THE history of York is the history of England, King George VI once said. But what about the herstory of York?

To mark 100 years since the first women got the vote in 1918, a group of researchers in York began compiling mini-biographies of 100 remarkable women who helped to make the city the place it is today.

The result was a remarkable website launched last year - herstoryyork.org.uk - which detailed the life of every one of those women.

They range from sculptor Sally Arnup to footballer Amy Tyro; York's first-ever woman Lord Mayor Edna Annie Crichton to Yvie Holder, founder of the York Racial Equality Network; and the writer and researcher May Kendall - who worked with Seebohm Rowntree on studies of the working poor in York - to town planner and conservationist June Hargreaves, who came up with the idea for conservation areas.

York Press:

June Hargreaves

Next week, a new exhibition dedicated to telling the stories of some of these women opens at the York Castle Museum.

Funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund and York Rotary, the exhibition will open on March 9, during York International Women’s Week.

"It will celebrate 100 inspirational women who, from 1918 to 2018, have made a difference to the city of York and whose stories have not been told or only partially told," a spokesperson for York Museums Trust said. "This will be showcased through a series of stories, images, community loans and related objects from the York Museums Trust collection."

Herstory.york founder Kate Hignett said: “The history of York is full of fascinating tales, but far too often it is focused on stories about men, told by men. Few women appear in general history books about York compared to men (about nine men to one woman). It’s mainly His Story.

"The Herstory.york project is neither exhaustive nor definitive in scope, it simply aims to make more women’s stories known and celebrated.”

Pauline Alden, one of the Herstory researchers, added: "I hope the exhibition will mean there is more discussion about what women have contributed to history in future."

Philip Newton, York Museums Trust's community engagement researcher, said: “We are honoured to be working with Herstory.york on this exhibition and are proud to bring such a meaningful and inspiring display to our visitors. The Herstory.york project is an amazing resource, and one which will be treasured for generations to come."

100 Women Changemakers opens at York Castle Museum on March 9. Admission is included with a general admission ticket to the museum.