9 wonderful old pictures of Petergate

As you can see from our pictures today it was a bustling thoroughfare, thronged with horse-drawn carts and carriages.

There were plenty of interesting shops and businesses, too: among them Seale's brush and mat warehouse at No 61 (with a giant brush hanging over the pavement outside to let everyone know the warehouse was there) and, on the opposite side of the road, Merriman's pawnbroker with its ornate gas lamp.

Petergate gets its name from York Minster, of course - the full formal name of which is 'The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of St Peter in York.

The street dates back to Roman times (no photographs from then, sadly) when it formed the 'via principalis' (main street) of the Roman fortress.

In the middle ages, the street was the main route into York from the north for those whom come along Bootham.

Petergate

There are still a few medieval buildings remaining, along with many others from the Georgian period.

The Hole in the wall pub at the top end of High Petergate is probably named after Bootham Barn - which was, literally, a hole in the wall.

Our photos today come from The Press archives.

Several date from the turn of the last century: others are more recent - including from the 1970s, in which the pedestrians thronging the street sport mullets and flared trousers.

One of the older, turn-of-the-century photos, is a little mysterious, however.

It was taken looking north along Low Petergate, with Merriman's to the right of the photo, and Seale's to the left. But where, in the distance, the Minster should be looming over the street, there is... nothing.

Is the absence of the great cathedral something to do with the angle the photograph was taken at? Or is it a trick of the photographer, or simply thick fog?

Whatever the cause, the photograph is incomplete and oddly eerie...

Petergate, probably about 1890, with Seale’s brush and mat warehouse on the left and Merriman’s pawnbroker on the right. But where is the Minster?
- Petergate, probably about 1890, with Seale’s brush and mat warehouse on the left and Merriman’s pawnbroker on the right. But where is the Minster?