York Archaeological Trust was founded in 1972 at a time when urban renewal was leading to many ancient buildings in cities being taken down. Worcester is an example of this kind of destruction caused by the building of new motorways and bypasses. In York The Yorkshire Philosophical Society and the local branch of the Council for British Archaeology enlisted Dr Addyman, a young archaeologist, to write a report on the implications for archaeology of a planned inner ring road. Among the recommendations of the report was the suggestion that the city set up its own excavation unit, which would also be an education charity supporting both archaeology and tourism. The Trust was formed and Dr Addyman accepted the invitation to become the first Director. The aims were firstly excavation, secondly PR and thirdly education.

Today when we look at John Speed’s 1611 map of York we can clearly see that due to these initiatives the outlines of the Roman York legionary fortress is clear to see today. Early work included excavating the Barbican site, formerly the Cattle Market, where Anglo-Saxon coins were found. Teams often had very primitive working conditions with a hostel in Gillygate and a lab set up in the Marygate Hotel. Jim Spriggs set up an excellent Conservation and Preservation Unit, and a Publications Unit was also established. One of the early excavations was in Church Street of a sewer for the Roman Legionary Fortress with passages in three directions. On one occasion as Director, Peter found himself underground with the Duke of Gloucester, then a young architect, the tall, slim Archbishop of York and the rather more rotund Mayor of York, who was the one who became rather stuck at one point and was eventually returned to ground level minus his trousers.   

Another of the early excavations was under Llyods Bank, near Coppergate. Here the moist and peaty layers had preserved many Anglo Saxon/Viking objects. The opportunity then arose with the redevelopment of Coppergate to spend two years excavating the centre of Viking York. Many exciting objects were discovered including the Anglo Saxon helmet and a rare sock showing loop sewing, for which an ode was written: “Ode to the Sock”. It became obvious that a centre was needed to display many of the objects and the idea of the Jorvik Centre was born. Industrialist Morris Barley was instrumental in the fund raising campaign, which followed. The Prince of Wales and the Scandinavian Royal families were very supportive: Dr Addyman was at university with Queen Margrethe of Denamrk who was crucial. In April 1984 the first Jorvik Centre opened and it has been refurbished four times since then.

Further developments included the opening of Barley Hall and the transformation of the original Archaeological Resource Centre in St Saviours’ Church into DIG. Over the years over a million children have experienced hands-on archaeological experiences. The Trust now has projects and offices across the UK. York itself was host to 1 million tourists in the 1970’s whereas in 2014 there were 7 million and the Trust’s attractions are an important part of this explosion in tourism. York continues to provide rich possibilities for archaeologists including the discovery of the gladiator skeletons at Driffield Terrace and there is potential for finding more as sites around the city are developed.

It was a privilege to learn about the foundation and development of the Trust from its first Director and hopefully Peter Addyman will write a book about the many experiences of these 40 years in York.