At Work
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Workington at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Derek Woodruff
Part of the At Work series
Workington has long been a producer of coal and steel. The huge Cumbrian iron ore field lies to the south of the town and with the local coalfield providing energy for steel production, the world's first large-scale steelworks was opened in the Moss Bay area of the town. The Moss Bay Steelworks closed in 1982, followed by the closure of the last local coal mine in 1986. After the loss of the two industries on which Workington was built – coal and steel – Workington and the whole of West Cumbria became an unemployment blackspot. Today, many of Workington's residents are employed outside the town in the nuclear industry, located in and around Sellafield, West Cumbria's dominant employment sector.Workington at Work explores the life of this West Cumbrian town and its people, from pre-industrial beginnings through to the present day. In a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations, it looks at the impact that the Industrial Revolution had on the population and the consequences of rapid urbanisation, the changes in the industrial landscape during the Victorian era, and the impact of war and the post-war decline of its heavy industries. It takes us through the years of depression and decay to twenty-first-century regeneration and projects such as the £50-million Washington Square shopping centre and mixed use complex, named as the 'best commercial project' in north-west England.
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Bungay at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Christopher Reeve
Part of the At Work series
The small market town of Bungay, situated close to the River Waveney on the Norfolk-Suffolk border, has been continuously settled by Iron Age, Roman and Saxon communities. The town achieved considerable prominence and prosperity when the wealthy Bigod family, Earls of Norfolk, established a castle fortress here in c. 1165. By the eighteenth century it had grown into a thriving market town and became known as 'Little London'. The river navigation increased with the supply of timber, coals, malt, and dairy products to British troops during the Napoleonic Wars. Brewing became an increasingly important trade and in the nineteenth century a local printing business flourished, benefitting from innovations in technology and the production of affordable Bibles. In 1877 it was taken over by the London firm of Clay's, and continues today as one of the world's largest producers of books. A silk factory provided work for 300 employees. Rail goods and passenger transport commenced in 1860, but had partly an adverse effect, encouraging locals to shop in the larger towns, and by the early twentieth century agricultural depression brought economic decline. With the outbreak of war and conscription, pubs also suffered and many closed – only eleven of the original thirty-three survived at the end of the century. The Waveney silted up, so navigation and contact with the Broads and local ports ceased. In a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations, Bungay At Work explores the life of this East Anglian town and its people, from its pre-industrial beginnings, through two world wars and into the twenty-first century as Bungay reinvents itself as a tourist destination.
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Petersfield At Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by David Jeffery
Part of the At Work series
The market town of Petersfield lies on the edge of the beautiful South Downs, and it has much to thank its idyllic location for. From medieval origins its prosperity was based on the rural economy of sheep farming, hop growing and cottage industries. It was also an important stagecoach stop on the route from London to Portsmouth.Like many small towns, it was transformed by the railway, which arrived in 1859 and brought trade, industry and a surge in both people and buildings. Building expansion in the Victorian era included the Corn Exchange, schools, a courthouse, churches and a cottage hospital.In a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations, Petersfield at Work explores the life of this Hampshire town and its people, from its pre-industrial beginnings, through two world wars, and into the twenty-first century.
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Bradford at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Paul Chrystal
Part of the At Work series
Bradford is rightly proud of its industrial heritage. This West Yorkshire city rose to prominence during the nineteenth century as an international centre of textile manufacturing, particularly worsted. It was a boomtown of the Industrial Revolution, becoming known worldwide as 'Worstedopolis'. The area's access to a supply of coal, iron ore and soft water facilitated the growth of Bradford's manufacturing base, which, as textile manufacturing grew, led to an explosion in population. Bradford at Work explores the life of the city and its people, from pre-industrial beginnings through to the present day. In a fascinating series of photographs and illustrations it takes us from the city's early days as a major steel town and then a growing centre of the wool trade, through the Industrial Revolution, the traumas of the war years, post-war industrial decline and into the technologically advanced world of today. It shows how Bradford has transformed itself from a textile town into a centre of education and innovation, as well as a burgeoining tourist destination, becoming the first UNESCO City of Film with attractions such as the National Media Museum, Bradford City Park, and the Alhambra Theatre. The book also covers industry in neighbouring Saltaire and Shipley, chapters on the often forgotten local cotton industry, the industrial village of Ripley Ville and Leeds Bradford Airport.
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Amersham at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by William Parker
Part of the At Work series
The London commuter town of Amersham, in Buckinghamshire, is made up of two distinct areas: Old Amersham, set in the valley of the River Misbourne, which contains the thirteenth-century parish church of St Mary's and several old pubs and coaching inns; and Amersham-on-the-Hill, which grew rapidly around the railway station in the early part of the twentieth century. Old Amersham grew around trade in agricultural produce, mainly grain, much of which was sold to London merchants. During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries a key industry in the town was brewing. In addition, tanning, lace manufacture and brick-making all had a prominent place in the manufacturing past of the town. During the Second World War, the Radiochemical Centre, a scientific research establishment, arrived in the town. This became Amersham International, then Amersham plc, and now, after a number of changes of ownership and name, is part of GE Healthcare. In a fascinating series of photographs and illustrations, Amersham at Work explores the life of this Chilterns town and its people, from its pre-Industrial beginnings, through two world wars and into the twenty-first century.
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Llandudno at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Peter Johnson
Part of the At Work series
The popular north Wales seaside resort of Llandudno has a surprisingly long and intriguing history that predates the development of the present town, though its influence is still very apparent today. In the mid-nineteenth century major changes saw a new town emerging, one dominated by services for holidaymakers and visitors. Founded by Lord Mostyn and his family, this multifaceted industry embraced hotels, stagecoaches, traditional Punch and Judy, postcard kings, museums, the lifeboat, Bronze Age copper mines and colourful characters such as the famous 'birdman' of the early 1900s, to name but a few of those people who have worked – and continue to work – in many and varied ways to serve the tourist industry and the town. Illustrated with a fascinating series of contemporary and rare historical photographs, local author Peter Johnson explores the life of the 'Queen of the Welsh Resorts' from its earliest days, through two world wars and into the twenty-first century as Llandudno continues to evolve and thrive as a popular holiday destination.
