Yarm Medieval Town : In-depth Information

In the medieval period Yarm was an important trading centre with its markets and fairs and as a port exporting agricultural produce and lead to the Low Countries. Under the patronage of the De Brus family, the town achieved borough status and began to expand. The lords of the manor also gave land to establish the Hospital of St.Nicholas and the Dominican Friary.

Evidence would suggest that the earliest settlements would have been close to the parish church on West Street. There was probably a ford across the river at the north end of West Street, with the Old Market Place at the southern end on Snaith’s Field. The High Street would then be a later development associated with the expansion of the town from the thirteenth century.

The wealth of Yarm became so great that it became a frequent target for Robert The Bruce’s raiders from Scotland, who sacked the town five times in the fourteenth century. As the size of shipping increased it became difficult to navigate this far upstream and Yarm’s importance declined. It was eventually overshadowed by Stockton and Middlesbrough, both downstream.

The parish church of St. Magdalene combines a sophisticated 12th century west end with a Georgian nave and choir, while Bishop Skirlaw’s bridge of the 14th century links Yorkshire to Durham. The northern span was demolished during the English Civil War to prevent Parliamentary forces from using it.

There have been several excavations in Yarm in the last 25 years, the majority concentrating on the West and High Street areas.

In 1977 Cleveland County Archaeology Section undertook an excavation on West Street. The earliest building was an aisled, timber structure with a hall running parallel to West Street and outbuildings to the rear, all dating to the middle of the twelfth century. It was later dismantled and another timber building was erected. The final structure to occupy the site was a substantial timber barn. The pottery found within the site is rather unremarkable, but one coin that was found may provide the best dating evidence. The coin was minted at York and is known as a ’Flag Penny’. These coins were issued when the north was cut off from the London mints, forcing York to supply all the region’s coined money requirements.

Map Reference NZ 417 130.

In 1980, the demolition and re-development of 101 High Street, offered Cleveland County Archaeology Section the opportunity to compare this main street with the results of the excavations on West Street. Two areas were examined over 10 days of excavation. An area at the rear of the High Street revealed a sequence of buildings and stables, the earliest of which dated to the thirteenth century. The High Street frontage site exposed a blacksmith’s furnace that dated to the fourteenth century.

Yarm Medieval Town

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In-depth Information