Upload
others
View
1
Download
0
Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
The Friends of Lancashire Archives
Reading through this Newsletter is a
really rewarding experience – not only
is it so attractively put together and
edited (thanks Maggy, for another
great issue) but it is so full of news
and features about the work of the
archive service and the diversity of
projects and activities which the
Friends are developing. We really are
thriving and being able to focus on our
core ‘mission’, that of supporting and
enhancing the work of Lancashire
Archives. What’s so gratifying is that
the response from members and non-
members alike has been so
enthusiastic and positive and, now that
we have a degree of financial security,
we can think about being more
ambitious in our future projects.
The conservation dimension to the
work of the archive service is always
fascinating, as well as being essential in
helping to protect and preserve the
archives for posterity. There’s still
plenty to do, but over the past couple
of years I have noted that at
Lancashire Archives I simply don’t
come across the (how shall I put this?)
less than exemplary instances of
archive storage and conservation
practice that I’ve encountered in some
other record offices.
Elsewhere, I’ve seen boxes so over-
stuffed with bundles that the lid won’t
stay on; a lovely 14th century
‘Friends’ continue to support an excellent service
I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E :
From the Chair page 1
New Events leaflet 2
Volunteers update 3
New Humidifier 4
Abbott’s at Stained
Glass Museum
5
Margaret Bainbridge
Obituary
6-7
Membership Matters 8
Slaidburn walk 9
Events round-up 10
Feature: Graceancestry
Blog
11
Booking forms 12-13
‘Burnley Memories’
event
16
New Horrocks Video 14
Westfield Memorial
Village Walk
15
NEWSLETTER
illuminated text encased in thick
melinex for protection, but with the
bottom crudely turned over and
folded so that it could be crammed
into an archive box; and some
beautiful medieval deeds thoughtfully
provided (by someone a good few
years ago) with summaries of the
contents, each of these being written
on a slip of paper fixed to the
relevant deed with strips of sticking
plaster!
That small collection had actually
been dealt with by an archivist – it
was in card folders annotated with
record office references - but he or
she had evidently not thought fit to
remove the horrible fixtures.
Charity Registration Number
518611
Easter Quarter, 2017
Alan Crosby, FLA Chair
Below: we don’t do this!…….sticking plaster has
been used to attach document summaries
elsewhere.
Page 2 Fr iends of f Lancashi re Archives
money needed to finish cataloguing the archive and
to encourage people to use it.
In these and other ways the Friends are very active
in publicising and promoting the work of the
archive service – I’m always amazed that even local
and family historians are sometimes quite unaware
of what the record office has to offer, and how
easy it is to use it. There’s an assumption by some
people that you need to book, you need to be an
expert, or that only selected individuals are allowed
the privilege of using the resources of the record
office. We all know that the exact opposite is true
– but it’s a message that needs to be highlighted
whenever possible.
(Continued from front page)
Future plans for one-off major projects go
alongside the continuing need to contribute to the
daily work of the archive service. It’s good to
know, for example, that the humidification
membrane which Zoe writes about on page 4 will
have a long life since, as she says, it can be washed
and re-used. And we know that once a collection
has been catalogued with the help of FLA funds,
the information goes on-line and it’s going to be
much more accessible for public use. Paul
Swarbrick has produced a really great promotional
video for the Horrockses collection, which we
hope will have a widespread impact (the Friends
on YouTube!) and help to raise the remaining
Friends fund new Talks and events leaflet
Jacquie Crosby
A huge thank you to the Friends for funding the
publication of the Lancashire Archives Talks and
Events brochure for the next 6 months. They
include family history talks, sessions on how to use
the record office and creative workshops as well as
the next Café Archive on 7 July.
Pick up a copy in the searchroom
Or download it from our website via the link on this
page: http://www.flarchives.co.uk/events.html
or email [email protected] for an
electronic version.
News le tter
1st June sees the start of National Volunteer
Week and as usual we will be making a special
effort to thank all our volunteers for their hard
work and dedication. Last year we had to suspend
volunteering for 6 months while we restructured
our service and developed a new programme.
