Two Ripon buildings with links to a Victorian tiled mural and the city’s newspaper industry have joined this year’s Heritage Open Days programme.
Events will take place from Friday 11th until Sunday 20th September, giving visitors the chance to explore historically significant buildings which are not usually open to the public.
This year’s national theme is ‘Everyday Histories’.
New additions include 6 Queen Street, formerly home to Handley’s and Dewhurst butchers, and The Portly Pig on Kirkgate, which once housed the offices of the Ripon Gazette.
A mural made up of dozens of ornate, hand-painted tiles once adorned a wall inside the former butcher’s shop.
It was due to be demolished in 1983 before Ripon Civic Society intervened to save it.
The mural was donated to the society and specialists from the Jackfield Tile Museum in Ironbridge removed and reassembled each tile.
Although a new location could not be found in Ripon, the artwork remains on display at the museum.
Richard Taylor, Chair of Ripon Civic Society, said:
“The two properties are additions to this year’s programme and it is particularly pleasing to be able to reflect on the role that we have played over the past 58 years in protecting the city’s heritage assets.”
The Queen Street unit is now occupied by Big Bites, owned by Alex and Natalie Sutcliffe.
With permission from the museum, Ripon Civic Society has produced a banner featuring the historic mural for the shop’s seating area.
Alex said:
“We relocated in June from a few doors down on Queen Street and were delighted to discover that we are in a building with such an interesting history.
“It certainly gives our customers something to talk about when they are tucking into their sandwiches.”
The Portly Pig also has a varied history, having served as Ripon Council’s offices from 1835 until 1851 before becoming a police station with its own cells.
It later became home to the Ripon Gazette and is now run as a pub by husband and wife Stuart and Katie Ross.
During Heritage Open Days, retired journalist Pete Mudge will explain how newspapers were produced before the internet, when reporters used typewriters and traditional production methods.
Other venues taking part include Ripon Cathedral, the city’s Georgian courthouse and its 18th-century Town Hall.
A programme of guided heritage walks will also take place during the ten-day event.
Ripon BID Manager Lilla Bathurst said:
“What makes Heritage Open Days particularly special is the opportunity to discover the stories behind buildings that people pass every day without necessarily knowing what happened there in the past.”
Ripon BID and Ripon Civic Society have worked together to organise the local programme, which is supported nationally by the National Trust with funding from the People’s Postcode Lottery.
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