January is the perfect time to have a wander around the streets of York. The Christmas shoppers have departed and the tourists have not yet arrived in great numbers, so you can take time to look. So this month I am lifting my eyes up above the shop windows to see what there is to see. There is a LOT to see in York, so I am only taking you down two streets. I will take you down others another time. And previous blogs have looked at buildings in York. I will take you along Stonegate and then down Little Stonegate, Swinegate and along Goodramgate. I am not very good at drawing lines with a mouse. Stonegate follows a route from the River Ouse to the Minster and was once the Via Praetoria of the Roman City of Eboracum. This is on Stonegate, and is the upper stories of the pub called The Punch Bowl. It looks very old and probably is behind the facade .... but .... Does that say 1930? I think it does! But nevertheless it is a beautiful building and is the first thing that most people notice when they walk into Stonegate. In summer it has lots of lovely flowers. The pub is much older that 1930. Here is John Hogg listed as Landlord in an 1872 trade directory. And here he is in the 1871 census saying that he was born in Heighington, County Durham. On the other side of the street, on the corner with Blake Street is a shop now called Lakeland that sells leather coats and clothes. But for many, many people like me, this was the renowned Banks' Music shop, very quaint inside, where you bought sheet music. Time stood still when you went into Banks' Music Shop. Stonegate is all shops with empty spaces above. I don't think anyone will actually live in Stonegate now, but in the past families lived above and behind the shops. Hidden behind Stonegate are many little yards and courts which would also be full of families. There were many booksellers in York, and several on Stonegate. This little sprite is called the Stonegate devil and was outside a printing establishment. In the directory of 1822 above, there is a print seller and bookseller called Todd. He had a well known warehouse stacked full of books from floor to ceiling, so renowned it was the subject of a painting. This painting is by Henry Cave [1779 - 1836] and is in York Art Gallery. Just lock me in and don't come back for some time ..... so wandering along Stonegate looking above the shop windows, this is typical of the buildings with a gable end facing onto the street. There is a date 1482 on this one. But opposite there is this ..... Very different architecture, the flat Georgian front with equally spaced windows. The sign "Kleiser's Court" is above a door [shut], and whether there is access behind it I do not know, but who was Kleiser? The 1861 census for Stonegate has listed Martin Kleiser, aged 28 years, a clock and watchmakers employing 2 men and 1 boy. He was from Baden in Germany and had a wife Balbina with him, and his three workers, Benedikt Wilman a clock maker, Richard Riesley a watchmaker and an apprentice Franz Tristcheler who was just 15. They were all from Baden. Ten years later in 1871 there was another Tritschler, Bernhard, who was 33 years old, a watchmaker and jeweller, also from Baden, working further along Stonegate. And in 1871 the Kleiser family were still making watches, though inconveniently on two pages of the census. Andrew Kleiser was now head of the household aged 51 employing three men and 2 boys, so the business was doing well. His brother Joseph was also in the business and both brothers had married girls fromYorkshire, Hannah and Mary were both born at Little Fenton. Three nephews were in the business, all born York and a workman called Jonas Haffner from Baden. So with my back to Kleiser's Court, and looking up, this is the next building. Rather wonderful. Below it is ...... [can you spy a cat?] Hanging above the door, and between the lovely stained glass, is a sign that says "Holy Bible 1682". So I went inside and asked if I could buy a 1682 Bible. The two young lassies laughed but were sufficiently knowledgeable about the history of the building to tell me about the staircase and different rooms above. In spite of the VERY LOUD POP MUSIC I did gather that the building had once been a bookshop and also at one time belonged to stained glass painters. This was the bookshop that had been Todd's from 1762 to 1811. It continued as a bookshop until 1874 and then became the premises for a stained glass maker called John Ward Knowles whose business remained there until 1931. This gorgeous doorway is further along Stonegate heading towards The minster. It is very ornate with a lovely fan light and door knocker. There is a photograph of Queen Mary coming out of the shop and a handwritten note which says " A visit by Her Majesty Queen Mary to this shop formerley Greenwoods the antique dealers, is shown in this photograph. On the day she called the shop was closed so a young shop girl, Bessie Haggerty, lodging opposite at Taylor's Tea Rooms, had to fetch Mr Greenwood to open the premises. One of the Queen's companions was her son His Royal Highness the Prince Edward, who later became King Edward VIII. The Prince advised Bessie "Don't worry about me, you look after Ma!" Queen