Gillygate

Horsefair

Market Place

Salter Row

Ropergate

Baxtergate

Corn Market

Beastfair

Strike a pose! Snap a photo of your group next to

your favourite Pontefract building.

Share your photos online:

@experiencewakefield

@Expwakefield

Ancient ginnelsExplore Mauds Yard and the many

other narrow medieval ginnels in

Pontefract’s historic town centre.

Which yard has the best name?

Match-up challenge

PONTEFRACT MARKET PLACEFamily Spotters’ Trail

Mauds Yard

5 ButtercrossThis 18th-century market building replaced an earlier Saxon Cross. It was built in 1734, next to the town’s water pump, to sheltertraders selling butter, milk and cheese.How many arches does it have?

12 Pontefract CastleThis important fortress was built over 900 years ago. The castle has been home to knights and lords, visited by kings, housed royal soldiers in times of war and held several famous prisoners. Tick off these places as you explore the ruins. Gatehouse Kitchen Keep King’s tower Bakehouse Chapel

5-minute walk toPontefract Castle

10 5-13 GillygateThis row of shops, offices and houses was built by Oswald Holmes in 1906. He moved the family printing and newspaper business to here from nearby Market Place.Can you name one of the businesses here today?

1 Pontefract MuseumThe town museum was built as a library in 1904, in the fashionable Art Nouveau style. Take a look at the pretty terra cotta flowers. Then go inside. What colour are the wall tiles?

4 45 RopergateThis fine, stone-fronted house was built for a family in the early 1700s.How many panes of glass can you count in each window?

3 39-41 RopergateThis shop front is nearly 200 years old. The traditionalbuilding design has coloured glass windows.What do you think the shop front is made from – wood or stone?

11 Town HallSince 1785, Pontefract’s Georgian town hall has been used as a council chamber, public hall, magistrates court, prison, bank and fire station.The fire engine was once kept under the arches. Which emergency service is here today?

9 Red Lion HotelThis old inn was redesigned in classical Georgian style in 1776. During elections, local politicians made speeches from the balcony to the crowds below. How many pillars are there on the front of the building?

8 Market HallThis grand Victorian market hall opened in 1860 for local butchers to sell their fresh meat indoors. Can you find the carving of Pontefract Castle?

6 St Giles Parish ChurchYou can spot the tall tower of St Giles Church from miles around. The top of the tower is shaped like a crown. Listen out for the clock striking the hour.How many clocks can you see on the tower?

7 26 Market PlaceThis impressive building was designed asa furniture shop in the 1900s. It became Burton’s clothing shop in the 1930s.Which letter of the alphabet is on top of the weather vane?

War memorial

Magna CartaMonument

Shoe Market

Market Cross

Finkle Street

Bridge Street

2 11-13 Corn MarketBelieve it or not, the roof timbers in this shop building date from the late 1500s. Walk a short way down the passageway Belk’s Court. Can you spot a drain cover that was made in Pontefract? Who was it made by?

Wool M

arket

Medieval market streets

Many of the street names around

the bustling market place date back

over 600 years to medieval times.

Salter Row was where the salt

merchants worked. Baxtergate

was the street of the bakers.

What do you think took place

on Beastfair?

Valley Road

Take a closer look at each of the numbered buildings on your walk through Pontefract. Can you match up these details with the right buildings? Write their numbers in the spots as you find them.

Created by Blackbird Publishing

Produced as part of the Pontefract Townscape Heritage Initiative (THI) jointly funded by Wakefield Council and the Heritage Lottery Fund

Look around, as you wander through Pontefract’s historic Market Place – thereare many fascinating sights to discover.

Solve all the puzzles in this family spotters’ trail and claim your prize at the museum or castle visitor centre!

Spires, arches, pillars and towers!

Take a Stroll through Pontefract’s Past

A town trail for family spotters

Doodle a display in this shop window.Draw someone peeping out of the house window.What’s this shop selling? Give it a name.

Paint your own Pontefract StreetThe streets around Pontefract Market Place are looking brighter than ever! The Pontefract Townscape Heritage Initiative has been helping to repair and restore many of the town’s old buildings and preserve this lovely historic centre for years to come. Here are some of the buildings the projecthas helped to restore so far. Give them your own colour scheme!