Yorkshire’s most newly minted city also has some claim to being one its oldest settlements. Until it was granted city status as part of Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee Civic Honours in 2022, it was a former Anglo-Saxon burgh that became a market town in 1194 thanks to a charter granted by King Richard I, but before all of that it grew up on the site of a first-century Roman fort built at a crossing of the River Don. The river gave it is name, which derives from Donne – the Roman settlement and river – and caster, an Old English word for fort. The town (or to be more precise, the wealthy landowners who lived there) prospered during the Industrial Revolution due to the rich seams of coal in the area around it, and it has several large country houses nearby. Today, it continues to thrive relatively well, with large distribution centres and other industries having replaced its traditional ones. It is also famous – or possibly infamous – as the home of HMP Doncaster, a large category B prison located on an island in the middle of the Don previously occupied by a power station. We won’t see the prison however, for despite the proximity of the river, it features little on our walk: instead, we take a relatively short walk (just shy of three miles) around the historic town centre, which is separated from the river by industrial units and a large nexus of railway lines still much used by freight trains.
The walk is based heavily on Doncaster Civic Trust's Town Trail, but modified to make it more circular and of course so that it starts at Doncaster Railway Station. Built in 1849 and rebuilt in its current simple but elegant Grade II-listed form in 1938. It’s a bigger station than one might expect for a former town of Doncaster’s size, with nine platforms (albeit one not used) due to its location at a junction of several railway lines. The main building is attached to the adjacent Frenchgate Centre, a large and typically unattractive shopping complex through which it is possible to enter and exit the station. We aren’t troubling it with our presence however, instead leaving via the main entrance and walking straight to Trafford Way. Here, turn right and follow the road, then cross over and turn left along St Sepulchre Gate, before turning right along Printing Office Street, then left along Priory Place to reach High Street.
The Mansion House.
Turn right along High Street, passing many fine historic buildings, including the Midland Bank building and the Georgian Tea Rooms, soon reaching the Mansion House on your right. This Grade I listed building was designed in 1744 and was original the Mayor’s residence; it is one of only three surviving Mansion Houses built as Mayoral residences in England (the other two are in York and the City of London). Just past this is the portico of the Subscription Rooms, which boasts ionic columns. Continue to follow High Street, which soon becomes Hall Gate and at the crossroads with Waterdale, turn right and walk to a roundabout. Turn left and follow Chequer Road, shortly passing the Doncaster Museum and Art Gallery. This is well worth a visit and the brevity of the walk should allow time to make one. Otherwise continue straight on along the road, passing St Peter-in-Chains Church (a distinctive Roman Catholic church dedicated in 1855), and then shortly after the junction with Whitburn Road on the left, turn right and follow a path into Elmfield Park. This is Doncaster’s oldest public park, opened in 1923, and has retained many of its original features. Walk straight across the park and exit on Roman Road, where Doncaster’s Cenotaph can be seen. Walk past this, then turn left and walk up the steps to Hall Cross Hill, shortly passing Hall Cross, which was erected in 1793. Continue past the cross and follow Hall Cross Hill until it joins South Parade in front of the Salutation Inn, a former coaching inn on the Great North Road.
Cross over South Parade and walk straight ahead into Regent Square, turning left to walk across the square before rejoining the main road. Take the next right turn into Thorne Road and follow it past Christ Church, a large and impressive building which dates from 1829. Turn left at the end of the churchyard, then left and then right into Christ Church Road. On reaching a crossroads, turn left and walk along Nether Hall Road, looking out for Nether Hall, which is tucked away behind buildings on the right. This early Georgian house was once surrounded by 30 acres of grounds, most of which have long since been built on. When Nether Hall Road ends at a junction, cross over and walk straight into Sunny Bar, once a medieval entrance to the town which is now marked by “Boar Gate” pillars. Bear right, passing the Queen Crafthouse and Kitchen, to enter the Market Place, which is dominated by the huge Corn Exchange, which was completed in 1875.
The Minster Church of St. George.
Walk past the Corn Exchange, turn left, and then turn right and follow St. George Gate to Church Way. Cross over at the pedestrian crossing and walk straight ahead to the Minster Church of St. George, arguably Doncaster’s most impressive building, and certainly the most recognisable since its tower can be seen for miles around. This Grade I listed building dates from 1854-1858 and was constructed on the site of a twelfth century Norman church, which burnt down in 1853. The site it occupies is believed to be the former location of a Roman fort and a later motte and bailey castle. The Minster is open to visitors every day and it is well worth calling in to admire the interior, including the stained glass windows. After exploring the Minister and the churchyard, take a detour to the right to the corner of the grounds, then left along Church Street and across Grey Friars Road for a view of Doncaster Wharf on the River Don, which is sadly as close as we will get to a riverside walk in this particular city. Afterwards, return to Church Way and follow it towards the Frenchgate shopping centre, then turn left into Frenchgate and follow it to a crossroads known locally as “Clock Corner” due to the clock on top of 1, Baxtergate. Finally, turn right along St. Sepulchre Gate to return to the railway station.
Doncaster’s status as a railway junction means that beyond it, our journey across Yorkshire diverges into two. The first is along the Wakefield Line, which runs North West towards Wakefield and then on to Leeds; we shall follow it later. In the meantime, we shall proceed instead along the second line, which combines both the South Humberside Main Line and the Sheffield to Hull Line, and which takes us close to the border with Lincolnshire via four more stations, but only three more walks…
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