History

About Our Name:

"Skeldergate" was the name of a bridge in the city of York, England, built sometime between 1440 and 1579. It was hit upon as a suitable name for our group because we used to be centered around York University in Toronto.

You will notice that the terms “canton” and “college” are both used to describe the type of group Skeldergate is within the SCA’s administrative structure. Both essentially mean the same thing, with the slight difference that a “college” is usually based out of a college or university, and tends to go into hiatus during the summer months when school is out. Originally, Skeldergate was formed as a college, but when we became full-status we switched over to being a canton, since it was more appropriate for the type of group we had become.

About Our Symbols:
The Skeldergate device, seen above, is blazoned as Azure, a keyhole voided within a laurel wreath, a chief embattled argent. This device was registered with the SCA College of Heralds in January, 1993.

Skeldergate’s Origins:

There are a few versions of the origins of Skeldergate. The first, and briefer, version was created for the initial launch of Skeldergate's website in November, 1996. It was based largely on the recollections of Baroness Ursula na Clan na Rath which she could bring to mind in one evening. It has been modified slightly since for historical fluency. You can read this version of Skeldergate's origins here.

The second, and much longer, tale of Skeldergate's history was written in January, 1998 as Skeldergate's Baronial taxes for AS XXXII. It is a much more extensive and detailed volume, based on information from past newsletters, the Ealdormerean Order of Precedence and personal accounts from Master Garraed Galbraith, Master Hector of the Black Height and Baroness Ursula na Clan na Rath (among others). This version of the history was printed, bit by bit, in Skeldergate's newsletter, the Owl, and will eventually be rewritten according to the corrections which various Skelderfolk will have given the chronicler (and perhaps even updated to the present day!) and made available for public consumption on this page.

Past Officers:

Many good gentles have served as canton officers over Skeldergate’s history. A more-or-less complete listing can be found here.

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Last Updated - February 18, 2009 Best Viewed in Internet Explorer version 4 or later.