3: Trinity House
Established in the Middle Ages to look after the interests of the town’s maritime community, Trinity House provided support for poor seamen and their families, regulating wages and working conditions, and later taking control of shipping and navigation on the Humber.
In the early 14th century, a Carmelite friary was built on this site and Whitefriargate takes its name from the friars who wore white cloaks. Part of the land was leased to Trinity House, and a guildhall, chapel and almshouses were built there. In 1621 Thomas Ferres, a wealthy shipmaster, gave the site to Trinity House.
Over the main entrance is an elaborate and colourful pediment with a richly carved coat of arms, flanked by the reclining figures of Neptune, God of the Sea, and Britannia.