Mary was well known as a collector of antiques adding considerably to collections in certain Royal Households, an example of which is Holyrood House in Edinburgh." I can recall that this shop used to sell Scottish woollens and had a highly ornate fireplace with blue and white tiles, so I went in. The shop assistant did not mind me photographing the fireplace but told me it was not Jacobean but Victorian as the rear part of the shop was a Victorian addition. I have no idea whether this was right or not, but did note that she was selling some corderoy trousers that had been cut out with the nap in the wrong direction ..... ooooh. Opposite there is a row of jettied houses, that is with the upper stories overhanging the ground floor. Now I am going back down Stonegate into Little Stonegate to cut through to another street. Going back down the street there is a small diversion caused by this - High up above the street the sign for Ye Olde Starre Inne (make sure you add all the EEEs). Down a dark, narrow passage there is a tiny courtyard and a tiny pub. The sign says that this is York's oldest licensed inn and at one time was a posting house for changing horses with stabling at the rear. As you stand in the courtyard and look up you see all the different styles of roof tops. This building was once a Chapel. Very difficult to photograph as the street is so very narrow and in recent times has been filled with tables and chairs of various eating and drinking establishments. This was built in 1851 and used by the Methodists and was called "Ebenezer", a name used often by Primitive Methodists for their buildings. See 1 Samuel chapter 7 v 12. [Now I will be singing "Come Thou fount of every blessing" for the rest of the day"]. This shows how very narrow Little Stonegate is and how difficult it is to get a perspective of looking up. This is a quick way through to another part of the City, so quick march round the corner onto Swinegate where .... there are bricks with initials on them. Can you make a word out of them? Turning the corner and looking both up and down reveals that the initialed bricks are part of the York Central Mission Hall with foundation stones all around the outside. This was built in the 1880s and in 1934 became the Elim Pentecostal church. Marching on ..... and still looking up. Church Street was formerly Girdler Gate. If you eat too many pies you will need a new girdle .... but onwards towards Goodramgate. This ancient street is named after a ninth century Danish king called Guthrum. The first building in Goodramgate is The Old White Swan. The courtyard has now been covered over which hides the front of the pub. This was one of the arrival and departure points in York. You would leave parcels here for delivery by waggoners who travelled in and out of the City to various points to the north. George Dutchburn went towards Northallerton from here on Wednesdays and Fridays. Just a few steps further along Goodramgate is Holy Trinity Church, tucked behind some Almshouses. Very recently this blue plaque has been put on the wall of the churchyard. Here Miss Lister and Miss Walker made their vows to each other. This church was used (as were several places in York) in filming "Gentleman Jack". The portrait above of Miss Lister of Shibden Hall was painted by Joshua Horner [1811 - 1881] and belongs to Calderdale Council and is on the ArtUk website. There are several medieval parish churches in York. Holy Trinity Goodramgate must be one of the most atmospheric. It is always cold and damp, the floor rises and falls, the box pews are all higgledy piggledy and the earliest reference to it is 1082. In front of it are a row of Almshouses. This picture was taken before Christmas. There are some rather ghastly 1960s buildings opposite the Almshouses called Lady Row. So we will continue down Goodramgate a bit further. This shows the wide variation of architectural styles that can encompass one establishment. In 1872 the landlord of the Golden Slipper was Wright Batty. Here he is in the Trade Directory of 1872. Below is the 1871 census for the Golden Slipper with Wright Battye, his wife Elizabeth and two servants. Almost at the end of Goodramgate looking up there are the arched windows of a former Chapel. This was called Monk Bar Chapel and opened in 1859. The building now looks uncared for so it is hard to imagine what it was like in former times. This was also used by a branch of the Methodist Church. There were several different flavours of Methodism. Opposite a building which has a faded sign which reads "Red Lion Inn". this was a busy coaching inn with services towards Malton and Helmsley. So ends this little excursion through a very small part of York looking above the shop windows. The streets would have been very busy in times past. Goodramgate was a main thoroughfare often filled with vehicles, thankfully now pedestrian only. I will wander around another part of York looking above the shops again.
0 Comments
|
AuthorThis is where you can share creativity with me. I believe that everyone has something creative within them, and it is a joy to find ways of being creative. Blogging is NEW to me, so here goes ..... Archives
January 2024
Categories |