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Derby at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Maxwell Craven
Part of the At Work series
Straddling the Derwent River, the cathedral city of Derby, its foundations in the Roman occupation of Britain, can directly attribute its contemporary status to the Industrial Revolution. Spinning mills proliferated from the eighteenth century, initially relying on water power to produce 100 per cent British cotton cloth. Victorian ingenuity and innovation became synonymous with the rapid industrial and commercial expansion that ensued; Arkwright and Pickford became household names. Derby quickly evolved into a transport and ancillary manufacturing hub in the Midlands, becoming a centre for the British rail industry and the assembly of the iconic Rolls-Royce luxury motor car. The subsequent development of the Rolls-Royce Merlin aircraft engine, which powered the legendary Spitfire and Hawker Hurricane, launched the company's proud status to what it is today: the world's second largest manufacturer of jet engines and, together with the Toyota car assembly plant, the biggest employer in Derby. Derby at Work explores the life of this East Midlands city and its people, from pre-industrial beginnings through to the present day. In a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations, it takes us from the days when cotton and spinning were cottage industries, through the Industrial Revolution, the traumas of the war years and into the technologically advanced world of today, showing how Derby has successfully transformed itself from a cotton town into a major manufacturer of cars and jet engines.
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Dundee at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Gregor Stewart
Part of the At Work series
Dundee is rightly proud of its industrial heritage and today can lay claim to being at the forefront of developments in many areas of scientific research and technology. The eighteenth century saw the city's population grow rapidly with the expansion of the whaling industry and the development of the jute trade. Dundee was dominated by its jute industry throughout the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and at its peak some 50,000 people in the city worked in sixty-two mills, often in appalling conditions. At the same time, the supporting industries of whaling and shipbuilding also expanded, as well as smaller industries such as marmalade production and publishing, earning the city the nickname of 'City of Three Js' – Jam, Jute and Journalism.Dundee at Work explores the life of Scotland's fourth largest city and its people, from pre-industrial beginnings through to the present day. In a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations, it takes us through the dramatic rise and fall of the jute industry, the traumas of industrial decline and high unemployment between the wars and post-war recovery with the arrival of light engineering companies such as Timex and NCR. It takes us into the technologically advanced world of today, showing how Dundee has successfully transformed itself from the three J's to a thriving university city and centre of biomedical and biotechnology research as well as a leading player in the information technology and video game industries.
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Faversham at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Robert Turcan
Part of the At Work series
Faversham has always been a hard-working town. Its very name, which was derived from Latin and Old English, means 'the metal workers' village', and in Saxon times the area was a centre for the manufacture of jewellery. Its town market has been in continuous use for over 900 years and when King Steven established a huge abbey here it became, for a while, capital of the kingdom. With a navigable creek leading to the Swale seaway, fishermen have always plied their trade here; in fact the Faversham Oyster Fisheries Co. is recorded in the Guinness Book of Records as being the oldest. Shepherd Neame's Brewery, which was established here, also claims to be Britain's oldest, and many surrounding farms supply the essential raw material: hops. Faversham is best known, though, for its explosives industry, which has been based here since the seventeenth century. Faversham gunpowder blasted through rocks and tunnels to allow faster growth of the railways. They also aided extraction of vital ores and minerals from mines. An increase in demand led to enlarged works at two different sites until an accidental explosion in 1916 brought about decline. Faversham at Work explores the working life of this charming Kent market town nestled in the heart of the 'Garden of England'. In a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations, it looks at the rise and fall of the explosives industry, the town's long association with shipbuilding, the influence of brick making during the Victorian era and the continuing importance of fruit growing on the local economy.
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Plymouth at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Ernie Hoblyn
Part of the At Work series
The city of Plymouth, on the south coast of Devon, has been a maritime settlement since its earliest days. A trading port in Roman and Saxon times, fishing and boatbuilding have also been mainstays of the local industry for centuries. The original town of Plymouth was historically the commercial shipping and passenger port - the Pilgrim Fathers left for the Americas from Plymouth in 1620 - and the neighbouring town of Devonport, which has now merged with Plymouth, has been associated with the Royal Navy for the last three centuries. This era saw a massive rise in the dockyard, probably peaking during the Second World War when it became the target for heavy aerial bombardment. Although it is now in decline, Devonport Dockyard is still a major naval shipyard and the only naval base in Britain that refits nuclear submarines. Today, although many of the traditional industries have declined or closed, Plymouth is home to severalhigh-tech industries, including Plessey Semiconductors. Plymouth at Work explores the working life of this city in Devon and its people, and the industries that have characterised it. This book will appeal to all those with an interest in the history of this city.
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Wallsend at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Ken Hutchinson
Part of the At Work series
The Tyneside town of Wallsend has always looked to the sea for opportunities.Standing on the banks of the River Tyne, next door to the great city of Newcastle, it first became associated with shipbuilding in 1759 with the establishment of Hurry's shipbuilders at Howdon and Willington Quay. Ropeworks and sailmakers were set up as well, and Hurry's whaling ships going to the Greenland fisheries resulted in the creation of bone cleaning and blubber boiling industries at Howdon. The town's industrial base began to diversify into chemicals from the mid-nineteenth century and the coal industry was also a major local employer, with the Rising Sun Colliery operating from 1900 until its closure in 1969. Wallsend at Work explores the life of the town and its people, from pre-industrial beginnings through to the present day. In a fascinating series of photographs and illustrations it takes us through the rise of the shipbuilding industry and the town's proud role as a builder of some of the greatest ships of the early twentieth century, the post-war decline of its main industries and the closure of Swan Hunter shipyard. It also takes us into the twenty-first century as Wallsend reinvents itself as a provider of service industries, as well as embracing new 'clean' technologies such as the building of offshore wind turbines.
