The foundations of York's commercial identity lie in the powerful medieval guilds that controlled and organised business development here until the nineteenth century. Unlike other Yorkshire towns, York, a major ecclesiastical centre and a fashionable 'tourist' city, was largely untouched by the Industrial Revolution; it owes its nineteenth-century growth to its emergence as a railway hub and as a key force in the British confectionery industry.The book will give today's York residents a unique picture of how their city was, as well as those who used to live or work here. Confectionery giants Rowntree's, Terry's and Craven's are depicted and described, as are other lesser known firms like Cooke, Troughton & Simms. These, and the myriad specialist shops that have always crowded the medieval streets, all find a place in the pages of this fascinating and original book.