Wakefield Historical Society welcomes all those with an interest in history both on a local level and more widely. We aim to promote knowledge of the area's past and raise awareness of local heritage.  

We offer a programme of winter lectures and summer excursions and organise talks and short courses.   Members receive a quarterly newsletter and a Society Journal containing original research. 

Following the success of our recent Pontefract to Fotheringhay project, new activities for members include archaeological investigations and the transcribing and indexing of original documents.

coming events

Next Lecture:
8 February 2012, Ad Lib Gallery, Drury Lane, Wakefield 7.30pm
The Past From Above: Aerial Archaeology in West Yorkshire by Matthew Oakey, English Heritage Aerial Survey & Investigation team. An introduction to the work of the team with a look at what the mapping of aerial photography has revealed in our area, from Iron Age and Roman landscapes through to World War II military remains.

27 January 2012, Upper Mall of the Ridings Shopping Centre, 8.30am - 5.30 pm
West Yorkshire Archive Service, Treasures Voting Day: more information

New articles added:

2012 will be the anniversary of several historic events; Charles Dickens birth on 7th February 1812, the sinking of the Titanic on the 15th April 1912, Queen Elizabeth ll's accession to the throne on 6th February 1952, the Luddite Uprising in 1812 and the Act of Uniformity in 1662.
Find out about Wakefield's links to these events from new articles added to: Wakefield's History

Other articles recently added:
The Building that might have been the Town Hall. The history of the recently closed Museum building on Wood Street
When Wakefield prospered as an important inland port.