North Yorkshire Archives has released a batch of historic photos showing cricketers from Harrogate, Masham, Ripley and Kirkby Malzeard more than 100 years ago.

One shows Harrogate’s most famous cricketing son, Maurice Leyland, lining up for Harrogate in 1921.

The archives, which are run by North Yorkshire Council, collects, preserves and makes available historic and current records for the study of North Yorkshire.

Yorkshire is known for its cricketing heritage, and with England playing Australia for the Ashes the archives published photos which it says show “how cricket has played a defining role for North Yorkshire’s communities and sports fans over the decades”.

The images include a photo of Scarborough famous cricket ground on Marine Drive that was taken in 1926, a receipt given to Lord Mulgrave for membership of the Marylebone Cricket Club in 1792 and signed by Thomas Lord and an advertisement featuring former England and Yorkshire captain Len Hutton promoting Zipplax trousers, which were made by an outfitters in Scarborough.

There is also a good selection of photos from the Harrogate district, including one of Maurice Leyland in a Harrogate team photo in 1921.

Harrogate-born Leyland played 41 Tests for England, had a long career with Yorkshire and was a Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1929.

The archives team is holding a Christmas fair from 1pm to 4pm on Monday, December 1.

Members of the archives department will be showcasing its Christmas and winter-related collections as well as holding a drop-in paper decorations workshop and selling archive-themed cards and wrapping paper. 

There will also be an opportunity to order bespoke copies of historic maps and photographic prints. Details are available here.