Anyone familiar with the history of Ripon?

[Whipby]

Hello all.

I have 2-year-old ancestor living with her maternal grandparents in Heckler Houses, Ripon, in 1871.

I've found Heckler Houses on an 1856 map of Ripon, and they are situated on the junction of Heckler/Southgate Lanes and Locker Lane.

On current streetview maps there are what look to be old houses still on the same site, and I'd love to know whether they are the same houses that were there in 1871 when my ancestors were living there.

I'd also like to know whether there's any significance to the buildings being called Heckler Houses?  It makes me think of almshouses or a workhouse, or something.  There are others, such as Town's Houses and White Houses, though, so perhaps not.  Perhaps it's the name of the person who owned them and rented them to tenants.

Can anyone help?

[stanmapstone]

This is a side by side map of the junction of Southgate Lane and Locker Lane.
https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/side-by-side/#zoom=18&lat=54.1319&lon=-1.5234&layers=168&right=BingHyb
There is a 1/500 map at https://www.old-maps.co.uk/#/Map/431226/470764/13/100444 and they look like the same houses as Streetview.

Stan

[stanmapstone]

A Heckler was a person employed to hackle flax or hemp; a flax or hemp dresser.Apparently there was a flax spinning mill, near the town. https://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/YKS/WRY/Ripon/Ripon34
A Flax Mill is shown on this map https://maps.nls.uk/view/102344587#zoom=6&lat=5816&lon=5791&layers=BT
Stan

[Whipby]

This is a side by side map of the junction of Southgate Lane and Locker Lane.
https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/side-by-side/#zoom=18&lat=54.1319&lon=-1.5234&layers=168&right=BingHyb
There is a 1/500 map at https://www.old-maps.co.uk/#/Map/431226/470764/13/100444 and they look like the same houses as Streetview.

Stan

Thanks Stan - I didn't know you could get a side by side view, what a useful feature!  Much appreciated.

[Whipby]

A Heckler was a person employed to hackle flax or hemp; a flax or hemp dresser.Apparently there was a flax spinning mill, near the town. https://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/YKS/WRY/Ripon/Ripon34
A Flax Mill is shown on this map https://maps.nls.uk/view/102344587#zoom=6&lat=5816&lon=5791&layers=BT
Stan

Again, thank you Stan!  I did wonder about it being an occupation and did a bit of reading up myself after I posted.  Very interesting.  Thanks for the links, I'll take a look at those too.

I also discovered that the buildings there now are grade II listed, and were built in the early to mid 1800s, so they must have been the same buildings that my ancestors lived in.  One difference seems to be that they now consist of just three addresses, whereas on the old map it looks as though the buildings were divided internally into maybe six dwellings.  And when they were listed they consisted of 5 addresses.  So it seems that some changes have been made over the years, which is to be expected I suppose, in buildings so old.