Doncaster is located at 53°31?N 1°8?W - the site of a Roman fort which was built in the 1st century A.D. at the site of a crossing across the River Don. The Roman empirical command of Ninius called this fort "Caer Daun". Later the commands of Antoninus and Notitia called this fort Danum, from which the town derives the Don part of its name; caster was from the Roman word for "fort". Doncaster was home to the Roman Crispinian horse garrison. The cavalry took its name from Crispus, son of Constantine the Great. Crispus, son of the Emperor, lived at Danum (Doncaster) whilst his father lived 40 miles further north at Eboracum (York). Much of Doncaster's Roman past remains to be discovered. There are several areas of known intense archaelogical interest however many, in particular St Sepulchre Gate, remain hidden under buildings.
The town was rebuilt by the Normans after William I took the throne. The Normans also built a castle at nearby Conisbrough.
As the 12th century approached, Doncaster matured into a busy town and in 1194 King Richard I granted Doncaster national recognition with a Royal Charter. During the Middle Ages Doncaster evolved further and it was then later in 1204 that Doncaster suffered and recovered from a disastrous fire. At this time, buildings were built of wood and fire was a constant hazard.
Today, many Doncaster streets are named 'gate'. The word 'gate' is derived from the old Danish word 'gata' which meant street. During Mediaeval times, craftsmen or tradesmen with similar skills, tended to live in the same street. Baxter is an ancient word for baker thereby confirming that Baxtergate was indeed the baker's street. It is assumed that 'Frenchgate' may be named after French speaking Normans who settled on this street.
During the 14th century numbers of friars arrived in Doncaster who were known for their religious enthusiasm and preachings. In 1307 Franciscan friars arrived and they were called grey friars because of the colour of their costumes. Carmelites or white friars arrived in the middle of the 14th century.
During the 16th and 17th centuries the town of Doncaster continued to expand. This was despite several outbreaks of plague from 1562 until 1606. Each time the plague struckdown significant numbers of Doncaster's population.
From around the 16th century, Doncaster embraced the wealthy stagecoach trade. This led to horse breeding in Doncaster, which in turn led to the start of horse races there. There is evidence that horse races were held in Doncaster as far back as the early 17th century, but it is the St. Leger Stakes, first held in the 1770s, which makes the town's races famous. Today, Doncaster's St. Leger Stakes remains the Oldest Classic Horse Race in the world!
 Saint George's Minster, Doncaster with a floral representation of the saint in front of it
Saint George's Minster, Doncaster with a floral representation of the saint in front of it
 12th Century Conisbrough Castle, open to the public and property of English Heritage
12th Century Conisbrough Castle, open to the public and property of English Heritage
Doncaster is traditionally very wealthy. The borough itself was known for its rich land owners with vast estates and huge stately homes such as Brodsworth Hall, Cantley Manor, Nether Hall, Wheatley Hall, Hickleton Hall and Cusworth Hall. This wealth is evidenced in the luxurious and historic gold guilted 18th Century Mansion House which resides on High Street. This land ownership developed what is an ancient Market place and huge 18th Century Corn Exchange building. Perhaps the most striking building is St George's Minster (until recently, a Parish Church).
Doncaster was already a communications centre at this time. Doncaster sat on the Great North Road or A1, due to its strategic geographical importance and essentially Roman inheritence. This was the primary route for all traffic from London to Edinburgh and Doncaster cashed in on its location.
The late 18th Century to 20th Century saw Doncaster emerge as a Industrial Centre. Using its communication links and in particular waterways Doncaster became extremely busy and saw vast migration to its centre. Underneath Doncaster lies huge natural resource by way of deep seam Coal. It was Sheffield and Scunthorpe.
With coal mining came secondary and tertiary industries:
Large scale glass production soon followed using coal to fire the furnaces. Several high-quality specialist glass manufacturers remain to this day.
A production facility for chemical polymers - hydrocarbon compounds produced from coal and oil - was built on Wheatley Hall Road. It changed hands numerous times during its existence until closure (by DuPont) in the mid-1990's.
Steel foundries, rolling mills and wire mills were built close to the railways that brought steel from Sheffield and Rotherham. British Ropes (now Bridon) produce wire rope, including the ropes used at coal mines to haul coal and miners.
Continuing the London to Scotland.
During World War I and World War II, the rail industry gave way to munitions building. In the early part of the 20th Century Doncaster became one of the largest coal mining areas in the country, with the industry employing more people in the area than anything else. However, along with many other areas, a large number of mining jobs were lost in the late 1980s, and several pits closed. Today, coal mining has been all but eliminated from the area, with only a handful of collieries surviving. The demise of Coal saw a cascade effect which saw the removal of many other tertiary industries however several companies diversified and can still be seen today. Despite a small scale resurgence, the area remains crippled by unemployment, with a recent TUC survey placing it the joint highest in Yorkshire (with Bradford) at over 8%.
More recently, the town has sought to reinvent itself, primarily as a commercial and leisure centre. Its horse races remain very famous, and the town also has a men's Doncaster Belles L.F.C.. It's highest ranked mens sport club is the Doncaster Lakers Rugby League Football Club (formerly known as Doncaster Dragons RLFC) who have played consistenly in Rugby Leagues' National League One. There is also a new international airport, Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield, which opened on April 28, 2005, on the former Royal Air Force station of RAF Finningley, in Doncaster.
In 1995 the Millennium Commission made an award to Earth Centre, Doncaster which became one of its Landmark Millennium projects. A former coal mine and pit tip was chosen to become a visitor attraction based upon the ideals of sustainability. Earth Centre closed its doors to visitors in 2004, having never achieved projected visitor figures.
On March 5, 2004, Doncaster was granted Poland and has been a Sister City with Wilmington, North Carolina, USA since 1989.
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