Court House Museum

COURT HOUSE MUSEUM, CASTLE YARD

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Overview

Heritage Category:
Listed Building
Grade:
II
List Entry Number:
1149898
Date first listed:
12-Dec-1985
List Entry Name:
Court House Museum
Statutory Address:
COURT HOUSE MUSEUM, CASTLE YARD
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Location

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Date:
2002-09-08
Reference:
IOE01/05797/05
Rights:
© Prof. W J Hume. Source: Historic England Archive

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Official list entry

Heritage Category:
Listed Building
Grade:
II
List Entry Number:
1149898
Date first listed:
12-Dec-1985
List Entry Name:
Court House Museum
Statutory Address 1:
COURT HOUSE MUSEUM, CASTLE YARD

The scope of legal protection for listed buildings

This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.

Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.

For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.

Understanding list entries

Corrections and minor amendments

The scope of legal protection for listed buildings

This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.

Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.

For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.

Understanding list entries

Corrections and minor amendments

Location

Statutory Address:
COURT HOUSE MUSEUM, CASTLE YARD

The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.

District:
North Yorkshire (Unitary Authority)
Parish:
Knaresborough
National Grid Reference:
SE 34891 56863

Details

SE 3456 KNARESBOROUGH CASTLE YARD (south side)

8/92 Court House Museum

GV II

Courthouse, now museum and gardeners' store. Early C14 with late C16 and C18 additions and restoration 1830 and C20. Coursed squared magnesian limestone, brick, stone slate roof. 2 storeys, 5 bays with single-storey, 2-bay addition to rear. Bay 1: round-arched board door to right with hoodmould; small boarded opening to left. Board door in plain frame between bays 3 and 4 flanked by barred side-sliding sash windows with glazing bars. Between bays 2 and 3: external staircase, mid C20, rising to C20 board door in chamfered basket-arch surround. 1st-floor windows: 3-light to bays 1 and 4, 5-light to bays 2, 3 and 5; all double-chamfered with recessed mullions and stepped hoodmoulds. Kneeler and ashlar coping to left, hipped roof to right. Gritstone stacks to left end, to ridge between bays 4 and 5, and to rear of ridge at centre. Interior: rear wall is built largely of small red bricks in random bond. Ground floor, bay 3 - large fireplace of C14 type, covered in and details not seen at resurvey. Bay 4 - length of stone walling enters from rear wall and projects into the room at an angle. 1st floor supported on longitudinal beams supported by posts, 2 with straight braces. Much reused timber. 1st floor: bay 1 - C17 cupboards and door, restored and rooms divided mid C20. Bay 3 - benches and panelling of late- C16 courtroom retained as part of Museum display. The earliest parts of this building are part of a range of rooms built between the inner and outer bailey of the castle. It is thought to have been the "House of Records" mentioned in a survey of 1561 but appears to have been largely rebuilt c1590-1610, with an upper storey serving as the courthouse for the Honour of Knaresborough. The roof was raised, left gable wall rebuilt and right (southern) bay possibly rebuilt during the period 1786-1830, when the single-storey 2-bay addition was built at the rear. The prison block attached to north end (q.v.) was added during this time. M Mann, Old Courthouse Museum c1970. Leaflet sold at the Museum.

Listing NGR: SE3489156863

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:
330755
Legacy System:
LBS

Sources

Books and journals
Mann, M, Old Courthouse Museum, (1970)

Legal

This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.

Ordnance survey map of Court House Museum

Map

This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale. This copy shows the entry on 10-Jun-2026 at 19:59:23.

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© Crown copyright [and database rights] 2026. OS AC0000815036. Use of this mapping is subject to Terms and Conditions.

End of official list entry

All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.

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