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 monthly e-newsletter, 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

Members - please note that subscriptions for 2012 are now due. If you have not already paid, please contact us for information on how to pay by post.

Next Lecture:
14 March 2012 Annual General Meeting and Members' evening. An opportunity to have a say in the running of the Society, and then to hear what some of our members have been finding out.

Saturday 25February 2012 11am - 4 pm. Medieval Food Event at Sandal Castle In celebration of the Festival of Food, Drink & Rhubarb, the You Are What You Ate Team will host a medieval food demonstration, supported by the Wellcome Trust. Learn about the ingredients used in medieval cookery and discover how they compare with the ingredients we use today. 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:
Wakefield goes Pop. E.P. Shaw and the mineral water industry in Wakefield
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.