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Rear elevation of Nos 62 and 64 Low Petergate.
Nos 62 and 64 Low Petergate; additions to Georgian properties by the architects, J. B. and W. Atkinson, 1865-66. At present an Italian restaurant, La Vecchia Scuola, occupies the Georgian mansion at no. 62, “the finest house in the street” (Pevsner and Neave 223). Various architects must have been involved over the centuries, but only the Atkinson brothers are named by Nikolaus Pevsner and David Neave, and that is for additions at rear.
Advert for the Fox Inn. Source: 1885 Directory, 79.
The houses have been variously used. Going backwards in time: before the Italian restaurant, from 1908 to 1997 nos. 62 and 64 Low Petergate were occupied by the York College for Girls, and before that there were two alehouses on this site: the Talbot Inn and the Fox Inn, although the former only occupied the rear of the older Georgian mansion (see "York College for Girls"). The Fox Inn was listed in the 1885 directory, and had a half-page advertisement there – the street numbering has changed.
Left: The porch on the main façade. Right: The Victorian tiled floor in the porch.
The original Georgian house that had its frontage on Low Petergate was also altered around this time (1865-66): a porch on this main façade was added, and the portico of c.1770 was moved to the front of the new porch. A tiled floor was laid in the porch. The architects for this part are not known.
Corner turret.
The work definitely ascribed to J. B. and W. Atkinson in 1865-6 included the rebuilding of the wings, and the reconstruction of the rear elevation in brick, with corner turrets having slated roofs (see Pevsner and Neave 223). The ornamental use of slates was still unusual in England, but may have been inspired by the knowledge of German techniques. The corner turrets add considerably to the building's presence.
Bibliography
Pevsner, Nikolaus, and David Neave. Yorkshire: York and the East Riding. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2002.
"York College for Girls." York Civic Trust. Web. 14 May 2021.
Created 14 May 2021