Rediscovering York’s Merchant Adventurers

Over the last year, the Company of Merchant Adventurers of York and the Borthwick Institute for Archives have formed a long-term partnership project to secure the future of the Company archives. Join us at the Merchant Adventurers Hall to hear about the project, and some of the many stories that can be found in the archive collection. You can also have your say on where our research work should take us next!

This event is a chance for the general public to learn more about the power of archives to tell stories from the past, looking beyond the Hall towards the people who built it, lived in it and used it. Using examples of stories found in the Merchant Adventurers archives (now held at the Borthwick Institute as part of a partnership project with the Company), we’ll also explain how members of the public can use the archives themselves to uncover even more stories relating to York’s trading past. Following the talk, we will look to harness ‘people power’, allowing the audience to have their say on themes they deem worthy of future research. This will help inform the Merchant Adventurers' plans for future exhibitions and research projects.

This event is part of the University of York's Festival of Ideas. This event is free.