We are delighted to announce that we have received a Culture Everywhere Grant from Wakefield Council.
The grant will be used to extend our series of ‘Discover Wakefield’ leaflets which explain aspects of Wakefield’s built heritage. The new leaflets will be launched in September as part of the Society’s contribution to this year’s national Heritage Open Days programme.
Society President Kevin Trickett said “In 2021, the Society was awarded a grant from the Council to help promote an awareness of Wakefield’s architectural heritage. We were able to produce four leaflets which were accompanied by further information on our website.
“At the time, we were unable to organise our usual range of guided walks because the risk of infection from Covid and wanted to produce something that people could use to explore the city’s fascinating heritage on their own. The leaflets, which were made freely available at Wakefield libraries and at the West Yorkshire History Centre, proved popular. We were, therefore, very pleased to hear that we had been awarded another grant to produce more leaflets this year”.
The four leaflets produced in 2021 (illustrated above) were:
- Architect Charles Watson – the architect is credited with the design of houses in St John’s Square and the former Mechanics’ Institute as well as Stanley Royd Hospital.
- Monuments to Women – very often, it is the men who are remembered when it comes to historical monuments, but women have also been commemorated, even if fewer in number.
- Historic Pubs of Northgate – Illustrated with specially commissioned artwork based on old photos and period drawings and paintings, the leaflet maps out the locations of some of the former (and present) pubs of Northgate.
- A City of Art and Sculpture – the leaflet introduces some of the many artworks and architectural detailing that can be found just by walking around the city centre.
The four new leaflets will cover the following topics:
- The Barbara Hepworth Connection – looking at the links between Barbara Hepworth and buildings in the city centre with which she was known to have been associated.
- The Railway Stations of Wakefield – this leaflet will provide background to some of the city’s railway stations – many now lost.
- Historic Pubs of Kirkgate – Although Westgate is often associated with Wakefield’s night-time economy, Kirkgate had a surprising number of pubs over the years, most long-since demolished to make way for modern development.
- Lost Buildings of Wakefield – Many older people will have fond memories of Wakefield in the 1950s and 60s. Look at old photographs of the city centre and the sheer number of buildings that have been demolished is astonishing. This leaflet will highlight a number of the more significant ones.
The leaflets will again be made available free of charge from Wakefield libraries and the West Yorkshire History Centre. They will also feature in the Society’s guided walks and talks and, for a nominal amount, will be available to purchase on-line.
As in 2021, it will also be possible to download copies of the new leaflets from the Society’s website where an expanded text, with additional illustrations, will also be available to read.
For more information, have a look at the Society’s Discover Wakefield webpage: https://wakefieldcivicsociety.org.uk/discover-wakefield/