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Greenwich at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by David C. Ramzan
Part of the At Work series
The history of Greenwich in South East London is defined by its location on the Southbank of the River Thames and its proximity to central London. Since its foundation, the people of Greenwich have worked in maritime industries and served the great metropolis, as well as everyday occupations and trades in the town. Greenwich Palace was the home of the Tudor monarchs, later becoming the Royal Naval Hospital then the Royal Naval College, and at the other end of the social scale the Greenwich peninsula has been home to many of those who worked in London's industries and in the docks nearby, accessible through the foot tunnel under the river. Greenwich Power Station was built to power London's trams and underground railways and today the old industrial area of North and East Greenwich is home to the O2 Arena and the Millennium Village built on the site of a submarine cable manufacturer. The centre of Greenwich is today a mixture of old and new, the centuries-old market continuing to attract many new visitors. Greenwich at Work explores the working life of this South East London town and its people, and the industries that have characterised it. The book will appeal to all those with an interest in the history of Greenwich.
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Whitby at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Paul Chrystal
Part of the At Work series
Despite its remote location, surrounded by the high ground of the North York Moors, Whitby has featured significantly in history throughout the years. One of the earliest records of Whitby is from AD 656, when Oswy, a Christian king of Northumbria, founded the first abbey there. In AD 664, the town was the setting for the famous Synod of Whitby. It was the town's coastal location that would ensure its success as it grew to become a major fishing port and an important base for the whaling industry. The town's jet jewellery industry flourished in the second half of the nineteenth century after Queen Victoria made the famous black gemstone fashionable as a mourning accessory. Whitby has been a popular tourist destination ever since the Victorian period and today continues as a major attraction, helped in no small part by its associations with Dracula and the hugely popular Goth Weekend, when people come from far and wide to pay homage. Whitby at Work explores the life of this picturesque Yorkshire coastal town and its people, from pre-industrial beginnings through to the present day, in a fascinating series of photographs and and informative text.
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Newport at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Jan Preece
Part of the At Work series
The city of Newport, lying on the River Usk in South Wales, has been an important port serving Wales since medieval times. The Industrial Revolution brought enormous wealth to Newport, when it became the centre of coal exports from the Welsh Valleys, and although the docks have declined in recent years, large areas of Newport are being regenerated and the city still retains significant industries. Newport at Work explores the history of the city through the work and industries that have characterised it. The docks have played a vital role in the history of Newport, with its many ancillary industries that grew up with the docks, including the railways from the valleys. During the US Civil War many blockade runners came to Newport. The city was also the home of the Mole Wrench, Pell's Mint Humbugs and Lovell Confectionary's Milky Lunch, and the author includes the story of other businesses and shops since the late Victorian period. Recent industries include microbreweries and specialised crafts. This book will appeal to all those with an interest in the history of Newport.
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Peterborough at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by June Bull
Part of the At Work series
Peterborough's origins can be traced back to ancient settlements on dry land by the River Nene after the building of the medieval cathedral. Its main growth period started in the nineteenth century when it became a railway city and a major industrial centre. It was particularly known for brickmaking and the London Brick Company's factory supplied bricks for the whole country, but other industries were also important, including prominent names such as Perkins Engines. Other historic industries reflected Peterborough's location at the edge of the Fens, such as British Sugar Ltd and barge transporters along the waterways. Today, light industry and services predominate, but the city remains one of the fastest growing areas in the country. Peterborough at Work explores the working life of this East Anglian city and its people, and the industries that have characterised it through the ages. This book will appeal to all those with an interest in the history of Peterborough.
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Shrewsbury at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Nigel J. Hinton
Part of the At Work series
The Shropshire town of Shrewsbury grew first as a major wool trading centre. Later this was replaced by a trade in woven Welsh cloth, which continued until the eighteenth century when more efficient production was introduced with the coming of the Industrial Revolution. The town played its part in the Industrial Revolution when ironmaster William Hazledine created his ironworks in Coleham and manufactured the bridges designed by civil engineer Thomas Telford. With the coming of the railways markets opened up for Shropshire's agricultural products and agricultural engineers such as Thomas Corbett could also get their products to a far wider market. The Sentinel Steam Wagon Company relocated to Shrewsbury from Glasgow in 1915, and after diesel replaced steam they made diesel engines for lorries and buses.In a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations, Shrewsbury at Work explores the life of this Shropshire town and its people, from its pre-industrial beginnings, through the Second World War when Bren gun carriers and diesel engines for British Army tanks were manufactured in the town, into the technologically advanced world of today as manufacturing and specialist engineering continue to be important employment sectors.
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Manchester at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Michael Nevell
Part of the At Work series
Manchester is a city with an unparalleled industrial heritage. It gave the world technological innovation as well as manufacturing strength. The city's wealth came from textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution. The great majority of cotton spinning took place in south Lancashire and north Cheshire, and Manchester was for a time the most productive centre of cotton processing in the world, earning it the sobriquet 'Cottonopolis'. Manchester's population grew at an astonishing rate in the early nineteenth century as people flocked there for work from Scotland, Wales, Ireland and other parts of England. The firms that made machines for the cotton trade diversified into general manufacture, the chemical industry expanded into other areas, financial service industries such as banking and insurance began to flourish and its transport and distribution infrastructure expanded in order to sustain booming trade and agrowing population. Manchester at Work explores the life of the city and its people, from pre-industrial beginnings through to the present day. In a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations, it takes us through the dramatic rise and fall of the textile industry and the town's role as a major inland port, the trauma of high unemployment between the wars, post-war industrial decline and late twentieth-century regeneration, and into the twenty-first century, showing how this erstwhile 'Second City of Empire' has rediscovered its swagger and successfully transformed itself into a thriving post-industrial centre of arts, culture and commerce.
