A Year at...
York Castle Museum
The development of Kirkgate, the famous Victorian Street, was the main project taking place at York Castle Museum. Essential work on the roof was carried out, the cobbles relaid, improving wheelchair access to the street, and more of the shops were opened up and made accessible to visitors with shopkeepers to talk to. A sound and light programme was developed to take visitors through a whole day in the street from dawn to dusk, evoking the people and their stories as they go about their business, adding atmosphere and life. The project was part funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund and involved working with a number of York communities including York Oral History group and ex-employees of Terry’s. Fishergate Primary School helped us on the design of the Victorian School Room. The York Theatre Royal and the local youth theatre group from New Earswick Primary School also worked on a dramatic piece that interpreted Kirkgate the street and we consulted with a Blind and Partially Sighted group about how we should approach the new displays. This was a major project for the Trust and an important project for York given the degree of affection visitors have for Kirkgate. This public consultation process was very helpful to us and we thank everyone who gave their time and energy to the project.
Another project was The 60th Anniversary of the Second World War - Their War, Your War which was a display about the personal experiences of people in and around York and involved contributions of memories and mementos from people from York to the war effort, ranging from WRENS and soldiers to airmen and the land army. We also worked with the City Archives on a project with local schools combining archives and objects from the collection. This was funded as part of a nationwide event programme supported by The Big Lottery Fund.
Spy Games, Second World War themed holiday activities at York Castle Museum