Swinegate is a street in the city centre of

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

, in England.

History

The street lies within the area of Roman

Eboracum Eboracum () was a fort and later a city in the Roman province of Britannia. In its prime it was the largest town in northern Britain and a provincial capital. The site remained occupied after the decline of the Western Roman Empire and ultimate ...

, and remains of a late Roman building were found in excavations, along with part of a road surface, which may have been a

parade ground A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats, or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually celebrations of s ...

. The street was originally part of Patrick Pool, while the name "Swinegate" was given to what are now Little Stonegate and Back Swinegate. In about 1541, the street name was transferred, as pigs began being sold on the street, although this was considered inconvenient and was moved outside Fishergate Bar in 1605. In the 1760s, the

Sandemanian The Glasites or Glassites were a small Christian church founded in about 1730 in Scotland by John Glas.John Glas preached supremacy of God's word (Bible) over allegiance to Church and state to his congregation in Tealing near Dundee in July 1725 ...

s set up a meeting room on the street. St Sampson's Church Infant School opened on the street in 1861, but closed in 1873. The York Central Mission built a chapel on the street in 1910, which was later taken over by the

Elim Pentecostal Church The Elim Pentecostal Church is a UK-based Pentecostal Christian denomination. History George Jeffreys (1889–1962), a Welshman, founded the ''Elim Pentecostal Church'' in Monaghan, Ireland in 1915. Jeffreys was an evangelist with a Welsh Co ...

. The street is now lined with cafes, restaurants and designer shops.

Layout and architecture

The street runs south-east from the junction of

Grape Lane Grape Lane is a street in the city centre of York, in England. History The site of the street lay within the city walls of Roman Eboracum, and Roman goods have been found under the soil. Remains of Mediaeval buildings have also been found. T ...

and Coffee Yard, to its junction with Church Street and Patrick Pool. Back Swinegate runs off the south-west side of the street, as does the snickelway Three Cranes Lane, while the Lund's Court snickelway runs off the north-east side. Notable buildings on the south-west side of the street include the Elim Tabernacle, built in 1910; 31 Swinegate, built in the early-19th century; 33 Swinegate, from the second quarter of the 18th-century, but with some 17th-century structure; and 39 Swinegate, a modern building with some timber framing from around 1600 in the side wall. Part of the north-east side is taken up by Swinegate Court.

References

{{Streets of York Streets in York