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Doncaster at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Paul Chrystal
Part of the At Work series
Doncaster has always benefited from its location. It stands on the Great North Road, superseded by the A1, the primary route for all traffic from London to Edinburgh, and due to its strategic geographical importance it emerged as an industrial centre in the mid-nineteenth century. Beneath the town lies a huge coal seam and it was this that prompted Doncaster's exponential population growth. In the early part of the twentieth century Doncaster became one of the largest coal mining areas in the country, with the industry becoming one of the most significant local employers. Doncaster at Work explores the life of the town and its people, from pre-industrial beginnings through to the present day. In a fascinating series of photographs and illustrations it takes us through the rise of the coal industry and the town's role as a major railway engineering centre, the closure of several collieries in the mid-1980s and subsequent loss of many other tertiary industries, and into the twenty-first century as the town's fortunes have changed with the redevelopment and rejuvenation of its centre.
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Leicester at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Stephen Butt
Part of the At Work series
Leicester is proud of its industrial heritage. The eighteenth and nineteenth centuries saw the city's population grow rapidly with the construction of the Grand Union Canal and the arrival of the railway, which not only provided a supply of coal to the town from nearby collieries but also linked the town to the national network. These developments encouraged and accompanied a process of industrialisation that intensified throughout the Victorian era; hosiery, textiles, and footwear became the major industrial employers. Leicester at Work explores the life of the East Midlands' largest city and its people, from pre-industrial beginnings through to the present day. In a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations it takes readers through the city's dramatic industrial growth, the steady decline in Leicester's traditional manufacturing industries during the post-war years and their replacement by new jobs in the service sector, particularly in retail. It takes us into the technologically advanced world of today, showing how Leicester has reinvented itself as a major distribution centre and how the city has managed to attract new service and manufacturing businesses through its academic-industrial connections with the engineering departments at Leicester University, De Montfort University and nearby Loughborough University.
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Wrexham at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Stewart Shuttleworth
Part of the At Work series
Wrexham is the largest town in North Wales and since 1996 has been the centre of the county borough. There is evidence of settlement and industry in the county borough since before Roman times. Significant later development took place in the fourteenth century with the growth of a small town and establishment of a market. The county borough has a rich heritage of industry, including coal and lead mining, iron and steel production, and brick and tile making, which developed in the Industrial Revolution. Wrexham town's main industries in the past were brewing and leatherwork, but today it is an administrative, commercial and educational centre. Wrexham at Work explores the county borough's industrial heritage and the working life of its people from its preindustrial beginnings to the present day. The author examines how the massive changes in the patterns of work have affected the area. During the late eighteenth century much of the county borough was heavily industrialised. In the last century Wrexham entered the post-heavy industrial world and the author looks at how the county borough adapted to these changes. Illustrated throughout, with colour and archive material, this book will appeal to local people and those interested in the industrial heritage of North Wales.
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Farnham at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Fiona Taylor
Part of the At Work series
- The latest title in Amberley's exciting new 'At Work' series
- Potential review coverage in local press and media
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Coventry at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by David McGrory
Part of the At Work series
Coventry has been a major center of trade and industry since the Middle Ages. Medieval Coventry was known for making tiles, cloth, buckles, statues and stained glass. Other textile industries followed, the dyeing of cloth with the famous Coventry true blue and silk-weaving. Much later, in the twentieth century, Coventry became a pioneer of synthetic fiber manufacturing. Clock-making grew from the sixteenth century, and later watch-making – Dickens carried his Coventry watch until he died – and in the nineteenth century Coventry also became known for bike manufacture. This also led to Coventry becoming the hub of car manufacturing in the twentieth century. It was Coventry's expertise in this area, as well as aircraft, military vehicles and armaments, that led to it being targeted by enemy bombing in the Second World War. Coventry at Work explores the working life of this city in the East Midlands and its people and the industries that have characterized it through the ages. This book will appeal to all those with an interest in the history of Coventry.
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Aberdeen at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Lorna Corall Dey
Part of the At Work series
The city of Aberdeen has been shaped by its natural surroundings and location on the North Sea coast. Long before the 1,000-plus years of the city's recorded history, the area's prehistoric people built megalithic stones and circles, and for centuries the area's granite from nearby quarries was used to build the city, as well as exported around Britain wherever the hard-wearing stone was required. Over the centuries a vast number of crafts and skills went into the development of Aberdeen, a city that sits between two rivers, each enabling trades such as fishing, papermaking, shipbuilding and textiles. The city was a major fishing port and an important Scottish trading centre with the Continent, and when oil was discovered in the North Sea in the 1960s and 1970s, Aberdeen became the oil capital of Britain. Today the north-east of Scotland's natural landscape again dominates work and labour in the move to invest in new energy sources, harvesting wind and wave power. In Aberdeen at Work, authors Lorna Corall Dey and Michael Dey explore the working life of this city and its people, and the industries that have characterised it. The book will appeal to all those with an interest in the history of Aberdeen.
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Widnes At Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Jean Bradburn
Part of the At Work series
Widnes is a town with a long industrial heritage. In 1847 the first chemical factory was established and the town rapidly became a major centre of the chemical industry. The town grew quickly as housing and social provisions were made for the factory workers. Soon the villages of Farnworth, Appleton, Ditton and Upton were absorbed within the developing town of Widnes. Other industries developed too, including iron and copper works. In the 1920s and 1930s there was further diversification of the chemical industry and the products it manufactured. Slums were replaced by better homes, and the process of slum clearance continued after the Second World War. In 1961 the Silver Jubilee Bridge replaced the outdated Transporter Bridge, and in recent years many of the old heavy chemical factories have closed to be replaced by more modern factories. In a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations, Widnes at Work explores the life of this town and its people, from rapid growth during the Industrial Revolution, through two world wars, post-war decline and into the technologically advanced world of today.
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Medway Towns at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Philip MacDougall
Part of the At Work series
The history of the Medway Towns is synonymous with the large-scale military industrial complex that was centred on the dockyard, military barracks and various fortifications. This has, over many years, provided employment for the people of Chatham and Gillingham as well as Rainham, Rochester and Strood, along with the service industries that were part of the military-industrial complex. But the Medway Towns also had an abundance of cement and brickworks, barge makers, breweries, engineering workshops and clothing manufacturers. Among the household names were Short Brothers of Rochester, manufacturers of seaplanes and RAF bombers, while Strood was home to Aveling & Porter, whose iconic traction engines still grace steam fairs across the country. Despite this heavy industrialisation, the present-day Medway Towns, where houses and parks now stand, were also an area rich in farmland, with the former village of Luton as important for hop picking as anywhere in the county of Kent. In a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations, combined with a well-researched commentary, this book explores the life of these five Kent towns, the nature of local employment and the impact it had upon those employed to reflect the daily life of the Medway Towns at work.