Since the end of September our 48 volunteers
have met on Mondays and given us 2490 hours of
their time. This is equivalent to two and a half
members of staff (which in financial terms would
cost £50,000 over a year).
The volunteers have finished listing the Preston
Building Plans and are now working on the
Accrington Plans. Others are working on disputed
wills or typing up the lists of wills etc., flattened all
those years ago by the Will Flatteners, so that we
have a comprehensive index of probate records
held here. Yet others are continuing indexing the
Whittingham Hospital reception orders or ,
cleaning, repackaging and relisting the early
Lancaster Coroners' records. And yet another is
helping with archive stock-taking. So a huge range
of projects directly supporting the work of the
archives. Staff and archive users are indebted to
them all.
A lot of our Friends are also volunteers and Anna
Watson now runs a new, small volunteer project
specifically for FLA members – indexing the
Blackburn Workhouse registers. A few volunteers
are also working for the Lancashire Online Parish
Clerk undertaking a similar task with the Burnley
Workhouse registers. These will all provide a rich
source of information for family historians.
One of the other new volunteering projects we
support is the Lancashire Crew List project funded
by the Federation of Family History Societies. This
will also provide a rich source of names – from
around the world - as foreign seamen joined the
crews of our Lancashire-registered ships from
ports as far apart as St Johns in Newfoundland and
Calcutta.
Elsewhere in this newsletter (page 11) you can find
a link to Grace Tabern's blog about the project.
However, as archives service manager, I must point
out that the document she uses, covered with
sellotape is not one of the archives held here! By a
very strange co-incidence it's an account book for
subscriptions for building the 18th school in the
West Riding village of Grenoside, where I grew up,
and I guess it is in private hands rather than
Sheffield Archives!
Page 3
Volunteers update
Jacquie Crosby
Lancashire Archives is a sticky-tape-free zone!
Page 4
Your FLA donations help to purchase a new humidifier
Fr iends of f Lancashi re Archives
It can be easily washed and re-used and is inert.
Most importantly the new membrane has a much
smaller pore size - approximately 0.2 micron -
which gives a very high air flow. This in turn allows
water and organic solvents penetrate this
membrane as vapour rather than as a liquid,
allowing conservators greater control of the
humidification process and reducing any risk to the
documents.
The photograph shows fused parchment pages in a
book. A humidified section of the membrane has
been applied to the affected area of parchment and
a layer of polyester placed on top to retain
moisture. The membrane will slowly and gently
humidify the parchment, so that a conservator can
then separate the fused leaves.
Thanks to the Friends of Lancashire Archives, we
have been able to purchase a new humidification
membrane for use in archive conservation
treatments. This membrane can be used to gently
humidify documents to enable flattening and to
help separate fused material. The humidification
membrane is particularly suited for use on paper
and parchment items and will be especially useful
in the conservation of delicate tracing plans.
For many years conservators have used Gore-Tex
for humidification purposes. Like Gore-Tex, this
new humidification membrane from Porelle
(Hydra-air PTFE) is made of expanded PTFE
laminated to a 100% non-woven polyester.
Unlike membranes used previously in archive
conservation it has unique oil-resistant properties.
Zoe Kennington, archive conservator
News le tter
In 2016 Lancashire Archives received the Business
Archives Council cataloguing grant, funding a
freelance archivist to catalogue the records of
stained glass manufacturers, Abbott and Company
of Lancaster.
Work on the catalogue began in October 2016
and is nearing completion. The catalogue will be
available to the public in the near future, via the
Archives' online catalogue, LANCAT.
In December 2016 the Friends of Lancashire
Archives generously paid for me to travel to the
Stained Glass Museum in Ely, in order to meet the
curator and learn more about stained glass.
During the visit I was shown around the museum's
exhibition, which includes an original closed glass
kiln from the Abbott and Company premises in
Lancaster. I met with Jasmine Allen, the curator of
the museum who took the time to give me advice,
provide specialist knowledge and answer some
questions which had arisen about the stained
glass-making process as I worked on the
catalogue.
