaurant set to open in Leeds serving roast dinners and signature sticky toffee pudding". Yorkshire Evening Post. 10 May 2023. Retrieved 22 July 2026.
  31. ↑ "9 of the best places for a picnic in Leeds according to the people who live here". Yorkshire Evening Post. 1 July 2023. Retrieved 22 July 2026.
allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fearns_Island