Ripon and York

When we arrived at a campsite about 15 miles north of York, the man in the office asked if we were going into Ripon to see the “Wakeman.” He then explained that for 1,100 years, without missing one night, at 9:00 PM a man blows a horn to tell the town-folks, all is OK.

We arrived a little early, so drove on to see the Fountains Abbey, a ruin just a few miles from Ripon. We got there just a couple of minutes before it closed, so only saw it lit up from outside the wall, but what we saw was very exciting.

Back in Ripon the Wakeman was dressed in a three cornered hat, brown overcoat with brass buttons, and he blows an old animal horn. There is a statue in the town square, and he goes to each corner and blows one loooonng note. Then he must go to the Mayor’s home and blow it again. Years ago the Wakeman was responsible to see that no one broke into any of the stores on the town square. He was paid a tax by each merchant whose store had a door that opened onto Ripon’s square. Some of the Ripon merchants built their store on the square, but placed the front door to the side, and far enough away not to qualify for the Wakeman-tax.

The first horn lasted 800 years, and is now carefully displayed on special occasions. The horn used now is about 125 years old. Some of the Wakeman had the job for many years, and some for just a short time. This one was the substitute for awhile before becoming the main horn blower. The Church of St. Peter and St. Wilfrid, a small Cathedral, is very interesting.

The city of York, is a most intriguing city. There are many half-timbered buildings, museums, a city wall with gates, and most important, the York Minister, as the Cathedral is called. The famous set of five stained glass windows, is called the “Five Sisters.” A few years after our visit, there was a very bad fire in the Cathedral, but we have seen on a television report that it has been repaired. We walked on the city wall and could see the much of the town and the Cathedral from there. One of the shopping streets is supposed to have been a shopping street for over one thousand years. Incredible!

We spent one night in Robin Hood’s Sherwood Forest. The only robber we met was the man who charged too much for the campsite, out of season at that, but with electricity.