Item TRE/1/3 - Lease from Edward Topham to George Dawson

The first Treasurer for York Minster was appointed in 1091 when the office was established by Archbishop of York Thomas of Bayeux, but all that remains of his original house is an external wall which forms part of Grays Court and sections of 12th-century masonry in the present Treasurer's House for which it is uncertain whether they are in-situ or have been reused. As the controller of the finances of the Minster the Treasurer required a grand residence to be able to entertain important guests.

The residence served in this capacity until 1547, when the Reformation of the English Church brought the job of Treasurer to an end. The last Treasurer surrendered the house to the crown on 26 May and it was granted to Protector Somerset by whom it was sold to Archbishop Robert Holgate. Thomas Young, Archbishop between 1561 and 1568, and his descendants are responsible for the structure of house as it is today. In the early 17th century the Young family added the symmetrical front and almost entirely rebuilt the house. In 1617, the Treasurer's House played host to royalty when Sir George Young entertained King James I. The house then passed through a number of private owners including Lord Fairfax and over time was sub-divided into separate tenements.

The house was restored to its present state by Frank Green, a wealthy local industrialist, who between 1897 and 1898 bought each part of the house. He appointed Temple Moore to restore the house and remove numerous earlier additions. This work was mostly completed by 1900 and when Frank Green retired and moved away from York in 1930 the house and its contents were given to the National Trust.

The house was built directly over one of the main Roman roads leading out of Roman York to the North. During major structural changes, carried out by Green, four Roman column bases were uncovered, one of which remains in-situ in the cellar and one of which was used as a base for a modern set of columns in the main hall.

Today, the National Trust continues to manage the hall and gardens, and opens the building to the public as a visitor attraction.