Wakefield Heritage Open Days 2024

Tegwen Roberts, Heritage Development Manager for Wakefield Council

September is one of my favourite months. After the rush of summer events, workshops and festivals, the schools are back, the weather is (usually) still good, and it’s time for Heritage Open Days. Every year thousands of volunteers and heritage professionals across the country come together to deliver a 10-day festival of free events and activities that enable people to explore hidden historic places and collections, hear new stories and try new experiences. This year was a special one for Wakefield, as it was also part of the Our Year celebrations. It was also the 30th anniversary of Heritage Open Days nationally.

The 2024 festival ran from 6-15 September, and as somebody who’s relatively new to the area (having started as the council’s new Heritage Development Manager in June) I tried to pack in as many events as I could! It’s an exciting time for heritage in Wakefield. The council launched their new Heritage Framework in May and plans have started for a new heritage network to support local groups, share news and updates and promote opportunities for heritage across the district. There is plenty of great work happening, and lots of local people involved in celebrating local stories. The huge variety of Heritage Open Days events that took place across Wakefield District this year just shows the passion and commitment to heritage from so many different groups and organisations. From medieval herb beds to masonic lodges, churches and castles to coal mines, there was something for everyone, with spooky tours through church crypts and castle dungeons, to family events in museums and parks, art exhibitions, public art and concerts.

Every year Heritage Open Days gives people a chance to visit historic sites and buildings – or parts of historic sites and buildings – that aren’t usually open to the public, with expert tour guides to tell you about the hidden stories within. This year, in the Wakefield District, there were lots of church tower tours (some with the opportunity to chat to the bell ringers about their historic craft) including Yorkshire’s tallest spire at Wakefield Cathedral. On the tour I went on, we were able to stand in the bell chamber whilst the bells were rung (with ear defenders on of course!) which was an amazing experience. And the views from the tower across the city, with County Hall and Sandal Castle on the horizon, were breath-taking.

Views from Wakefield Cathedral tower (September 2024)

Views from Wakefield Cathedral tower (September 2024)

After carefully descending the Cathedral tower, I took the opportunity to visit the tiny Chantry Chapel of St Mary’s, the oldest surviving bridge chapel in England. I also called into St. John the Baptist to join their bell tower and crypt tour, which was very popular. They had so many people wanting to take part that they had put on additional tours, and it was easy to see why. The resurrection gates in the crypt, and tales of Victorian century body snatchers, were a chilling reminder of a time when grave robbing was a lucrative part of the black-market economy, supplying bodies for medical training and research. However, just as poignant for me was a small room in the tower where named coat hooks still stand as a reminder of the fire watchers who were stationed at the church during World War 2. These sorts of survivals are increasingly rare (and are easily lost) but tell a powerful story.

World War 2 fire watchers coat hooks at St John the Baptist Church, Wakefield (September 2024)

Holgate Hospital (photo courtesy Holgate Hospital Trust)

The Mental Health Museum at Fieldhead, run by the NHS, tells the story of mental health care through the ages, focussing on the pioneering development of mental health hospitals in Wakefield. Some of the most fascinating objects on display are unique artworks created by patients in the 1800s, including exquisite needlework and wood carvings. These give a rare insight into the personal experience of mental health patients in Wakefield at that time. When I visited, the museum was also showcasing ‘the Errs that bind us’ exhibition of work by local artist and poet L. Marie, inspired by her own response to the collection. It was great to see creativity and heritage coming together to tell such important stories.

During the festival I also dipped into the extensive programme of guided history walks and talks arranged by the Wakefield Civic Society, Pontefract Civic Society, the Friends of Waterton Wall and others. The walks and talks covered a diverse range of subjects including the history of our city parks and best loved streets, farming history, industrial history, public art and sculpture, the architecture of Wakefield and the story of liquorice, to mention just a few!

Some of my personal highlights were seeing the former Wool Stapling mill in Wakefield where Titus Salt (more usually associated with Saltaire) did his apprenticeship, before going on to become one of the UKs most famous industrialists; visiting the site of Pontefract’s forgotten Airfield, where fighter planes were deployed against German Zeppelins in the First World War, and exploring the World’s first nature reserve at Waterton Park with the friends of Waterton Wall. The last walk was particularly memorable as the second half of it was done by torchlight, with bats and owls overhead. Charles Waterton would certainly have approved!

Needlework on display at the Mental Health Museum (September 2024)

Friends of Waterton Wall torchlit tour of Waterton Park (September 2024)

On every walk I went on I felt privileged to be exploring some amazing new places and hearing the hidden stories of those places from expert local guides. Other people on the walks often had their own stories to share too, which added to the experience. And never let anybody say that heritage isn’t good for your health – in one day alone I did over 15,000 steps, and chatted to dozens of people, so ended the day feeling tired and happy.

Or course it wasn’t possible to do everything. I would have loved to have done a back-stage tour of the Theatre Royal Wakefield, and to hear the Featherstone Male Voice Choir, Pontefract Choral Society and other local choirs at the free ‘celebration of singing’ concert in Pontefract Town Hall. There were behind-the-scene tours of the West Yorkshire History Centre, and many other historic buildings opened their doors to visitors. The vintage mining machinery gala and underground tours at the National Coal Mining Museum for England sounded amazing, as did the exhibition on the personal world of Lady Sabine Winn, eighteenth-century female apothecary and expert in herbal remedies at Nostell (National Trust). I would also have loved to go stargazing with the West Yorkshire Astronomical Society at the wonderful Rosse Observatory in Carlton, which was opened in September 1983 by Sir Patrick Moore. Hopefully next year!

Huge thanks to all the people who put so much time and effort into sharing and celebrating our heritage at this year’s Heritage Open Days, and helping people share in so many unique and inspiring stories. I loved every event I went to and came away inspired and energised! I can’t wait for next year’s festival. As part of the Our Stories project, we are encouraging more local groups to get involved in Heritage Open Days. If you would like our help in doing that or would just like to talk to us about your plans, please get in touch at heritage@wakefield.gov.uk

You can also find out more about Heritage Open Days on their website here.