York Castle Museum
I first visited York Castle Museum as a child and was absolutely captivated by Kirkgate, the Victorian street at its heart. I have returned a number of times since and always find it a magical experience! The museum was founded by Dr John Kirk, a doctor from Pickering, North Yorkshire and first opened on the 23rd April 1938.
Located on the site of the former York Castle, the museum buildings themselves were once part of the 18th-century prison complex that stood on that site and the museum reflects this as well as exploring other aspects of both local and national history, the first of a new kind of museum in Britain.
One exhibition is full of period rooms, including the Moorland Cottage which shows life on the North Yorkshire moors in the middle of the nineteenth century. There is also a Victorian parlour, a Georgian drawing room and a Tudor dining room. ‘Toy Stories’ is great fun - although it is slightly alarming to see toys from your childhood in a museum exhibit!
‘Shaping the Body’ looks at the way fashion, food and fitness have shaped the body over the last 400 years. This is a fascinating collection of clothes and shoes, including an iron corset and crotchless pantaloons!
On Kirkgate, the oldest indoor street of its kind in Britain, you can visit the pharmacy or the sweet shop whereas Rowntree Snicket, just behind Kirkgate, houses the Poor Dwelling and the candlemaker’s. There is so much to see here and costumed members of staff are on hand to answer questions- or serve you in the shops! The street has changed somewhat since I first visited, but it has lost none of its atmosphere or charm, transporting you back to a bygone era.
1914: When the World Changed Forever is an exhibition which opened on the 28th June 2014, one hundred years to the day that Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated. Personal stories and national events are told here, making this a fascinating and moving exhibit.
‘The Sixties’ focuses on this most vibrant of decades, offering social history, art, fashion, military and astronomy collections.
Once a Georgian prison, the felons’ cells are a chilling reminder of the brutality of crime and punishment in the past. It focuses on the lives of eight former inmates, including Dick Turpin, the infamous highwayman, who for many years was thought to have spent his last few hours alive in the Condemned Cell, although this has now been disproved. As you enter different cells, films of the inmates spring to life as they tell their stories, some deeply poignant, others simply alarming.
Examples of graffiti carved by prisoners over the years can still be seen on the walls.
Visitors can walk down to Raindale Mill in the grounds on the banks of the River Foss and see the ruined walls of York Castle.
York Castle Museum is well worth the entry fee, offering so much to see and enjoy for both children and adults. They also do a very tasty sandwich in the cafe!
York Castle Museum,
Tower St,
York
YO1 9RY