The colliery agent, John Blenkinsop designed an iron railway and its first steam-powered locomotive which was built by Matthew Murray in Holbeck.

The coal mines on which the local economy was based lasted until 1968 and the railway is preserved and run by a trust after operating for 200 years.

The village developed along Town Street, a school, chapel and church were built in the 19th century but after the land was acquired by Leeds Council in 1920 a large council housing estate was built on the flatter land to the south, completely changing the rural nature of the settlement.

The name Middleton is derived from the Old English middel-tun,[3][4] in this case the middle settlement or farm on the road from Morley to Rothwell.

In the 13th century the boundary between Middleton and Beeston became the focus of a protracted dispute over where it lay in the dense woodland which covered the area.

The dispute between William Grammary and Adam de Beeston was settled in 1209 by single combat and resulted in the construction of a boundary bank and ditch, a stretch of which can still be seen in Middleton Woods.

John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster, held the manor from 1363 to 1370 and Simon Simeon, whose will mentioned coal mines, from 1401 to 1406.

William Gascoigne, who invented the micrometer and died fighting for the Royalists at Marston Moor in 1644, was another resident of New Hall.

[6] Middleton Hall on Town Street was built in the 18th century for the Brandlings but they chose to live mainly in Durham.

Charles John Brandling of Gosforth House, the Member of Parliament for Newcastle between 1798 and 1812 and for Northumberland from 1820 until 1826, married Henrietta Armitage of Middleton.

[8] Members of the family lived there until 1860 including R.H. Brandling who donated land on Town Street on which the church is built.

This type of mine was in operation when Anne Leigh married Ralph Brandling whose family owned collieries in Durham.

Brandling's 1,200 acre Middleton estate supplied coal to Leeds but was disadvantaged in the trade by poor roads.

The locomotive's first run, reported in The Leeds Mercury on 27 June 1812, was "witnessed by thousands of spectators and crowned a complete success....".

The Middleton Railway locomotives had a toothed cog wheel which meshed into a rack on the side of the rail, as it was felt this would provide the engines with a better grip when hauling coal wagons.

The worst disaster occurred in 1825 at the Gosforth Pit, named after the Brandling's Durham estate, where an explosion of firedamp caused 24 deaths; the oldest a collier aged 48 and the youngest a child of seven.

By 1923 just the Broom Pit was working, employing more than 1,000 men and supplying coking, gas and household coal and fireclay to the brickworks.

Leeds Council acquired land to construct "a vast low-density corporation built cottage estate with circuses and avenues".

[34] An early resident was Keith Waterhouse, who wrote about his childhood exploits as the only member of the Middleton Hiking Club, in his book, City Lights.

[34] Middleton was a township and chapelry[36] dependent on Holy Trinity Church in the ancient parish of Rothwell in the wapentake of Agbrigg and Morley in the West Riding of Yorkshire.

[38][39] Middleton was part of the Great Preston Gilbert Union from 1809 until 1862, which provided a workhouse and poor relief for the parishes within its jurisdiction.

It is situated on a hill and occupies most of a plateau which falls away sharply to the west (towards Dewsbury Road) and in the park to the north of Town Street from where there are extensive views towards the city centre.

[50] The old village was a ribbon development along Town Street which runs west–east along a ridge and Middleton housing estate occupies flattish land to the south.

[51] Most crimes committed in the area are violent or sexual offences, anti-social behaviour, criminal damage or arson.

[65] The 19th-century St Mary's Church,[66] with its contemporary lych gate and flanking walls are all Grade II listed buildings.

[69][70] The distinctive white concrete water tower at the high point of the hill is at the south west corner of the park on Town Street.

The tramway from Leeds ran parallel to the colliery line to Hunslet Moor staithes and then headed south through Middleton Woods to a terminus on the Ring Road.

By the age of 16, 32.8% of pupils achieved five or more A-C grades including English and Maths in GCSEs, far less than the Leeds average of 53.4%.

In 1497 a chantry chapel was endowed by Gilbert Leygh and dedicated to St Mary the Virgin, it was closed at the time of the Reformation though the building is extant and now a private residence.

[92] Middleton Park FC offers football coaching and has community teams for all age groups, from 18 months old to adults.