The Stained Glass Museum has amongst its
collections several records relating to Abbott and
Company which, following the visit, the museum
has kindly offered to transfer to Lancashire
Archives as a gift. This will not only enhance the
collection held at Lancashire Archives but will also
ensure that as much of the collection as possible
remains together.
As a result of the visit Lancashire Archives has not
only acquired further records, but has also
developed a good working relationship with the
Stained Glass Museum and has benefited from
specialist advice and knowledge, all of which has
aided the cataloguing of this important collection. I
would personally like to thank the Friends for
their support in making this visit possible.
Page 5
Abbott and Company at the Stained Glass Museum
Above: an example of one of some 1,200 stained glass designs
held at Lancashire Archives (DDAB/3/4/1206)
Above right: one of the kilns used by Abbott and Company in
Lancaster is on permanent display at the Stained Glass
Museum.
Lindsey Sutton (Freelance Archivist)
If you enjoyed this article, you might also
be interested in archivist Vicci McCann's
free talk about the archive to be held at
Lancaster City Museum on Friday 9 June at
1.00pm.
To book a place phone: 01524 64637.
Page 6
Dr. Margaret Nora Bainbridge (1924-2016):
An appreciation
Fr iends of f Lancashi re Archives
at Lancaster University which she credited with
giving her insights into broader contexts, issues and
ranges of sources. She traced many of her family
connections in the coal mining communities of East
Lothian and the fishing communities of Fife, and
spent time interviewing people about their
memories of family, work and community. She also
explored local history in the Lancaster area, and
one of her major research projects was that of the
Lancaster-built ship, Abram, which sailed first to the
West Indies and then became a whaler from Hull
and later Kirkcaldy. This was a particular fascination
for her since one of her ancestors had died on
board in the Arctic in the 1850s and she travelled
to Scotland and London to research the ship but, as
Incorporating personal recollections and a
biography compiled by Margaret Ledwith, with
Helen Easton, Margaret’s longstanding friends and
neighbours in Lancaster.
Margaret Bainbridge, who has left FLA a very
generous bequest, was born in Barrow-in-Furness
but spent most of her adult life away, particularly
in Turkey, London and Lancaster. Margaret
studied at Edinburgh and Cambridge, taught in
various parts of the country, and then spent time
in Turkey in the 1950s working as an English
tutor. On her return she became the Turkish
expert at SOAS (the London School of Oriental
and African Studies) where she taught the
language and wrote definitive guides to the
grammar. As a talented musician she also actively
engaged in the city’s cultural activities even singing
with the BBC choir.
It was in retirement that she developed a love of
local history. Moving back north after her father’s
tragic death (killed by car outside their house) she
and her mother settled in Lancaster where
Margaret felt she would have the opportunity to
study, to take courses and to attend concerts. She
began, as so many people do, with family history
but registered for the Diploma in Local History in
the then Centre for North West Regional Studies
By Michael Winstanley
News le tter
she increasingly realised her ambition to write all
this up might be frustrated by advancing years, she
engaged Rob David and myself to extend the
research and write up the results. These were
published in 2013 as The West Indies and the Arctic
in the Age of Sail; Voyages of Abram, 1806-62
(CNWRS, 2013). Her notes on this, and other
ships and families associated with Lancaster’s
trade, have been deposited at the Regional
Heritage Centre. These include notes made from
sources in Lancashire Archives.
Margaret’s house on Aldcliffe Road was a treasure
trove, full of papers, photos and tapes, and in her
80s she began to find future homes for them: her
vast archival collection on Turkey went to the
Skilliter Centre for Ottoman Studies, Newnham
College, Cambridge where she had studied; a large
collection of local photographs and some family
papers were given to Cumbria Archives in
Barrow, detailing her father’s work as a chauffeur
and her own wartime diary, which has been
digitised and is regularly used for educational work
with schools (BDX 555). Since her death other
material has been deposited at the Regional
Heritage Centre at Lancaster University, National
Library of Scotland, Cambridge and Barrow
Archive Centre. In every case she has made
generous provision for them to be sorted and
catalogued.
