Public History Placement Student Introduction
Molly Shaddix
My name is Molly Shaddix and I am currently a graduate student at the University of York in the Public History MA. I am from Kentucky in the US, and I am passionate about making history and the past available for everyone! I am working with York Central Co-Owned in their Heritage Co-Owned project to create a ‘Co-Owned Heritage Statement’ for the York Central site. This project is about creating a complete history of the sites in York Central that are, at present, missing or under-detailed in the official narratives.
To do this, I have been working with archives and other materials to discover the past of the Foundry Sites, formerly the Phoenix and Albion foundries, and the areas surrounding them. This work, however, is only the beginning of more community-focused research about the memory of these sites we are beginning to trace in the historical record.
As this project progresses, we want to talk to different people in the community about their experiences of these sites, both in the distant and recent past. We hope to use this to add and reshape the ways these places are designated in official documents like Heritage Statements and Historic Environment Reports. In the coming weeks, we would like to host events and engagement opportunities to learn more about this place from you. We want to reflect on the ways heritage – especially working-class industrial heritage – can have varying and different meanings from the people who actually lived and worked there. This, too, means that these spaces have contrasting memories for the different individuals who interact with them. This project is about revealing the varying experiences of this site, and it is important to us that the stories are told – regardless of how different they are from person to person.
This research has already revealed much about the past of the site and its different forms. The history of the site shows that it has taken many forms and uses: foundry site, workshops, use by the Royal Mail, and others. The site was built during the end of the 19th century as the Phoenix and Albion Foundries, at first working as two independent foundries. In 1882, the companies in both of these buildings merged into the York Engineering Company Ltd. As the years went on, the foundries and their industries slowed, and by the early 20th century, the North Eastern Railway Company owned the buildings.
The areas surrounding the Foundry district, too, reflected the ways workers (and their families) shaped their homes and communities. This new population soon had new churches to attend, schools to send their children, community events (like an annual Flower Show), and football games to watch!
These sites, too, have been a part of the York story since their inception, and the people and history that have yet to be fully uncovered and written about must have their time to shine. This project, with your help, hopes to be able to close the gaps in our knowledge and reflect their history in new ways!
Image Credits
Photo 1 - Albion Foundry Plans. Copyright York Explore Libraries & Archives
Photo 2 - Wagon Wheels made in Phoenix Foundry. Copyright The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum [ CC BY 4.0 DEED]
Photo 3 - Photograph outside Albion Foundry Building. Copyright York Open Planning Forum
