The Rigg Monument in the churchyard of St Lawrence, just outside Walmgate Bar, commemorates six children of the Rigg family who drowned in a boating accident on the River Ouse in August 1830. Over the years the monument became damaged, derelict and overgrown. The York Civic Trust proposed to restore the monument using local craftsmen, and £24,000 was raised: a third from two developers, a third from members of the York Civic Trust and a third from wider public subscription. Project manager Nick Beilby led a professional team who all gave their services free. Work began in June 2016: vegetation was cleared away and specialist craftsmen repaired the brickwork, stonework and railings. The completed monument was blessed in a special service on 11 March 2017.
A Service of Dedication in St Lawrence’s church was led by His Grace, the Lord Archbishop of York, the Most Rev’d John Sentamu, on Saturday 11 March 2017. Afterwards he blessed the restored monument.
A fuller account of the nineteenth century tragedy may be found in our account on our plaque pages at this link: Rigg Monument