Fairfax House
On Gingerguide's self-guided York audio tour, Fairfax House is a stop worth about ~40 min. Stand in front of it, press play for a short narrated story, and put any follow-up question to the built-in AI guide.
- Type palace
- Suggested visit ~40 min
- York York guide
About Fairfax House
One of England's finest Georgian townhouses, built by a viscount for his daughter and fitted out by John Carr, rescued from life as a cinema and refilled with a superb collection of Georgian furniture.
Fairfax House is a Georgian townhouse on Castlegate, built in the early 1740s and bought in 1759 by Charles Gregory Fairfax, 9th Viscount Fairfax, as a town residence for his daughter Ann. Its interior was remodelled by the celebrated York architect John Carr, and is admired for its fine plasterwork ceilings and grand staircase; it is often called one of the finest Georgian townhouses in England. Having later served as a dance hall and, from 1921 to 1970, a cinema, it was rescued and restored by York Civic Trust in 1982-84 and opened to the public in 1984. It is furnished with the Noel Terry collection of Georgian furniture and clocks, gathered by a member of the Terry's of York chocolate family and described by Christie's as one of the finest such private collections of the 20th century. A Grade I listed building, it lies within the historic city of York.
Did you know? In 1759 the Catholic Viscount Fairfax bought this house for his only surviving child, his daughter Ann, and had the fashionable York architect John Carr fit it out with some of the finest plasterwork ceilings in England.
How much time do you need at Fairfax House?
Around ~40 min works well for Fairfax House — time to look properly and listen to its story on the spot. Linger if you like; nothing on a self-guided walk is on a clock.
Should you stop at Fairfax House?
Yes — Fairfax House made the cut as one of 18 places the Gingerguide team researched and narrated across York. The story tells you why it is worth the stop, and the AI guide fills in anything you still wonder.
Nearby stops in York
Hear the story of Fairfax House
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