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Warrington at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Janice Hayes
Part of the At Work series
From its heyday in the nineteenth century as a major manufacturing town and centre of wire-making, textiles, tanning, chemical production and brewing through to its designation as a new town in the late 1960s and subsequent development as a thriving business and commercial centre, Warrington has always proudly called itself the 'Town of Many Industries', having a varied economy that created one of the great industrial centres of north-west England.Working life in the town was very different a hundred years ago. Most people worked long hours in badly lit, unventilated factories full of dangerous machinery and hazardous chemicals, making goods for sale, while today the town's inhabitants can be found sitting at computers in business parks, building societies and call centres. Warrington at Work explores these changes in a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations. It looks at the impact that the Industrial Revolution had on the population and the consequences of rapid urbanisation, the changes in the industrial landscape during the Victorian era, the impact of war and the post-war decline of its heavy industries, late twentieth-century regeneration and Warrington's reinvention as a confident and thriving postindustrial town with a bright future.
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Brighouse at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Chris Helme
Part of the At Work series
From a small hamlet and a bridge, the town of Brighouse in Calderdale grew rapidly with the building of the Calder and Hebble Navigation in the late eighteenth century, which led to the development of the town's successful textiles industries. Many of the town's mills were built using local stone and quarrying continued as a major industry into the nineteenth century, when immigrants arrived from Ireland in search of work. Another important industry in Brighouse was flour milling and the giant silos, built by the family firm of Thos Sugden & Son Ltd, still dominate the town today.Brighouse at Work explores the life of this west Yorkshire town and its people, from pre-industrial beginnings through to the present day. In a fascinating series of photographs and illustrations, it looks at the impact that the Industrial Revolution had on the population and the consequences of rapid urbanisation, the changes in the industrial landscape during the Victorian era, the impact of war, and the decline of the town's textile industries. It takes us through years of depression and decay to late twentieth-century regeneration and the town's reinvention as a lively shopping centre and popular destination for visiting narrowboats.
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Uxbridge At Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Ken Pearce
Part of the At Work series
Uxbridge emerged as a market town towards the end of the twelfth century and remained so for over 700 years. Corn was the principal commodity, with much of it grown in flat and fertile land a few miles to the south, and agricultural occupations dominated. In the late eighteenth century stagecoach traffic flourished, and the opening of the Grand Junction Canal also brought more trade and employment. Corn growing gave way to market gardening during Victorian times, before the early years of the twentieth century saw the town become swallowed by London's sprawl. The introduction of electricity led to the appearance of light engineering in the growing suburb and this expansion continued between the wars, so much so that depression and unemployment made little impact on the area.Uxbridge at Work explores the life of this London suburb and its people, from pre-industrial beginnings through to the present day. In a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations it takes us from the days of corn milling to the technologically advanced world of today, showing how Uxbridge has successfully turned its proximity to Heathrow Airport and three motorways to its advantage as it continues to develop into a major office centre.
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Preston at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Keith Johnson
Part of the At Work series
Preston is rightly proud of its industrial heritage and can lay claim to being at the forefront of developments in many areas of technology. From the late eighteenth century when the first cotton mills appeared a great diversity of products and services have been produced by Preston folk. By the Industrial Revolution Preston was an important cog in the wheel of Lancashire industry. Machinery for textiles, factories for tobacco, chocolate and biscuits, breweries, a gold thread works, and a soap works have provided employment for generations. Aeroplanes, railway carriages, tramcars, diesel locomotives, motorcars and lorries have left the local production lines. The Preston Docks were, from late Victorian days until the 1980s, a hive of industry in an area where shipbuilding was pioneered. Indeed, engineering works and iron foundries were commonplace, providing the nuts and bolts essential for industrial growth.Preston at Work explores the life of this Lancashire city and its people, from pre-industrial beginnings through to the present day. In a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations it takes us from the days when cotton and spinning were cottage industries, through the Industrial Revolution, the traumas of the war years and into the technologically advanced world of today, showing how Preston has successfully transformed itself from a cotton town into an administrative centre and a university city.
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Bury St Edmunds at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Martyn Taylor
Part of the At Work series
Farming has always been synonymous with this part of England. The Benedictine abbey owned and controlled the town for over 500 years and the employment of the townspeople was centred around provisioning this huge religious house. As time went by, Bury went on to thrive as a wool town until the eighteenth century saw a downturn in the wool trade with resulting unemployment. The mid-nineteenth century saw a slow move towards industrialisation in the town though trades had always flourished. New industries arrived, such as the Greene King brewery, Bobys Engineering, the Cornish and Lloyd Foundry and then, of course, the sugar beet factory. Bury St Edmunds at Work explores the life of this Suffolk town and its people, from pre-industrial beginnings through to the present day. In a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations it looks at the impact that the Industrial Revolution had on the town, the consequences of rapid urbanisation, the changes in the industrial landscape during the Victorian era, the impact of war, and the post-war population explosion with the arrival of the London overspill in the 1960s, which also brought new jobs and new hopes. This book shows how the town has evolved to become not only an important tourist destination but a very desirable place to live and work.
