A £1.6 million Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) grant will create a new home for the internationally-important city archive.
The ‘Gateway to History’ project will refurbish the first floor of York Explore Library Learning Centre into the new home for York’s archives, including a new archive storage vault built to 21st century conservation standards.
The project will reach out to communities across the city to get them involved in adding their stories to the 850 years of documents already preserved in the archive which records all aspects of the city’s history from complaints about mediaeval prostitutes, the city’s reaction to the death of Richard III, the growing influence of railways and the Rowntree family on the Victorian city to the defence of York in the Second World War.
Fiona Spiers, Head of Heritage Lottery Fund for Yorkshire and the Humber, said: “Centuries of life in what was once England’s second city are detailed in this revealing and fascinating archive. We are delighted to support this project that will give the city’s present day inhabitants many new opportunities to discover how their predecessors lived.”
Richard Taylor, City of York Council’s Archives Manager: “The Gateway to History project has been seeking to secure a sustainable future for the city archive and this HLF grant will cover 88% of the project costs. The balance will be met by the council which will use this opportunity to complete the refurbishment of York Explore. This will include installing a new energy-efficient heating system, repairing the roof, refreshing the layout of the ground floor and the very successful cafe. Building work on the new archive is expected to start in summer 2013 and complete in early 2014 with as much as possible of York Explore staying open during the works.”
The project team will be inviting local people to get involved by joining the project Advisory Board, and to act as ‘Archive Champions’ for their neighbourhood or community organisation. The project also has an email address for comments, suggestions and feedback at gatewaytohistory@york.gov.uk