As this short note makes clear, Margaret led a full
and interesting life, but she never lost her affection
for the Morecambe Bay area. She also recognised
and treasured the value of archives and this has
been reflected in her generous donations to
various bodies, including FLA and Friends of
Cumbria Archives. She was a private person,
however, never seeking, but often actively
shunning publicity and recognition. It is not clear
whether she would really appreciate even this
short appreciation of her life, but as a talented
linguist, teacher, musician and researcher it is the
very least she deserves. We are very grateful to
her for both her collections of archival records
and her generous support for local history in the
area and the work of the archive service.
Page 7
Page 8
Membership Matters
Fr iends of f Lancashi re Archives
Welcome to our new members
As the spring flowers have burst into bloom, so has our membership. Since the last newsletter we have
welcomed 9 new members:
Mrs & Mrs John Pearson of Goosnargh
Marion Hutchinson of Clitheroe
Dr Eleanor Fisher of Lancaster
Mrs Sandra Scanlan of Ashton
Dr Graham Cooper of Grindleton
Dr Stephen Lloyd of Knowsley Park
Mrs Dian Holme of Higher Walton
Mrs Grace Tabern of Barrow Nook
Mr Peter Newsham of Fulwood
Membership
Sadly we have been notified of the death of Brian Rhodes of Longridge.
A further 3 members have resigned; we thank them for their support over the years.
Our headcount now stands at 202 memberships, equating to 230 individuals.
Renewals
We still have a handful of outstanding renewals; reminders have been sent to the individuals concerned.
Payments for Events and Membership
We are in the process of improving our payment systems for event bookings and membership
applications and renewals. We will offer the payment by PayPal through our website which will enable
payments to be made to us by credit and debit cards or by PayPal account, if you have one. We hope to
have this up and running in the next few weeks and will advise you all when it is available.
As ever, please let me know if you would prefer to receive your newsletter by email.
News le tter
This afternoon walk will be led by Chris Spencer to mark the 300th Anniversary of the founding of
Brennand’s Endowed School, Slaidburn.
It will be a stroll of about 3 to 4 miles, mainly on the flat, although with some gentle inclines and stiles
along the way.
Walking through Slaidburn village and its array of 18th century cottages, surrounded by beautiful English
countryside, we’ll pass by Brennand’s Endowed School, founded in 1717 through the Will of John
Brennand of Pain Hill in Slaidburn, gentleman, and erected shortly thereafter.
Brennand endowed the new school with the payment of £80 per annum to the headmaster and usher,
secured on his farms now known as Pain Hill, Crawshaw, Parrock Head, Burn Side, Laytham’s,
Huntington’s and Higher Stony Bank.
We’ll then take the public footpaths across the fields to Pain Hill farm, then on to Parrock Head and Laytham’s. On the gentle descent back into Slaidburn, we’ll pass by the track to Burn Side and then see
Woodhouse or Ellerbeck Hall which was later added to the school lands.
Please see the booking form for further details.
Page 9
A Walk by the Slaidburn School Lands
Saturday 15 July 2017
Page 10
Events
Fr iends of f Lancashi re Archives
The 2017 programme is proving very popular and work is well underway on developing next year's
programme.
Anna Watson's February workshop on the ecclesiastical records of the Archdeaconry of Richmond was
fully booked and received many plaudits including:
I attended the workshop yesterday and would like to thank Anna Watson for her excellent presentation which I am
sure was enjoyed by everyone. The sources of information she enlarged upon were a revelation and it was clear
that she had much more up her sleeve. I for one would very much enjoy attending more workshops run by Anna.
Many thanks for a very informative afternoon on Tuesday – hopefully you will be running another session soon!
Friends will be pleased to know that Anna has agreed to run two workshops in 2018.
Alan Crosby's workshop on Quarter Session records in April was equally enjoyed:
Just a quick note to thank you for a great day yesterday. The talk was very interesting, very humorous in parts, very
informative and time just flew by. I have never known 5 hours pass so quickly and I hope we get the chance to
come on future talks. The Hot Cross buns and biscuits were greatly appreciated.
For the archive service the great value of these workshops is that they make people aware of some of
the lesser known and under-used archive collections. I hope they will inspire people to visit and to
explore them for their own research.
