Precentor's Court

Precentor's Court
Looking east down Precentor's Court to York Minster in 2023
Map
Location within York
Length0.073 mi (0.117 km)
LocationYork, England
Coordinates53°57′44.90″N 1°5′2″W / 53.9624722°N 1.08389°W / 53.9624722; -1.08389
South endHigh Petergate

Precentor's Court is an historic street in the English city of York. Although certainly in existence by 1313,[1] the street does not appear on a map until 1610, and it is not given a name (Precentor's Lane) until 1722. It was given its current name exactly a century later.[2]

It is a cul-de-sac, running northwest from High Petergate at the western end of York Minster, in front of which the road apexes.[3] A snickelway, known as Little Peculiar Lane, cuts through to the street, at its western end, from High Petergate.

The frontages on High Petergate were developed with commercial properties for letting. A new lane, today's Precentor's Court, was developed, dividing these commercial properties from the canons' residences to the rear.[1]

Around 1540, the marble and stone bases of two shrines in the Minster were dismantled and buried in what is now Precentor's Court. One was later exhumed during construction work[4] and is now preserved in the Yorkshire Museum.[5]

The street was home to St Stephen's orphanage from 1870 to 1872, when it moved to Trinity Lane.[6][7][8]

  • Looking west down the street from in front of number 1. The southern wall of Purey-Cust Lodge (right) is the only building on the northern side of the street
    Looking west down the street from in front of number 1. The southern wall of Purey-Cust Lodge (right) is the only building on the northern side of the street
  • Gate into Purey-Cust Lodge from Precentor's Court
    Gate into Purey-Cust Lodge from Precentor's Court
  1. ^ a b York: The Making of a City 1068–1350, Sarah Rees Jones (2013), p. 146
  2. ^ An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in City of York, Volume 5, Central, pp. 199–212
  3. ^ View from the east, with High Petergate on the left – British History Online
  4. ^ "York saint's shrine on show for first time in 400 years" – BBC News, 7 June 2010
  5. ^ York: Art, Architecture and Archaeology, Sarah Brown, Sarah Rees Jones, Tim Ayers (2021), p. 264 ISBN 9781000399738
  6. ^ Historic England: York. Unique Images from the Archives of Historic England, Paul Chrystal (2017) ISBN 9781445675299
  7. ^ "York in old photos, from new book Old York" – The Press, 21 October 2019
  8. ^ "St Stephen's Orphanage 1870-1969". York Civic Trust. Retrieved 1 May 2023.