Introduction
The redevelopment of the former York College for Girls, 62-68 Low Petergate (NGR SE60395204), in 2004-5 brought a new lease of life to a neglected group of buildings with a very long and interesting history. The restoration of the old buildings, parts of which date from the 15th century, was undertaken by George Houlton and Sons Ltd. and was combined with the construction of a new block of apartments between the old school buildings and the churchyard of Holy Trinity Gooodramgate.

Petergate in the late 19th century

Low Petergate in the late 19th century, looking north-west towards the Minster, by an unknown photographer

The archaeological excavation was funded by George Houlton and Son Ltd and was carried out by York Archaeological Trust (YAT) between March and July 2004. The area excavated was within the 'footprint' of the new apartment building, in an area behind 64 and 66 Low Petergate. The main objectives were the mitigation of disturbance to the archaeological remains during preparation of the foundations, and the recovery of archaeological evidence for the medieval and later use of the site. The work was carried out to the specification by the City of York Council Archaeologist John Oxley. Excavation was continued down to a depth of 16.05m OD within the 'footprint' of the new building and to a greater depth in places where additional trenches were dug.

Site location - click for enlargement

Site location

Click for trench location

Trench location

The excavation was carried out under somewhat adverse conditions whilst demolition and building works were ongoing in the properties fronting on to Low Petergate, but due to the patient assistance of the contractor and their site staff, the programme of excavation and building recording progressed steadily. A mechanical digger was used to remove modern overburden, after which targeted excavation was continued by hand to focus on areas of particular archaeological significance. Previous interventions on the site in 1957-8 (Wenham 1972) and 2003 (Johnson 2003) had shown that there was evidence for horn, leather and metal working industry on the site, that waterlogged remains might be encountered and that there were surviving remains of both medieval and post-medieval buildings.

Eight additional trenches were excavated in order to sample deposits in peripheral areas of the site, to target specific structural remains and for services to the new buildings.

Building recording was carried out in May 2004. The timber framed structures were the principal focus of the building recording, with a photographic record of later buildings or features where necessary. The objective of the building survey was to record and interpret previously unseen detail exposed during the renovation work to enhance previous work undertaken by the Royal Commission on Historical Monuments (RCHM) before the partial demolition of some of the structures in the late 1950s.