A £4m redevelopment of Goole’s historic Market Hall will see it serving up some of the best brews and local street food in the country when it opens in 2025.
As the East Yorkshire port town – described as one of the county’s best kept secrets – gears up to celebrate its bicentenary in 2026, a series of major investments are breathing new life into the area.
With a rich maritime heritage Goole, which is the UK’s most inland port being 50 miles from the North Sea, is set for a multi-million-pound boost ahead of summer 2026 when it will mark the 200th anniversary of the ‘company’ town built to service the new docks.
Leading the way is the transformation of the Victorian Market Hall into a vibrant food hall, live music and events venue, with the hope that it will become a central part of Goole’s ‘cultural quarter’.
Built in 1896 to replace an earlier building that was destroyed by fire in 1891, for more than a century it thrived as a shopping destination and event venue, but as habits changed, the market gradually fell into decline, and it closed in 2019.
Now Brew York, a York-based brewery that operates tap rooms and bars at venues including in Leeds, Otley, Pocklington and Knaresborough, will bring its popular craft beer and street food to the town.
Expected to open in spring 2025, the refurbished Market Hall will also offer flexible space for local creative and craft businesses (https://brewyork.co.uk/goole-market-hall/).
Funded by £4m of government cash as part of the Goole Town Deal, the redevelopment comes on top of a number of projects, including a £3m town centre improvement scheme that will see high-quality lighting, soft landscaping and seating installed during 2025.
And work is also scheduled to start in 2025 on a £2.4m plan to create an enhanced transport hub at Goole Station, providing a more welcoming and attractive gateway to the town centre.
For 2026, the town is planning anniversary celebrations, with details to be revealed later in 2025.
Although its history stretches back further, originally established in the 1620s, July 2026 marks 200 years since the much larger settlement of Goole was purpose-built by the Aire and Calder Navigation Company, which constructed a canal from Leeds to Goole and docks leading into the River Ouse.
Its unusual name is derived from the Middle English word ‘goule’, meaning gully or outlet to a river, and among its most famous landmarks are so-called “salt and pepper pots”, a pair of water towers, one of redbrick built in 1885 and the other in white concrete from 1927.
In its heyday it was home to several shipping companies trading across Europe and further afield, and even had its own passenger ferries to the Continent. Today it is still a busy port, handling around 1.5m tonnes of various cargoes a year.
For more details about things to do and where to stay in East Yorkshire as a destination, see www.visiteastyorkshire.co.uk
Photo: aerial view of Goole, credit Lee Cocker