City of Doncaster Archives

in 1936 Ida Bridgeman, Countess of Bradford, died at the family seat in the West Midlands. She had been born Ida Frances Annabella Lumley on 28 November 1848 to Richard Lumley, Earl Scarbrough. At the time the family resided at Tickhill Castle which is where she was born. She married George Bridgeman, Earl of Bradford, in Maltby on 7 September 1869 and they had several children. In 1895 Ida discovered a source of natural spring water in Shropshire and this was named Lady Ida's Well. She served as Lady of the Bedchamber to Mary of Teck while she was Princess of Wales in 1901-1902 (later Queen to George V). Her granddaughter would later become Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester

Heritage Open Days are HERE! 🙌👏✨

Head to the City of Doncaster Archives today to pick up your very own FREE copy of the Heritage Open Days 2026 brochure!

Or you can view all the events happening at the Archives and our sister sites Cusworth Hall and the Danum Gallery, Library and Museum as part of Heritage Open Days 2026 here 👉 https://www.heritagedoncaster.org.uk/heritage-open-days.../

This striking photo of New Edlington was taken in the early 20th century from Hill Top. The photographer was James Simonton & Sons, a Doncaster firm who captured the borough on film and many were made into postcards

in 1996 The Yorkshire Outlet opened to the public. It was a brand new venture in Doncaster bringing out of town shopping to the borough. In 2003 the outlet was acquired by Kent County Council and rebranded Lakeside Village to reflect the area of Doncaster it was in. These images are some of the photos we have in our Local Studies collection

On Duke Street there lived a family of chimney sweeps from the late 19th century to the early 20th. When Edward died in 1890 he left the business to his son James. James was third generation sweep, born to converted Catholics. This photo shows a gaggle of children in the doorway of the Butterfield premises although the use of children in chimney sweeping had been abolished after the parliamentary act of 1875. We don't have a date for this image but it was likely taken in the 1890s

Today is the feast day of St Lawrence. Did you know that he is the patron saint of, among others, archivists? These images from our Local Studies collection show Hatfield parish church which is dedicated to St Lawrence. It was initially built around 1150 with later additions in the 12th and 15th centuries. It is believed that an earlier wooden church once occupied the site and was built on the orders of Edwin, king of Northumbria. This is mentioned in the writings of the Venerable Bede. The Domesday Book of 1086 refers to a church and priest in Hatfield. During the 16th and 17th centuries the church was dedicated to St Mary but reverted back to St Lawrence in the middle of the 18th century

Who recognises this building being demolished in February 1989? It was Hanley's Flour Mill on Fishergate, built in a site that had a mill on it from 1788. Thomas Hanley & Son took over the business in 1893 and a fire in September 1923 destroyed the buildings there. In 1923 Joseph Rank acquired the mill which subsequently closed in the 1970s

Happy Yorkshire Day!! We love this photo from our collections that shows some mature ladies having fun at the Owston Fete around the 1960s. We hope they won the prize!

These photos from our Born Digital collection were taken in July 2013 at Yorkshire Wildlife Park. The park is home to Amur Tigers which are the largest big cat in the world. Tigers are the only big cat with stripes and each tiger has different patterns

Do you remember Doncaster in the 1970s? This photo of High Street was taken in 1973 and shows how much traffic was passing through the town centre. It also highlights all the empty buildings showing that history often repeats itself