77 Walmgate

Walmgate is a street in the city centre of York, in England. During the Medieval period, the street was the site of a seafissh and cattle market. Walmgate Bar, was involved in the Siege of York in 1644, during the First English Civil War. During the 20th century, many of the older buildings were cleared away and newer structures put up.

St George's Secondary School was a RC boys' secondary modern school in York, North Yorkshire, England.

The National Centre for Early Music (NCEM) is organisation encourages, promotes and disseminates early music. Located in York, England, it is based in the converted and extended, Grade I listed medieval church of St Margaret, Walmgate. Each year, the NCEM organises the York Early Music Festival.

The Walker Iron Foundry was founded in 1837 by John Walker of York (1801–23 June 1853) 'Iron & brass founder, bell-hanger & smith', at Dixon's Yard, Walmgate. The son of William and Elizabeth Walker, of the Aldwark-Hungate area, John Walker began a 7-year bound apprenticeship to Thomas & Joseph Gibson, Ironmongers of Pavement, York on 25 March 1815. Thomas died, and after completing his indentures, Walker stayed with the firm. In 1824 he became a Freeman of York and by 1829 he had become Gibson's partner. He must have been a very industrious young man, since by November 1837 he had bought out the Gibson foundry at 33 Walmgate and set up his own business. In 1827 Walker married Jane Thomlinson of Whenby. The foundry site (53°57′27″N 1°04′31″W) on the banks of the River Foss, which facilitated water-borne transport, was originally silty land that had been reclaimed by a medieval dam and was a notoriously unsanitary slum. Five of the Walkers' 7 children died, perhaps partly because of the unhealthy conditions, only 1 surviving beyond his 23rd year. Walker stood unsuccessfully as Conservative candidate for his local ward, but became a City Commissioner and a Churchwarden of St Denys Church, Walmgate. He 'for many years paid the expenses of instructing the men in his employment in singing, and by this means raised an efficient church choir'. [Yorks Gazette 2 July 1853] Beginning locally, supplying the first gas lamps and railings for St Leonards Place, the firm prospered and in 1845–6 supplied the gates to Kew Gardens, London. This commission earned Walker the patronage of Queen Victoria in 1847 and he was granted permission to add "Ironfounders & Purveyors of Smithy Work to the Queen" to his letterheading. In 1850–53 his firm supplied the gates and railings to the British Museum, London. The gates were designed by Sydney Smirke and weighed 10 tons, according to the museum's records. They were originally opened by a windlass. Walker's tender of £6,786 contrasted with 2 London foundries' tenders of £7248 and £9050. Considering the additional substantial costs of transport from Yorkshire, it seems likely that Walker astutely took the opportunity to acquire kudos before profit. He also supplied the cast iron standard lamps in the museum forecourt, which were originally gas. According to a British History report [1], Walker achieved his success by submitting tenders far below those of his competitors. He supplied many large landowners with gates and railings, including Queen Victoria at Sandringham, Norfolk. In 1843, following an accidental fire in 1840, Walker's supplied cast iron roof trusses for the South Nave of York Minster, which were erected by the York builder George Coates. Then in 1849 they supplied similar iron trusses for Castle Oliver, Limerick, Ireland to designs by the York architect George Fowler Jones. By 1851 Walker's employed 52 men and according to the 1871 Census, 57 workmen & 5 boys. Measom's Illustrated Guide to the North Eastern Railway, 1861, says Walker's employed upwards of 100 workmen. Upon his death in 1853, John was succeeded in what had by then become an extremely healthy business, by his son William (bapt. Whenby July 1828). On 28 April 1855 William married Sarah Thomas of King's Snaith, York and they lived away from the foundry, at Lawrence Street, then Clifton Grove. In the 1870s William adopted his mother's maiden name, becoming William Thomlinson Walker, later hyphenating the names. The firm were then Thomlinson-Walker Ltd, Iron Founders. In 1856 the Dixon's Yard premises were sold for £1,000 and the firm moved to 76 Walmgate, naming the new premises Victoria Foundry (53°57′27″N 1°04′29″W). The Bill of Sale for Dixon's Yard lists a sizeable Master's House; Smiths' Shops with Chambers; 2 large Warehouses, a large yard, Counting Houses, Stables, Cowshed, Piggeries, Hay & Harness Rooms, in all about 1,639 square yards (1,370 square metres). It seems logical that the new premises were substantially larger, or more favourably positioned. Business continued to improve during the 3rd quarter of the 19th century, and in 1886 Walker-Thomlinson Ltd bought adjacent premises at 78 & 80 Walmgate to develop as showrooms. Walker's developed a healthy business exporting railings and gates to colonial and foreign governments, including the Botanical Gardens in Mauritius and the Maharajah Holkar of India.Walkers exhibited at Yorkshire Agricultural Society Show in 1857 and at the Yorkshire Fine Art & Industrial Exhibition in 1866. York Castle Museum has a leather-bound edition of 'Design Book No.1 of Ironwork' manufactured by WM. Walker 365/41'. William became active in local politics, becoming a Justice of the Peace, then in 1874, Sheriff of York. He became in 1854 a member of the Yorkshire Agricultural Society; was a prominent member of the York incorporated Sunday School Committee and also dedicated much time to his church. He apparently had a similar social conscience to his father and famously reduced his employees' working hours by half an hour on weekdays and an hour on Saturday. It isn't known at what hour work started in the mornings, but after the reduction they closed at 5.30 and on Saturday at 4.00. This gesture earned him the thanks of his men, who responded 'testifying to him their gratitude for this unsolicited concession' and allegedly his great astonishment and pleasure when they presented him with an engraved 'handsome silver inkstand, pen and pencil case, gold pen, letter seal and papier mache tray'. William became a prominent citizen of York and donated an impressive stained glass window to Holy Trinity Church, Goodramgate, York. He is depicted kneeling at the feet of Christ, bearing a scroll.[2]His only son, John Richard Walker (bapt. 10 April 1856 at St Denys, Walmgate) assisted him in the business and upon William's death in 1911, his recently altered Will named his son as beneficiary of the company. in 1886 John Richard Walker married Mary Louisa Esh. They had 4 sons, in 1887, 1888 1890 and 1900 and a daughter, Sarah in 1902. The 2nd son died in the First World War and the 4th son, Eddie (Herbert Edmund) moved with his sister Sarah Dorothy to Rhodesia. John Richard Walker does not appear to have been made of the same stuff as his father and grandfather. The firm floundered and John brought in fresh capital in the form of a Mr Birch, with whom he set up a new company at the same premises. Walker's ceased trading shortly after John's death in 1923 and his widowed 2nd wife, Sarah Margaret Jemima lived thereafter in extreme poverty, in almshouses. The area where Walker's once flourished is now known as Foundry Square Gardens and is currently being redeveloped for residential use, having been an office block in the 1970s.

