All articles in Local & Family History
25th January, 2019 in Biography & Memoir, Local & Family History
10 things you should know about Robert Burns
As the national poet of Scotland, Robert Burns has naturally been eulogised, canonised, mythologised and, at times, sanitised. None of this has detracted from his brilliance and his enduring legacy, which continues to inspire both writers and ordinary Scots to this day. 25 J…
14th January, 2019 in Local & Family History, Transport & Industry, Women in History
Women of the Durham Coalfields
Back in 1984, when I began tracing my own family story, there was excitement in learning to use census records to discover where my ancestors were living. There was also satisfaction in locating them in baptisms, marriages and burials in parish records. I soon realised however th…
7th January, 2019 in Local & Family History, Society & Culture
Bristol’s other slave trades
Bristol may be synonymous with the Transatlantic slave trade but prior to this dark period in its history it was also involved in three other types of slavery…. The Saxon and Viking slave trade The city of Bristol may have originated in Anglo Saxon times although there is argum…
21st November, 2018 in History, Local & Family History
The history of Scotland in seven people
Someone once said, “Scotland without people is like a forest without birds: nice and quiet”. That person is lost to history but others presented here are not lost to history. They are written about in authoritative history books and also A Haverin’ History of Scotland. These peop…
7th November, 2018 in Local & Family History, Military
Chapel Street: The bravest little street of World War I
In 1914, when the Great War broke out Chapel Street, Altrincham, Cheshire saw 161 men volunteer for duty from just 60 houses. Chapel Street was a long and narrow cul-de-sac of Georgian and Victorian houses, it was home to a four hundred strong multi-cultural (Scottish, Welsh…
31st October, 2018 in Local & Family History, Military
The Middlesbrough Ambulance
One of the most remarkable events to occur in Middlesbrough during World War One was the story of the Middlesbrough Ambulance. This legendary tale, only recently brought to light, reads almost like a ‘boys-own adventure.’ When the British Red Cross called for more ambulances for…
30th October, 2018 in Biography & Memoir, Local & Family History, Military
A Gloucestershire Lad in World War I
‘That means good luck’ – so said Arthur Stanley Bullock’s mother as Arthur stumbled while ascending the stairs from his sister’s basement. His leave had been curtailed and he was summoned to France, to serve in the most terrible war the world has ever known. His mother’s pr…
25th October, 2018 in Local & Family History, True Crime
10 Cambridgeshire crimes
Cambridgeshire is famous for its fens and university but it also has a darker side. Author Caroline Clifford takes us through ten of the county’s most infamous crimes. 1. One of Cambridgeshire’s worst crimes, the Burwell Fire, was thought to be an accident. In 1727 more than a 10…
22nd October, 2018 in Local & Family History
A brief history of Notting Hill
Anyone with only passing knowledge of Notting Hill will probably have formed their views based on events like the annual Notting Hill Carnival, the eponymous nineties romcom starring Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts and, more recently, the tragic fire in Grenfell Tower. Taken to…
26th September, 2018 in Local & Family History, Military
Hull in the Great War
When I come home, and leave behindDark things I would not call to mind,I’ll taste good ale and home-made bread,And see white sheets and pillows spread.And there is one who’ll softly creepTo kiss me ere I fall asleep,And tuck me ‘neath the counterpane,I shall be a boy again –When…
25th September, 2018 in Entertainment, Local & Family History
Gustav Holst and ‘The Planets’
Written between 1914 and 1916, The Planets is a seven-movement orchestral suite by English composer Gustav Holst. It received its orchestral premiere 100 years ago on 29 September 1918 in the Queen’s Hall, London conducted by Holst’s friend, Adrian Boult, before an invited audien…
14th September, 2018 in History, Local & Family History
Three things you might not know about Owain Glyndŵr
Like King Arthur, Welsh hero Owain Glyndŵr is rumoured to be awaiting the call to return to Wales and liberate his people. Despite being offered a pardon from King Henry V of England more than once and large rewards being offered for his whereabouts, Glyndŵr never surrendered to…