Hugh Doherty's lecture on Stephen, Count of Mortain was also very well received. Hugh left us wanting
to hear much much more about his work on Stephen and Tulketh Abbey and he has agreed to come
and give another lecture on this in October 2018.
Booking forms for the summer events can be found on pages 10-11 of this newsletter. Other FLA
events in 2017 are listed below. All these will take place at the Record Office. Booking forms for
autumn events will be available in the summer edition of the newsletter.
Friday 7 July 10.30am-12.30pm
Café Archive with family history surgery
Saturday 9 September 11.00am-3.30pm
Café Archive - Heritage Open Day
Tuesday 12 September 7.00pm FREE
FLA Members' AGM and Dr Mike Winstanley; Getting Away from it all: seaside resorts and the Lakes - The
growth of the day trip, seaside holiday and Lakeland tour
Continued on next page
Jacquie Crosby, FLA Events Co-ordinator
Monday 23 October 2.00-4.00pm FREE
Behind the Scenes event for FLA members only
Monday 27 November 10.30am-12.30pm
Café Archive - Lancashire Day
Friday 8 December 7.00pm £10
Dr Alan Crosby: Music in a Lancashire country house: Rufford Old Hall in the 1730s, followed by a cold buffet
supper with wine
News le tter Page 11
Contact FLA
The Friends of Lancashire Archives can be contacted via our website www.flarchives.co.uk
You may direct letters to any committee member via Lancashire Archives Bow Lane, Preston, Lancashire
PR1 2RE 01772 533039
New member put to the test!
Our membership secretary spotted this blog entry posted by
new member Grace Tabern, whose website is available at
http://www.graceancestry.co.uk
“It was with much trepidation that I arrived at the Lancashire Archives in Preston just a few week ago. I was not on a usual mission of seeking information on a clients family, no this time
it was different. This time I was there to be put to the test!
Though the room was a comfortable temperature, I have to
admit to beads of sweat forming on my brow and top lip, as I
took my seat along with several others. In front of each of
us lay a copy what looked like a forbidding and fiendishly complicated old document. Anxiety gripped my
brain as our examiner signalled for us to begin transcription of the paper. I picked it up, looked at it for a
few moments and then to my relief, my training kicked in and I went feverishly to work on the now
hapless and prostrate copy. Well within the prescribed time I was announcing to the archivist that I had
completed the task. To my mild embarrassment she gently chided my enthusiasm by jokingly reminding
me that it was not a race! “
Read more about Grace’s experience at the training session for transcribing crew lists at http://
www.graceancestry.co.uk/blog/29-testing-times-at-preston-archive
Page 12 Fr iends of f Lancashi re Archives
News le tter Page 13
Page 14 Fr iends of f Lancashi re Archives
Horrocks video
Anyone visiting the Friends website will find a link to a new 10-minute video on Horrocks. This exciting film has been created by Paul Swarbrick (with a little help from Gill Lawson) to help to promote the Horrockses archive collection and to help the Friends in their raising funds to finish cataloguing the collection. Paul has spent countless hours filming in the record office and then editing his film, adding text and selecting appropriate music . It is a gem and has already generated donations. We are indebted
to Paul for giving his time and expertise to do this for us.
You can see it at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJrUuwtW7ZU
News le tter Page 15
MEMORIES OF BURNLEY
MONDAY 15 MAY
2.00 - 4.00 pm
Burnley Library
Did you work in Burnley in the days of warm school milk,
baths once a week, and Pot Fair?
Lancashire Not Forgotten is recording memories from people with dementia and their families and carers.
Come along to our drop-in afternoon and share your memories of working in Burnley – we’d love to
hear them!
We’ve got plenty of old photos and objects from the past to look at whilst chatting, plus free
refreshments and an optional craft activity. All the memories will help create two pieces of textile art for
exhibition, and some will feature on our Lancashire Not Forgotten website.
Please note: the afternoon will be filmed, photographed and recorded, for sharing online.
Lancashire Not Forgotten is a heritage and arts project funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund. It is a collaboration between Lancashire County Council, Blackpool Council, and Blackburn with Darwen
Council.
To find out more about Lancashire Not Forgotten, please contact the Project Officer: