New Street (York) Explained

New Street
Former Names:Cumberland Row
Location:York, United Kingdom
Coordinates:53.9594°N -1.0842°W
Direction A:North east
Terminus A:Davygate
Direction B:South west
Terminus B:Coney Street
Commissioning Date:1745
Completion Date:1747

New Street is a road in the city centre of York, in England.

History

The street was planned in 1745. Two houses were demolished, a derelict one facing Coney Street, and Davy Hall, on Davygate. It was paved in 1747 and was originally named Cumberland Row. By the early-19th century, the street was generally known as "New Street". In 1891, the street was widened, and some buildings at the north-east end of the street were demolished.[1]

In 1805, the Methodist New Street Chapel was opened on the street. It closed in 1908, becoming the Central Mission, and then from 1910 a variety theatre. In 1922, it became the Tower Cinema.[2] It closed in 1966 and was replaced by the Davygate Arcade, which has since also been demolished.[3]

The street is now home to a mixture of shops and bars, with the City of York Council noting that it is a secondary shopping street, with the sides of some buildings facing the street.[4] The York Mix has noted ongoing issues with alcohol-related disorder on the street, which it describes as "teeming with bars".[5]

Layout and architecture

The street runs south-west, from Davygate to Coney Street. Much of the south-east side of the street is occupied by 3-9 New Street. One of the first terraces of identical houses built in the city, it was completed in 1746 and originally consisted of six houses, with four surviving. 1 New Street was built in 1959, in a style to match the terrace. On the north-west side is 8 New Street, built as a coach house in about 1745, which later served as the engine house of the Yorkshire Insurance Company.[6]

References

  1. Book: An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in City of York, Volume 5, Central . 1981 . HMSO . London . 7 August 2020.
  2. Book: A History of the County of York: the City of York . 1961 . Victoria County History . London . 7 August 2020.
  3. Web site: Tower Cinema . Cinema Treasures . 12 August 2021.
  4. Web site: Character Area Eleven: Central Shopping Area . City of York Council . 10 August 2020.
  5. News: York’s new bar in retreat after backlash – but police still don’t like the plans . 11 August 2021 . York Mix . 23 March 2017.
  6. Book: Pevsner . Nikolaus . Yorkshire: York and the East Riding . 1995 . Yale University Press . 0300095937 . 227.