Statue of George Leeman

As you walk from York Station towards the town centre you will come across this imposing statue of George Leeman who served three times as Lord Mayor of York and played an important part in the railway history of the area.

View Along River Foss Towards Morrisons

Looking upsteram along the Foss towards Foss Islands Road and Morrisons, note the rubbish collecting boat on the right of the river. It is a pity more regular use is not made of it as there was quite a lot of debris in the water, fortunately not too visible in the photograph.

Food and Drink Festival - Yorkshire Honey Stall

The Food and Drink Festival continues and here are some of the stalls in Parliament Street.

Holy Trinity Website

Some time ago I blogged on Holy Trinity in Goodramgate, one of York's finest churches within the walls.

Wednesday, 31 October 2007

Wednesday, 20 February 2008

There is now a website dedicated to this little gem and can be found at yorkholytrinity.org.uk

Just as a taster to keep you going until you reach the site, here is a photo of the interior showing the box pews.

Coming soon on my jollygreenp.co.uk site will be a circular walk that takes in Holy Trinity Goodramgate church.

The Changing Face of York

The plot of land next to Stonebow House has lain unused for a stretch of time, side by side you can see how the plot looked a year ago with wooden railings and getting overgrown. On the right is how it looks now that construction work has started.

Traditional Dance Festival 2008

No posting yesterday as I was involved with the York Traditional Dance Festival. This is Fiddlers Fancy a group from Stockport, processing along Daveygate past St. Helen's church. In the background are Minster Strays just emerging from St. Helen's Square into Daveygate. We started the day with fairly low expectations as the weather forecast was dreadful but the sun was shining most of the day whilst others all around us had sunshine. It must be the power of the Morris!

White House - Clifton

A few years ago this building had become really run down looking. Nowadays it is looking really smart with the blue woodwork contrasting well with the white paint of the walls.

Dutch Style House - Clifton

For my friend Chun See in Singapore, trees getting in the way of photgraphing a building so I have taken view from left and right sides of the tree that stands in front of this Dutch stykle house in Clifton.

Petergate Towards York Minster

As you walk along Petergate towards York Minster there is a row of shops in mediaeval buildings including Scotts Butchers (sadly now closed). Note the overhanging upper stories. Tax was payable on the footprint of the building hence the tendency to extend the building dimensions above the ground floor.

Goodramgate - Save the Children Charity Shop

Here is number 3 in the charity shop series, Save the Children, is located just a few doors from the British Heart Foundation shop shown in yesterday's blog..

Goodramgate - British Heart Foundation Shop

Continuing the theme of charity shops in Goodramgate, her is number 2. The British Heart Foundation shop is just a few doors from the Oxfam shop shown in yesterday's blog. Her you can see two pensioners who have just come out of the shop and are probably heading towards the Oxfam shop looking for bargains.

Inside the Golden Ball

In the bar some wonderful tiles were uncovered under layers of wall paper and paint the motif stretches across the width of the bar.

The walls above the picture rail are adorned with "sets of three" including the common set of three flying mallards. There are also flying pigs, geese, frogs, plump ladies diving into water and dolphins. Probably the most valuable of these is the flying Guuiness Toucans. The pub is also worth a visit for the beer which is well kept and served by pleasant staff.

Heworth House - Melrosegate

This imposing building used to strike terror into the hearts of learner drivers in York, as it used to be the Driving Test Centre for York. Nowadays it is probably a much more fun place to visit as it is a childrens' nursery.

Holy Trinity - Heworth again

This is the view of Holy Trinity from the Heworth Methodist Church.

Heworth Methodist Church is less imposing than Holy Trinity and is situated almost diagonally opposite Holy Trinity a little way into Heworth village.

East Parade - Berberis Darwinii in bloom

On a grey cold Sunday morning the Berberis Darwinii lights up the gloom with masses of orange flowers outside this house in East Parade, Heworth.

Doors within the walls 8 - Merchant Taylors Hall

The fraternity of St John the Baptist related to the Taylor's Guild were reponsible for building the hall in the 14th century. However, the 14th century origins of this building are masked by a 17th century brick cladding. The Taylor's Guild received a Royal Charter of Incorporation in 1661. Inside the building is a wonderful vaulted ceiling with exposed woodwork. There is also a beautiful wooden floor and some excellent painted windows. Unfortunately, the hall is not open to the public and the only way that you can see inside is if you attend a function at the hall.

Walmgate Bar

To my mind Walmgate Bar is probably the most dramatic of the gates into York simply because it still retains a barbican. At one time traffic used to pass into the city centre through the arch but as lorries became bigger and wider carrying heavier loads it became a frequent occurence for lorries to get stuck and damage the stonework of the bar. As a result traffic has been re-routed to the right where it can pass through a broader arch in the wall next to the bar. Cyclists as you can see in the above picture can still pass through the central opening.

Dick Turpin - Fact or Fiction

Is Dick Turpin fact or fiction? He really did exist but a lot of fiction has grown up around him. His final resting place is St George's Churchyard in the Walmgate area of the City of York. For more detailed facts visit the Wikipedia article on him.

To find his grave the easiest approach is via Piccadily and then turn into Lead Mill Lane and then turn left into George Street. The church yard is opposite the church bounded by a hedge. Entrance is through a rusty gate set in the hedge on George Street facing the church. Alternatively approach down Walmgate and turn into George Street following it round the bend until you are by the church and opposite the church yard across the road.

Hungate Outdoor Art

This seems a smart idea to me to reduce the likelihood of getting graffiti on these hoardings on the Hungate development site. The council have organised for school youngsters to create this outdoor art. It reserves the space and taggers seem to respect that somebody elses work is there. Or maybe it is just that this part of Hungate is a bit off the beaten track.