Some Victorian Parlour Games
A look at some of the games and amusements enjoyed by our Victorian ancestors, using a book published in 1881 as a guide. The talk will look briefly at several games we still recognise and games that are no longer well known, and note how instruction books for games differ between the modern world and the Victorian era.
Beyond the Mine: Telling the Story of a Coal Company Town
Coal company towns were far more than places of work. Owned by coal companies, these communities were vibrant places where families lived, learned, and built lasting traditions. This presentation explores how to uncover the full story of a coal company town using genealogy, historical records, maps, photographs, newspapers, and oral histories. Learn how a one-place study can connect people, places, and events to preserve a community’s unique heritage. Discover practical research strategies and storytelling techniques that bring these forgotten towns, and the people who called them home, back to life.
Spy, pragmatist or faithful servant? An English civil war gunmakers tale
Were Civil War gunmakers spies, pragmatists or faithful servants? Discover the lives of the craftsmen whose skills kept both Royalist and Parliamentarian armies supplied, and explore how they navigated loyalty, politics and survival during one of England’s most turbulent periods. Drawing on original MRes research, this talk demonstrates how combining occupational, local and archival records can reveal the stories of individuals. You’ll leave with fresh ideas and research techniques that you can apply to uncover the lives of your own seventeenth-century ancestors.
Where They Worked, Rested and Played
Our ancestors’ lives were shaped by the places where they earned a living, went to church and enjoyed a pint. This talk explores how historical maps, directories, occupational records, photographs and other sources can reveal the factories, farms, shops, churches, public houses and entertainment venues they knew, as well as the communities in which they lived. Discover how placing your ancestors within their local landscape adds colour, context and a deeper understanding of their everyday lives.
Galloping Without a Horse
Beginning with a wonderfully optimistic Victorian invention, this talk explores a contraption that promised health, vigour and fresh air, all without leaving the drawing room. Part exercise machine, part escapist fantasy, the Horse-Action Saddle offers a charming glimpse into a world where ingenuity, confidence and faint ridiculousness went hand in hand.
If These Streets Could Talk
How did the streets of 60’s Islington influence five teenage boys to become one of the first multi-racial bands in the world? They lived and went to school in Islington, played their first gig there, and another Islington resident helped set them on the path to stardom. These streets have a lot of stories to tell, so come and discover how an Islington street even played a part in their journey to chart success.
Charitable Trust Deeds at The National Archives: A Veritable Treasure Trove for Local and Family Historians
While original trust deeds are more often located in local archives, The National Archives holds an extensive collection of enrolled trust deeds. It has recently completed a project to catalogue two of the key series – C 54 and CHAR 12 – spanning the period 1735 – 1925. Drawing on examples reflecting the theme of work and play, this talk will explain how to search these records and showcase their rich potential as a source for family and local historians.
Education, Education, Education
A brief introduction to the resources that will help you identify schools, teachers and pupils as you add more details to a one place study or family history focussing on what was work for some and the best days of their lives for others.
Work, Play and the Ploughman
In this talk, we will use newspaper reports of ploughing matches and competitions, and of boon ploughing, to explore the lives of ploughmen living and working in the north of England during the era of the horse-drawn plough. A surprising amount of information can be gleaned from these reports regarding landowners and employers, dates when farms changed hands, social networks within farming communities, and more.
Voices of Brook Mills: A Three-Generation Heritage
Step back into the height of the Industrial Revolution with the story of Brook Mills in Oldham. Built in 1855, discover the rise and fall of this mill through three generations of the Thatcher family. Explore how they navigated industrial booms, societal shifts, before finally closing the mill gates in 1927. Also find out how the land is now being used by charity Northern Roots. Watch the other 2 talks that explore this 160 acer land. “Strawberry Gardens: Where heritage blooms” and “Roots and Rebirth: Discovering Oldham’s Heritage”