EDWARD the Seventh was King, Arthur Balfour was Prime Minister, Sheffield Wednesday won the Championship and Woolwich Arsenal were promoted to Division One.

This landmark year of 1903 saw the birth of a York electrical business which was to become one of the city's best known for the next century.

Now, the building of House & Son, in Blake Street, is set to fetch millions when it is sold later this year.

Agents have been appointed to sell the well-known property, which is on the market after the business closed down its city centre shop last July.

It was opened by Alec W House, regarded as a radio pioneer, who stocked electric kettles, toasters and food warming cupboards. In 1924, the business moved from Stonegate to Blake Street.

The building, which includes 3,000sq ft of ground floor retail space as well as warehousing, workshops and office space, will be sold to the highest bidder at the end of June.

Andrew Hedley, of Blacks, has been appointed to sell the building, which is listed, and which Mr Hedley believes is a "major site".

He said: "We hear so much about York needing large shops. Well this is one - a property very much in the city centre and capable of accommodating another major retailer."

In 1903, Mr House was one of the few retailers who specialised in all things electric.

His son, W Stafford House, who was born on the premises, took over the business.

A radio specialist, Alec House first had a wireless department in 1922 and began to make his own receivers.

The shop was fully modernised as part of the shop's 70th birthday celebrations in 1973.

It closed because of a number of factors, including the low cost of electronics, growing competition from out-of-town stores and high car parking charges.

Property experts are expecting the building to be sought after.

Mr Hedley said: "I will let the market decide the value, but inevitably it will be millions rather than thousands."

Market forces

THE Blake Street building is not the first prominent York property to hit the market in recent months.

Last month, the Evening Press reported how the Main headquarters and West Offices at Station Rise were on the market for a combined £11 million.

Last July, York's Lendal Tower was snapped up for almost £1 million by Pocklington development company The Helmsley Group, while a shop and office complex in Market Street sold for £3.6 million when it went under the hammer in March 2004.

Updated: 09:46 Saturday, April 23, 2005