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Gloucester at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Christine Jordan
Part of the At Work series
Gloucester has been a centre for trade and industry since Roman times. From megalithic industrial concerns employing hundreds of people, to small family businesses, Gloucester has a wealth of industrial heritage. It is a microcosm of Britain's economic history. Gloucester at Work explores the life of this city and its people, from pre-industrial beginnings through to the present day. In a fascinating series of photographs and illustrations, this book takes us from the days when Gloucester had a Roman tile factory and the development of highly skilled trades during the medieval period through to the Victorian economic behemoth it became. It looks at its proud aerospace industry, particularly during the war years, through to its dwindling fortunes during the 1970s and 1980s. More recently, Gloucester has seen an economic upsurge with the creation of digital technologies and cyber security. Gloucester at Work maps some of the contributions made by entrepreneurs, engineers, innovators and skilled tradespeople as well as the ordinary men and women who have contributed to Gloucester's – and the nation's – wealth by working in this great city.
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Anglesey at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Geraint Wyn Hughes
Part of the At Work series
The island of Anglesey, lying off the coast of north-west Wales, has experienced waves of invasions over the centuries. Its inhabitants have worked on the land, surrounding waters and local industries through the many changes that have taken place on Anglesey up to the present day. Agriculture has played an important role on the island, but its natural resources have also been exploited and harnessed, from copper and coal mining, iron extraction, stone quarrying, to wind and tidal mills and the now decommissioned nuclear power station at Wylfa. Maritime activities have included shipbuilding, fishing, whaling, lighthouses and lifeboat stations and the island has also been an important militarily home of the Catalina factory and RAF Valley. The port of Holyhead has long been important for people travelling between Britain and Ireland, and roads, railways and bridges built on the island by Telford and Stephenson during the Industrial Revolution onwards still facilitate the tourism trade today, which is a significant element of Anglesey's economy. Anglesey at Work explores the working life of this island in North Wales. This book will appeal to all those with an interest in the history of Anglesey.
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Evesham at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Stan Brotherton
Part of the At Work series
The picturesque market town of Evesham in Worcestershire grew up around its large medieval abbey, situated on a bend on the River Avon. The abbey brought trade and business to the town but after the Dissolution of the Monasteries in Henry VIII's reign the town continued to be a prosperous market town for the area. The fertile land around Evesham was ideal for the growing of fruit and vegetables and the Vale of Evesham is still known today for market gardening. In this book local historian Stan Brotherton explores the working life of Evesham and its people, and the industries that have characterised it over the years, from life under the abbots, its role as the granary of Worcestershire, new charters and new guilds, to the importance of the arrival of the railways in the growth of the fruit and vegetable industry, the developments of unions and co-operatives, the impact of the world wars on working lives and present-day industries of horticulture and heritage. Evesham at Work will appeal to all those with an interest in the history of this Worcestershire town.
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Runcorn at Work
People and Industries Through the Years
by Jean Bradburn
Part of the At Work series
Prosperity first came to Runcorn with the building of the Manchester Ship Canal, which was completed in 1776 - the start of Runcorn as an industrial town. Heavy industry, such as soap and alkali works, soon moved in, as did major transportation links, including the Bridgewater Canal. As people flocked to the town for work in its chemical works, the character of the place changed as it grew to accommodate the overspill from Liverpool. Sprawling housing estates were built, including the infamous Southgate, and Runcorn New Town was officially designated in 1964. Runcorn at Work explores the life of this industrial Cheshire town and its people, from pre-industrial beginnings through to the present day, in a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations.
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Norwich at Work
People and Industries Through the Years
by Sarah E. Doig
Part of the At Work series
In virtually every street in Norwich you can see the legacy left by the city's trade and industry over the centuries. Norwich at Work tells the story of its citizens' working life and guides present-day visitors and residents alike through Norwich's rich industrial architectural heritage. The book will take the reader on a journey from the prosperous Norwich of the Middle Ages, then England's second largest city. It will chart the growth and decline of the textile trade and the emergence of new businesses such as brewing and footwear, as well as their eventual demise – in the first half of the nineteenth century there were twenty-seven breweries in Norwich and in the 1930s over 10,000 people worked in shoe and boot manufacturing in the city, including for famous names such as Clarks, Norvic and Bally. The twentieth century witnessed the boom of the media and financial services industries, including Norwich Union insurance (now Aviva). Other famous Norwich businesses such as Colman's (mustard), Caley's (chocolate) and Jarrold (department store) are also featured. With a fascinating series of photographs and illustrations, Norwich at Work traces the story of the changing patterns of work in Norwich through the centuries. It will appeal to all those with an interest in the history of this city in Norfolk.
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Chester at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Stewart Shuttleworth
Part of the At Work series
Today service industries predominate in Chester such as tourism, retail, public administration and financial services. This was not always the case, given the city's location on the River Dee and its strategic military position. Chester was a port with ancillary industries from Roman times. In he mid-eighteenth century the port declined due to silting of the Dee and the rise of Liverpool. However, some port-related industries remained and a reduced amount of shipping continued into the twentieth century. The 1770s saw the opening of the Chester Canal and, in 1799, the lead works was developed. The arrival of the railways saw Chester become a transport hub with three locomotive depots and an LNWR wagon works. Other industries that subsequently developed included the Hydraulic Engineering Company, the Westminster Coach and Motor Works, the aluminium manufacturer Williams & Williams and Brookhurst Switchgear Ltd. In Chester at Work Stanley Jenkins and Stewart Shuttleworth trace the changes in the city's working life from its pre-industrial beginnings, through the Industrial Revolution and right up to the present day. This book will be of interest to those who know the city and want to discover more about its rich heritage from an industrial and social perspective.
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Grantham at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by John Pinchbeck
Part of the At Work series
The Lincolnshire town of Grantham was historically an important market town and centre of the wool trade, benefitting from its position on the Great North Road, the main north–south route through England, now the A1. The Industrial Revolution and the arrival of the canals and railways transformed Grantham as new industries were established in the town. Engineering companies arrived, giving employment to many in the town. Some were of national importance such as blacksmith Richard Hornsby's business repairing carriages and agricultural machinery, which later, as Ruston Hornsby, moved into steam engine production, pioneered the steel plough, produced an early oil engine and created one of the first tracked vehicles. Other companies followed specialising in traction engines, tractors, dumper trucks, cranes, road rollers and aircraft cannon, as well as brewing and a food-canning factory. However, the post-war decline of manufacturing industries has led to the closure of these factories in recent decades and today Grantham is characterised by such diverse industries as food processing, distribution, services and healthcare. Grantham at Work explores the working life of this Lincolnshire town, its people and the industries that have characterised it. This book traces the story of Grantham's growth in the nineteenth century following the arrival of the railways and its development from a market town to a centre of industry, through two world wars and the changes in recent years as many of the old manufacturing industries have gone, to be replaced by new businesses today.
