Sir Roger Gresley and his Mother: Anxious Ambitions
Born in 1799, Sir Roger Gresley grew up in troubling times. In spite of industrial progress, a twenty-year war with France touched all in Britain. A huge income from his…
Midland Ghosts, 1760-1920: Scary or Comforting?
Across thousands of years, people have felt they’ve seen ghosts. Attracted to the idea, yet also sceptical, Charles Dickens included ghosts in his novels. Whether he portrayed them as real…
Revolutionist Hits Out At Education: A Derbyshire Novel
Searching for a South Derbyshire novel, I found Paul Raymond, Revolutionist in the local history section of Swadlincote library. No one I’ve met owns the book. Nor have I seen…
Protest and Crime: Regency Tussles in the Midlands
In the wake of the French Revolution, Parliament saw protest as potentially treasonous. The poor could achieve justice through the courts, in theory. Legitimate power lay with government agencies, not…
South Derbyshire Farmers and their Secrets, 1790-1820
Farmers work the land we see through a speeding car window. Their homes and barns pass quickly by us, the secrets of their way of life a blur.
No Man’s Heath: Aggressive Sport in the 1830s
No Man’s Heath gained a reputation for fighting. Land disputes shook it in the 1790s. Later it hosted bare knuckle boxing. And people linked it with law breaking. In 1828,…
John Prior and Leicestershire: Pleasing Rewards for Labour?
Fruits of labour nourish us – a nice idea, but does it happen? For John Prior of Leicestershire, his efforts held promise. Modestly ambitious, he found employment that suited his…
Anne Moore of Tutbury: a Fraud with Strong Feelings
Anne Moore told a tall tale. She exaggerated her illness, and clung to her story. At first, this won her few friends. But between 1809 and 1813 her fame grew….