Party starts for town celebrating past and future

Celebrations marking the bicentenary of an East Yorkshire town have begun.

Goole turns 200-years-old on Monday and it is being marked with a series of events and activities over the weekend.

These include exhibitions, a flotilla of vessels and a flypast by the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight Dakota.

Nick Coultish, ward councillor for Goole North, said: "As well as celebrating 200 years of Goole, we will be celebrating how exciting the next 100 will be."

The festivities kicked off on Friday with the Origins of Goole exhibition, art classes and a friendly football match.

On Saturday, there will be a treasure hunt, walking tours, drop-in sessions at Goole Library, as well as a flotilla of vessels.

In 1826, the opening of the port and town of Goole was marked by the arrival of 50 vessels. In a nod to that, a fleet will navigate the canal again, 200 years on.

Meanwhile, Sunday's events include a 10k race, a memorial service to remember the town's seamen and a flypast by the Dakota at 12:30 BST.

Goole was established after the Aire and Calder Navigation Company extended its canal from Leeds to Goole in the early 1820s so coal could be exported from the West Riding of Yorkshire to Europe.

Stephen Walker, from the town's civic society, which hosted the Origins Of Goole exhibition, said the town was "one of the biggest coal moving ports in the county".

Margaret Hicks-Clarke, chairwoman of the society, moved to Goole in 2002 and described it as a "hidden place".

She said: "It was great to come and live here and really get to find out what the town is about.

"The greatest thing about it is the people who are here... they're the beating heart of everything."

Coultish said it had been a "massive decade" for Goole.

As part of the Goole Town Deal, there has been multi-million pound investments in the Market Hall, Victoria Pleasure Grounds and the railway station.

In September, the Goole Market Hall is hosting Helios, a large sculpture of the sun by artist Luke Jerram.

The Goole 200 project is led by East Riding of Yorkshire Council's Arts Development team and has been funded by a UK Shared Prosperity Fund grant.

Full details of the events are available on the Goole 200 website.

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