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Weymouth & Portland at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Fiona Taylor
Part of the At Work series
The Weymouth that we know today started as two towns: Weymouth and Melcombe. Weymouth originally occupied the south shore of the English Channel coast in Dorset, hemmed in by the harbour and Portland Bay, with the Isle of Portland joined to it on the south. Melcombe was on the north shore of the harbour on a small sandbank. In 1571 Elizabeth I passed a charter amalgamating the two boroughs and the port continued to grow. Fortunes changed during the siege of the town in the English Civil War and the rise of smuggling in the eighteenth century. This time was also the beginning of Weymouth as a tourist town and as a fashionable coastal resort. Weymouth also benefited from being the embarkation point for the packet services to the Channel Islands and for paddle steamer services and excursions. In the nineteenth century Robert Whitehead, pioneer engineer of the naval torpedo, opened his factory in Weymouth. The Isle of Portland also had its distinctive industries, quarried for its limestone and home to a massive naval base. The area was one of the key embarkation points for D-Day during the Second World War and today is a major sailing and surfing centre.Weymouth & Portland at Work explores the working life of this Dorset town and its people. The book will appeal to all those with an interest in the history of Weymouth and Portland.
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Colchester at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Patrick Denney
Part of the At Work series
The historic town of Colchester has a long history stretching back over 2,000 years to when it was the capital of Roman Britain, and before that a prominent centre during the Iron Age. Throughout the centuries the inhabitants of the town have engaged in all manner of occupational activities, bringing much prosperity to the area. During the Middle Ages the town grew rapidly as a centre for the manufacture of woollen cloth, and following the arrival of a large number of cloth workers from the Low Countries in the sixteenth century went on to achieve international fame as a centre for high-quality workmanship. In later years, the Industrial Revolution brought several new industries to the town, including Paxman's engineering works, which came to be one of the leading suppliers of diesel engines both in this country and abroad. Other industries to have boomed at this time include the boot and shoe industry and also the rag trade where the town flourished as a centre for the production of men's ready-to-wear clothing. The author has also included a chapter highlighting the working lives of a number of Colchester residents who were employed in the town during the early to middle decades of the twentieth century. Today Colchester is one of the fastest-growing communities in the country, benefitting from its university, new residential developments and its close proximity to Stansted Airport, Felixstowe and Harwich seaports and good connections to London. Colchester at Work explores the working life of this Essex town, and will appeal to all those with an interest in the history of this part of the country.
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Salford at Work
People and Industries Through the Years
by Peter Harris
Part of the At Work series
Though often seen as the smaller twin of Manchester, Salford – its neighbour across the River Irwell – boasts a rich industrial heritage. Cotton and silk spinning and weaving in local mills attracted an influx of families and provided Salford with a strong economy. However, it was the completion of the Manchester Ship Canal in 1894 that triggered the town's development as a major inland port, and Salford expanded rapidly from a small market town into a major industrial metropolis. The population rose from 12,000 in 1812 to 70,244 within thirty years. By the end of the nineteenth century it had increased to 220,000, mostly housed in low-quality and overcrowded Victorian terraces, leading to chronic social deprivation. Salford at Work explores the life of Salford and its people, from pre-industrial beginnings through to the present day. In a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations, it takes us through the dramatic rise and fall of the textile industry and the town's role as a major inland port, the trauma of high unemployment between the wars, post-war industrial decline and into the twenty-first century, showing how this 'Dirty Old Town' has successfully transformed itself from one of the country's most deprived areas into a thriving post-industrial city.
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Edinburgh at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Malcolm Fife
Part of the At Work series
Edinburgh has always been different. It was affected less than most other cities in Britain by the Industrial Revolution, remaining essentially professional rather than industrial, while enjoying a reputation as a hub of intellectual thought during the Scottish Enlightenment of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Adam Smith, David Hume, James Hutton and John Playfair are only a few of the many eminent thinkers associated with the city. It was also during this period that the city began to spread beyond the confines of the cramped Old Town tenements, extending northwards with the building of the Georgian New Town, and eventually swallowing up many smaller surrounding settlements, including the port of Leith. Edinburgh at Work explores the working life of this great city, from humble beginnings to its current status as the UK's second financial centre after London and the fourth largest in Europe. In a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations it looks at the consequences of rapid urbanisation, the rise in the city's economic fortunes through the nineteenth century, the growth of tourism from the postwar period and the opening of the Scottish Parliament. Along the way it explores the development of Scotland's capital from relative obscurity to international renown as home to the world's largest arts festival and the strongest economy of any city in the UK outside London.
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Jarrow at Work
People and Industries Through the Years
by Paul Perry
Part of the At Work series
Jarrow has a rich history going back well over a thousand years, but the town is best known for its long-term association with shipbuilding. Charles Mark Palmer established a shipyard – Palmers Shipbuilding and Iron Company – in 1852 and became the first armour-plate manufacturer in the world. John Bowes, the first iron screw collier, revived the Tyne coal trade, and Palmers was responsible for building the first modern cargo ship as well as a number of notable warships. Palmers employed as much as 80 per cent of the town's working population until its closure in 1933. Jarrow at Work explores the life of this Tyneside town and its people, from pre-industrial beginnings through to the present day, in a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations. It takes us through the phenomenal growth of the shipbuilding industry in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, its subsequent decline and brief revival during the First World War when the Royal Navy needed more ships, post-war nationalisation of the shipbuilding industry, the closure of the last shipyard in the town in 1981, and finally how the town is coping today with the loss of such a major part of its history.
