Leisure

William Hayes was a prolific local photographer in the first decades of the twentieth century. Here the members of the Hayes family are pictured on a walk along Rosedale side, stopping to enjoy a view of the dale that can be seen through an old ironworks arch.

A walking party makes their way up Heygate Bank. They are following the stone trod that runs parallel to the road, one of many ancient pathways that can be found traversing the North York Moors.

The coronation of King George V was celebrated with a bonfire in Hutton-le-Hole. The preparations for the bonfire were carried out with by a trusty horse and cart collecting up spare wood, helped along by the children of the village.

The ruins of Pickering Castle are pictured here doubling up as tennis courts, accompanied by benches for the spectators. Diate Hill Tower can be seen in the background.

The rearing of this maypole in Sinnington was due to the previous maypole blowing down in a gale in 1928. This maypole lasted until 1948, when it was replaced due to decay. Still to this day, the maypole in Sinnington is a central part of the village.

The wedding reception of William and Margaret Hayes was hosted in their daylight photography studio, which can now be found on our museum site. The backdrop used for portrait photographs can be seen on the far wall. The studio provides an ideal location for an intimate party of friends and family, filled with various cakes and flowers.

The Hayes family can be seen enjoying a picnic on the North York Moors. They are kitted out not only with a picnic basket but with a make-shift fire and kettle, ready for cups of tea all round.

Rosedale Hill Climbs were road races that took place from 1914 until the 1930s. Cars and motorbikes raced up and down the infamously steep Chimney Bank. The popularity of the event can be seen from the huge crowds that gathered on both sides of the road.

Mining was a prominent part of Ryedale communities in the early twentieth century, and it clearly played an important part in leisure activities as well as their working lives. This photograph depicts a group of people inside the kebble (also known as the kibble), a bucket used when sinking new shafts.

Raymond Hayes, who played a prominent part in the forming of Ryedale Folk Museum, can be seen in the centre of this photograph as a young boy. Also pictured are his mother Margaret and brother Jack. The Hayes family are enjoying a trip to Scarborough beach, a popular seaside resort since the nineteenth century.

The maypole was central to a whole host of local celebrations, including the fete at Appleton-le-Moors. A complex web pattern has been made in this example, just one of the many possible designs and dances that can be performed.

A group of senior scholars are here pictured performing a minuet. This dance was most popular in the eighteenth century and was seen as a civilised and dignified dance. It continued to be performed at formal occasions into the twentieth century, usually to open an event.

To celebrate the coronation of George VI, the children of Fadmoor got dressed up to take part in a fancy-dress parade. Ranging from the Queen of Hearts, a policeman, and a scarecrow, to a small child wearing a box, a lot of work went into the festivities.

The revolving horse could be compared to todays mechanical bull. It certainly seems to have proved to be a hit at the Hutton-le-Hole village fair, as many of the onlookers couldn't help but laugh.

In the 1920s, Archie Frazer Nash was a prolific racing driver and had won a vast amount of competitions. He was also a regular competitor in the famous Rosedale Hill Climb. Having Captain Nash take part in the race really helped to put Chimney Bank on the map.

Crowds piled into the LNER railway trucks at Rosedale ready for an outing to York. The Rosedale line was originally a goods-only service for the mines, but when it was incorporated into the LNER system in 1923 it began to also take passengers.