Barley Hall

About Barley Hall

The property was once home to a medieval goldsmith and Lord Mayor of York, William Snawsell, who lived here from the mid-1460s until the 1480s.

Now a visitor attraction, the house is decorated to replicate what Snawsell’s home would have looked like in the late 15th century.

Originally constructed in 1360, the property served first as accommodation for clergymen from Nostell Priory in Wakefield, when they attended business meetings and services in York.

Later extended and remodelled, the house was leased to tenants like Snawsell, but was confiscated by the Crown in the 1540s during the Dissolution of the Monasteries.

Barley Hall was broken up into separate dwellings, becoming a series of tradesmen’s workshops by the late Victorian period.

All but lost by the early 1980s, the building was to be remodelled into flats and offices, until conservation work revealed a large L-shaped medieval house encased in brick.

York Archaeological Trust purchased the house and began a full restoration of the surviving medieval structure to transform the building into a visitor attraction.

Opened in 1993, the property was named in honour of Professor Maurice Barley, first chairman of York Archaeological Trust.