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Sheffield at Work
People and Industries Through the Years
by Melvyn Jones
Part of the At Work series
Sheffield has been dubbed 'Steel City' but it was and still is much more than that, and it is for much more than manufacturing metal ingots that Sheffield earned its national and international reputation. For centuries it produced cutlery, files, a vast range of agricultural implements, Old Sheffield Plate, silverware, crinoline wires, umbrella frames, the railway lines that transformed Britain's transport system, and shells and armour plate for the armed forces. And then there are the mushy peas, Liquorice Allsorts, Henderson's Relish and Izal disinfectant! Today Sheffield is a prime example of a post-industrial city and has the reputation of being the country's greenest city. Its two universities attract more than 60,000 students every year. The Lower Don Valley, described in the 1970s as an industrial wasteland, is now crowded with edge-of-town shopping, entertainment and sporting destinations. But manufacturing still continues, with firms manufacturing forged and cast steel for the engineering, nuclear and petrochemical industries worldwide and special steels for the aerospace, oil and automotive industries. At the other end of the scale individual craftsmen still produce bespoke knives in small workshops. Join authors Melvyn and Joan Jones as they uncover the working life of Sheffield past and present through informative text and a wide range of related images.
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Chilterns at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Jill Eyers
Part of the At Work series
Stretching from Oxfordshire's Goring in the south to Royston, Hertfordshire, in the north, the Chilterns forms a meandering chalk spine right across four counties: Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire. The Chilterns landscape is justly famous, but this beautiful area reflects centuries of people working the land – including the woodland – and exploiting resources in an imaginative way. This same landscape also gives us glimpses of a once much more widespread industrial past. In Chilterns at Work we explore the rich mixture of work in the area that has developed through the years to the present day. From farming and agriculture, watercress beds, woodland industries and furniture making, milling, wine and beer making, cottage industries and work derived from the Chilterns' strategic position on transport routes from London to the Midlands, to wartime industries, the chalk, flint and gravel quarries, cement manufacture, brick and tile making, the sarsen industry, modern-day industries based around recreation and leisure, and many others that typify the area. This exploration of the Chilterns provides an interesting, intriguing and sometimes surprising look at professions and industries of the past and the present day. It will appeal to all those with an interest in this corner of south-east England.
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Oxford at Work
People and Industries Through the Years
by Stanley C. Jenkins
Part of the At Work series
The city of Oxford has a long and prosperous history. First mentioned by name in the early tenth century as one of the burhs, or fortified places, that King Alfred and his descendants had constructed to protect Wessex from the Vikings, Oxford has played a significant part in many of the great historical events that have shaped the country. In the twelfth century the University of Oxford began to take shape, establishing the city as a centre of learning, which it remains today. Oxford at Work explores the life of this 'City of Dreaming Spires' and its people. It takes us from the founding of St Frideswide's nunnery in the eighth century and the emergence of its university in the late twelfth century – the first in the English-speaking world – through its growth and development as one of the country's leading centres of education, science, publishing and motor manufacturing, to its current status as one of the fastest growing and ethnically diverse cities in the UK.
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Portsmouth at Work
People and Industries Through the Years
by Philip MacDougall
Part of the At Work series
Portsmouth is best known for its longterm association with the Royal Navy. Its naval dockyard was at one time the world's largest employer of a civilian workforce. While there can be no dispute that the navy, for many centuries, totally dominated the town, it was not, by any means, the only employer. Others were active in the various service industries that met the needs of those employed in the dockyard or the navy: a largescale tailoring industry that initially began in the production of service uniforms, but rapidly expanded to meet more general needs far beyond that of Portsmouth; brewing, with Portsmouth boasting more pubs per head of population than any other city in the UK; and, of course, entertainment, as its many theatres, cinemas and music halls provided alternative diversions for a large population of off-duty sailors. Portsmouth at Work explores the life of Portsmouth and its people, from pre-industrial beginnings through to the present day. In a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations it takes us through the phenomenal growth of the naval dockyard and the city's role as a major seaport, the part it played in both world wars and subsequent conflicts, and into the twenty-first century as Portsmouth has adapted to the reduced size of the British Navy with the development of other industries.
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Epsom & Ewell At Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Jeremy Harte
Part of the At Work series
Epsom is the home of the Derby, where racehorses from the training stables can be seen every morning riding out on the world-famous Downs. But it has had many other industries since the 1820s, when a rural parish of farmers, millers and maltsters embraced new urban trades. Resident gentry patronised clockmakers and herald painters, while stagecoaches on the Brighton road needed wheelwrights and saddlers. Gunpowder mills on the nearby river were profitable but dangerous. When the railway came, dairymen and brick-makers soon learnt to supply the London market. With its own brewery, printworks and ironfounders, Epsom had every Victorian amenity. The expansion of suburbia in the 1930s brought new opportunities for builders and landscape gardeners, cut short by the Second World War when people learnt once more to rely on local resources. The following years saw international companies of engineers relocating to Epsom while local family firms learnt to live in a global world, all breaking off once a year to host the greatest race in the world. With a mixture of old and new photographs, reminiscences and new documentary research, Epsom at Work pays tribute to a Surrey community that is so much more than a one-horse town.
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Liverpool at Work
People And Industries Through The Years
by Ken Pye
Part of the At Work series
The city of Liverpool is famous throughout the world. This once small fishing village was transformed into a mighty commercial powerhouse, seen by many as the second city of the British Empire. In 1715 Liverpool created the world's first enclosed, commercial wet dock; eventually there would be docks along 7.5 miles of the River Mersey. It rapidly grew into the greatest port and city in the entire British Empire outside London. Nevertheless, by 1980 Liverpool's population had decreased by over half. Its infrastructure and economy were decaying, and its political leaders were driving the city towards complete collapse.In a fascinating series of contemporary photographs and illustrations, well-known local author Ken Pye explores the life of this great city and its people, from its heyday as a major trading port, through two world wars, post-war decline and into the technologically advanced world of today. Liverpool has risen again to become the fastest growing economy in Britain, a European Capital of Culture and a UNESCO World Heritage City.