Raworths, the Harrogate law firm, hosted an evening of Harrogate history by well-known historian, Malcolm Neesam. The event, which took place in the President’s Suite at the Yorkshire Showground, was attended by over fifty property professionals from the area.
Malcolm Neesam, whose knowledge of the history of Harrogate is unsurpassed, began his talk from the earliest records of Harrogate in 1332 and the later establishment of the Royal Forest and the Great Enclosure. His talk led the attendees through the development of the Spa town, later to become a major conference town, with its long list of prestigious visitors from Lord Byron to Winston Churchill and Field Marshal Montgomery during Second World War. Malcolm’s talk included the construction, and, in some cases, demolition, of some of Harrogate’s most important buildings and he explained how areas of land were taken by developers whose names appear to this day on local road maps. The talk concluded by bringing the history of Harrogate right up to date with the construction of the Victoria Shopping Centre and the Conference Centre following the demolition of the Market and Rose Gardens and even included the failed proposal to construct a dual-carriageway across the Stray!
Jo Thirsk, partner and head of the commercial property unit at Raworths, said, ‘We were delighted that Malcolm had agreed to talk to our invited audience of property professionals about the fascinating history of Harrogate. The audience were most appreciative of this invaluable insight into the town’s development which Malcolm puts across in a very entertaining and interesting way. We were extremely pleased to have so many of our professional contacts join us for this event, especially as we were also able to introduce Andrew Lawson who has recently joined the property team at Raworths.’
For further information please contact Caroline Barr on 01423 340126 or Christopher Butterworth on 01423 566666.