The Bowes Morrell House is a historic building on Walmgate in the city centre of York, in England. The house was one of four for which a licence was granted in 1396 to construct in the churchyard of St Peter-le-Willows. It may have been used as a vicarage for the church, or alternatively for St Margaret's Church. In later years, the building was a cheap lodging house for travelling workers. By the late 19th-century, it was owned by the O'Hara family, bought out by the Kilmartin family in the 1930s. It was nicknamed the "doss house", and had a sign above the door reading "good lodgings down this passage", despite its reputation for poor-quality accommodation.The house is timber framed, with two stories, and originally had an L plan, with the main section being a hall 20 feet long and 10-and-a-half feet wide. An extension was built in the 16th century, giving the building a square plan. In the late-17th century, a further extension was added in brick to the south end of the original building, while the current second floor over the hall dates from the 18th century. The crown post roof survives, as does much of its timber framing, although some has been renewed.The house was partially restored in 1932. In 1954, it was Grade II* listed, and in 1966, it was bought and more thoroughly restored by the York Civic Trust. It renamed the building after John Bowes Morrell, one of its founders. It was later occupied by the Council for British Archaeology. In 2004, it was purchased by the York Conservation Trust, and from 2012 it was occupied by the Cyrenians drug and alcohol rehabilitation charity.

St Margaret's Church, on Walmgate, in York, is a Grade I listed former parish church in the Church of England in York.

St George's Roman Catholic church is located in the centre of the city of York, England, on George Street in the Diocese of Middlesbrough. The Church was designed by Joseph Hansom and was the first pro-Cathedral of the Diocese of Beverley.

St Denys' Church, York is a Grade I listed parish church in the Church of England on Walmgate in York.

The Watergate Inn is a historic pub in the city centre of York, in England. The pub lies on Walmgate, a street which had 20 pubs in 1901, of which The Watergate is the last survivor. The first record of a pub on the site was of the City Arms, in 1702. It was rebuilt in the late 18th century, and by 1818 had become the Five Lions. The new building was a coaching inn, with stables behind, and as late as 1881 it had regular carriers running each Sunday to Wheldrake and Full Sutton. By the start of the 20th century, the inn offered nine bedrooms. It began marketing some of them as specifically for cyclists. In addition to a bar and a smoke room, it had a dining room for women. It remained the Five Lions until 2015, when it was renamed "The Watergate Inn", in reference to the River Foss, flowing behind the pub. The pub has been Grade II listed since 1954. The pub is two storeys high and is built of brick. It was originally L-shaped in plan, but was later extended to have a rectangular plan. In the 19th century, a carriageway was built through the structure, to provide access to the stables. The part of the ground floor to the right of the carriageway is now a separate shop. The pub's tiled front was added in the 1930s. The interior of the pub has been repeatedly altered in the 20th century. The stables were originally a mixture of one- and two-storey structures, but in the 19th century were all raised to two storeys. They were partly demolished in the 20th century, and were later converted into accommodation.

York Barbican is an indoor entertainment venue located in York, England. Named after the nearby barbican attached to Walmgate Bar, the venue hosts a busy calendar of live music, comedy and sports, as well as business events and conferences. It has a 1,500 seating capacity and a 1,900 standing capacity.York Barbican is the host venue for the second biggest-ranking snooker tournament, the UK Championship, and has done so from 2001 to 2006, and then from 2011 onwards. The centre is located on the southern end of York city centre, opposite the city walls.

The Red Tower is a medieval tower that formed part of the city defences of York, England. It is located on the city walls at Foss Islands Road, on the stretch of wall north of Walmgate Bar and is the only brick tower in the city.

The Red Lion is a pub in the city centre of York, in England. The building originated as a house, in a yard off Walmgate. The original part of the building is to the north-east, built in the 15th century as a house with a first floor hall and other rooms below. It appears to have been truncated at the north-west end, and is now one-and-a-half bays long. The south-eastern end of the building was rebuilt around 1600, and an attic was also inserted. In the 17th century, a lower wing was added to the south-west, in two stages, with a ground floor of brick. There were further extensions in the 18th century, and a new front was added in the 19th century. The building is timber framed, but has been largely reconstructed over the years. The windows are 20th-century. On the first floor, there is an access between two bedrooms, linked to the chimney, which has been described as a priest hole. In the front bar is a bread oven, which the pub claims dates from the 13th century, and on these grounds, it claims to be the city's oldest pub. However, the building only became a pub in the 19th century.In 1912, the street of Merchantgate was constructed immediately north of the pub, and it is now accessed from that road. In 1954, the pub was Grade II listed.A legend claims that Dick Turpin once escaped through a window of the pub.