Information from the YAHS:
YAHS Online Summer Lectures 2026
Lecture 1 – Thursday 20th August 2026
The Built Heritage of the Temperance Movement in Yorkshire
by Andrew Davison
Alongside the anti-slavery and political reform movements, Temperance was one of England’s most influential social movements of the 19th century. Alcohol abuse led to widespread poverty and social distress, driving reformers – initially inspired by American activists – to establish the first English Temperance societies in 1830. Over the next century, millions ‘signed the pledge,’ committing to a life of abstinence and advocating for alcohol restrictions, even prohibition. The ‘Drink Question’ dominated political debate for decades.
Excluded from public spaces that sold alcohol, Temperance supporters built a parallel world of their own. They gathered in Temperance Halls, dined in coffee taverns, and relaxed in alcohol-free billiard halls and reading rooms. Even hospitals, insurance companies, and social institutions emerged to serve those who had forsworn drink.
The very first Temperance society in England was formed in Bradford in February 1830 and was later responsible for the first purpose-built Temperance Hall in the country. This lecture examines the remarkable physical legacy of the movement in Yorkshire, one of the heartlands of Temperance, offering an insight into a largely forgotten chapter of English social history.
Andrew Davison is an Inspector of Ancient Monuments with Historic England. It was whilst researching for the book ‘Licensed to Sell: the History and Heritage of the Public House”, (English Heritage 2004, revised edition 2011), co-authored with the late Geoff Brandwood and Michael Slaughter, that he first became aware of the influence the Temperance movement had had upon public house design in this country. More extensive research on the built heritage of the movement itself followed, the results published in January 2026 as ‘The Built Heritage of the Temperance Movement: The Way Out of Darkest England’ (Liverpool University Press for Historic England).
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Lecture 2 – Thursday 10th September 2026
Skipsea – the Real South Riding?
by Dr David Pendleton
At Green Lane Skipsea, bungalows teeter on the brink of rapidly eroding cliffs. Largely built during the interwar period, the bungalows represent a holiday making landscape that underwent dramatic changes during the interwar period. As personal mobility grew and people sought escape from the constraints of resorts and restrictive hours of b&bs, a new holidaymaking landscape evolved. Converted railway carriages, self-build bungalows and eventually caravans, offered a home by the sea as holiday time became anytime.
The visual and social impact was significant. Local authorities found themselves on the front line of a fight between aesthetics and access. Bridlington UDC fought, what was termed, the Bungalow Battle of Flamborough Head, as developers exploited planning laws that were lagging far behind developments on the ground. Whilst planning would be enforced on the coast post war, coastal erosion is now eating into the interwar developments and has sparked debates about how, or whether, a roll back policy should be introduced.
Dr David Pendleton is an author, editor, historian and lecturer whose interests include maritime, sport and leisure. He holds an MA from Leeds Metropolitan University in Northern Studies and a PhD from De Montfort University on Sport and the Victorian City. He is a former editor of the Bradford Antiquary and chair of the Filey Literature Festival.
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