In Tadcaster, buildings with a long history sit alongside two very different ways to explore on foot. The town’s historic traces range from a timber-framed building that may date back to before the late 15th century to brewery buildings from the 19th century. The River Wharfe links the town’s history with a short, waymarked riverside walk; north of Tadcaster, a much longer route also passes through the countryside. The waymarked riverside walk is about 1½ miles long. The northern route is 15 miles long, fairly flat and requires a bus journey; check the route and ground conditions before setting off. At 15 miles, the northern route is about ten times as long as the waymarked riverside walk of around 1½ miles.

Tadcaster is just off the main north–south A1 road. There are two free car parks: Central Car Park and Britannia Car Park. As parking rules can change, check the conditions on site.

Brewery History and Historic Buildings

Tadcaster has three historic breweries, including Yorkshire’s oldest brewery. Samuel Smith’s is the oldest of the town’s three breweries still in operation and dates back to 1758. A later chapter in the town’s brewing history is marked by Molson Coors’ Tadcaster Tower Brewery: the brewers Hotham and Co. of York built it in 1882. Its original tower was 100 feet high. These dates distinguish the breweries’ long history from a specific 19th-century building.

The recorded dimensions of the buildings also give the history of brewing an architectural dimension. The malting tower at John Smith’s Brewery has seven storeys and three bays, with wings extending from both sides. The tower therefore does not stand alone but forms part of a larger building. Its architectural form is another point of interest if you are interested in historic architecture.

Other notable landmarks include the Grade II listed 18th-century bridge over the River Wharfe. Nearby in Tadcaster are the motte and ditch of the 13th-century Norman castle. These two sites point to different building purposes: a river crossing in one case and the remains of a castle in the other. Together with the brewery buildings, they offer a glimpse of different historical layers, without suggesting that they belong to a single period.

The timber-framed building The Ark is on Kirkgate. It was built in the late 15th century, though it may date from earlier. The dating is deliberately left open: the late Middle Ages provide a point of reference, but its origins may go further back.

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