York Castle Museum, York (must see)

York Castle Museum offers a very different experience from York’s medieval monuments. Rather than focusing primarily on kings, castles and battles, the museum explores everyday life, showing how ordinary people lived, worked, travelled and entertained themselves over the last four centuries.

The museum stands on the site of York Castle, originally built by William the Conqueror in 1068. After the castle fell into ruins, two prisons were constructed using stone from its remains. Today, the Debtors’ Prison and Female Prison form the heart of the museum and are connected by a gallery. The three-storey Debtors’ Prison was completed in 1705, while the Female Prison was completed in 1783. The notorious highwayman Dick Turpin was among those imprisoned in the Debtors’ Prison.

The museum was founded in 1938 by Dr John L. Kirk, whose remarkable collection of social-history objects became the foundation of its displays. Kirk created Kirkgate, a recreated Victorian street where historic objects are displayed among shops, workshops and businesses rather than behind glass cases. This immersive approach allows visitors to imagine the sights and routines of nineteenth-century York.

The museum’s collections extend well beyond the Victorian era. Toy Stories explores the history of children’s toys, while The Sixties looks at the dramatic social changes of that decade. The Cells tells stories of life in the two former prisons, and 1914: When the World Changed Forever explores the impact of the First World War. Shaping the Body: Food, Fashion & Life examines changing attitudes to clothing, appearance and the fashion industry.

Another unusual attraction is Raindale Mill, a reconstructed nineteenth-century flour mill that was moved to the museum grounds in the 1960s and was once used to grind grain into flour.

York Castle Museum offers a chance to step back in time and experience history through everyday objects and recreated environments. Try to time your visit with the half-hour guided tour of Kirkgate, and bring some 20p coins to operate the old-fashioned machines.