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News
Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.37 A Map of Bath in 1787
In National Map Reading Week, this Bath map of 1787 from our archive collections illustrates a street-pattern still recognizable today. The Royal Crescent and the Circus formed the northern limits of the Georgian City before the building of Bath’s extensive suburbs in the nineteenth-century. The newly-built Pulteney Bridge shown on this map opened up the possibility of residential development on a grand scale on the open fields of Bathwick.
20 October 2017
News
Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.36 World War I Discovery Day Saturday 4 November 2017
Join us on Saturday 4th November 2017 in the Guildhall for our World War I Discovery Day. You can find out about Belgian refugees, Bath soldiers, and life on the home front, as well as enjoying children’s activities – you can make a soldier’s cap and medals – and more. You can see further details at: http://www.bathnes.gov.uk/sites/default/files/siteimages/ww1_discovery_day_leaflet.pdf (copy and paste address). This photograph of Union Street shows Bath’s memorial to its WWI servicemen, the gift of Alderman Cedric Chivers in 1923. The Remembrance Day service in this image drew a large crowd of local residents, and nursing staff and patients can be seen at the windows of the Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases. The bronze tablets recording soldiers’ names were re-located to the present war memorial at the entrance to Royal Victoria Park when it was completed in 1927. Ref: Mayor's scrapbook 2
20 October 2017
News
Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.35 Bath College rowers 1900
A picture of a Bath rowing team in celebration of National Sporting Heritage Day. The young rowers, seen here at Bathwick Boating Station, were pupils of Bath College, one of many small private schools and academies in nineteenth century Bath. The College was housed principally in Sydney House in Sydney Gardens until its closure in 1909, and today the building is home to the Holburne Museum.
29 September 2017
News
Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.34 Lansdown Tennis Club 1890s
In celebration of National Sporting Heritage Day, this picture is a reminder of the long history of Lansdown Tennis Club in Bath. It shows club members on court in the 1890s. Sportswear in that era differed very little from normal daywear, especially for female players.
29 September 2017
News
Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.33 A bumper harvest at Twerton
A bumper harvest was recorded by a Twerton photographer around a hundred years ago. The unknown gardener is clearly proud of his crop of potatoes and marrows, whilst his feet are hidden by prolific rhubarb.
26 September 2017
News
Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.32 Drop-in & see our collections & site of Bath’s Cold War HQ
Our “Drop-In Day” on Monday 10th September offers you the chance to see our new archive store in the converted “bunker” beneath the Guildhall. What was once the 1960s Control Centre for the city in the event of nuclear attack has now been adapted to store our unique collections of archives and local studies books.
8 September 2017
News
Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.31 Guildhall weather station & free basement tours
This photo of a rooftop weather station from the early 1900s is a reminder that there are parts of Bath’s Guildhall which most people never see. Our free “History Beneath Your Feet” tours on Friday 8th September give you the opportunity to see below the Guildhall. The Guildhall basement is home to 800 years of historic documents and from Georgian kitchens to the site of a nuclear war control centre, our walls have a story to tell. Tours are at 10.30am and 11.30am. To book call 01225 477421.
1 September 2017
News
Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.30 Bathampton Village Show
This 19th century watercolour of Bathampton Church shows the tower covered in ivy and looking very different to its appearance today. If you are interested in village history and the changes which have taken place over the years then come and ask an archivist. Bath archivists will be on hand to answer questions on how to research your village or family history at their stand in the Village Hall at the Bathampton Village Show on 9th September. There will also be a small exhibition and historic maps to view as well as children’s activities.
17 August 2017
News
Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.29 Free Family History Fair
A Bath photographer captured this family wedding around 1910, with a wonderful array of hats on display. Sadly no names are recorded to tell us who the young couple are. If you are interested in finding out more about your ancestors then come and ask an archivist. The Bath archivist and other experts will be ready to answer your questions at the Bristol and Avon Family History Society Fair on Saturday 9 September at the BAWA Club, 589 Southmead Road, Filton, BS34 7RG.
17 August 2017
News
Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.28 Wellow in 1902
Wellow Horticultural Society held its first Flower Show in 1956 and is still going strong with its 61st Show this year at the Playing Fields on Saturday 2nd September. If you are interested in finding out more about Wellow village history, you can ask an archivist at our stand at this year’s Flower Show. You will also be able to see a small exhibition and historic maps from our collections, including this detailed 1902 map.
17 August 2017
News
Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.27 Pioneering Preservation
This week marks the 70th anniversary of the establishment of listed building status, which protects sites and structures of historic importance. In Bath over 6000 buildings are listed on account of their architectural significance so that their appearance can be enjoyed by Bath residents and many thousands of visitors from across the world. In Bath, city planners anticipated the need for protection of our Georgian architecture even before the national legislation of 1947. A private Act of Parliament passed in 1925 allowed the council to establish an Advisory Committee which examined proposed elevations for alterations and new buildings in the city. The committee included an architect and a surveyor, and if they considered that proposals “would seriously disfigure the city” permission would be refused. This pioneering 'Bath Clause', was regarded as a model of good practice, and was later adopted in the private acts of other cities and towns, including Bristol.
11 August 2017
News
Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.26 Bath Chandeliers in the White House?
Whilst the US President is currently on holiday, the West Wing of the White House in Washington is undergoing refurbishment and re-decoration. During a previous refurbishment in 1950, White House staff asked Bath Corporation to sell them the chandeliers from our world-famous Assembly Rooms - the chandeliers had been removed from the Assembly Rooms prior to World War II, which is why they survived the Bath Blitz. Had the local authority and the Room’s owners, the National Trust, not refused to sell, then a little bit of Bath could have ended up in the White House today.
10 August 2017
News
Celebrating 50 yrs in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.25 Celebrating LGBT History: cross-dressing in the 1700s
In this year when we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the passing of the Sexual Offences Act of 1967, which partially decriminalised homosexuality, we can look back at evidence of LGBT issues in our archive collections. A very rare statement of cross-dressing is contained in the Chew Magna parish register, where in April 1770 we find the burial of James Millard, “who [for] many years wore womens cloath[es].” It is unusual for church registers to contain any personal details beyond the basic requirements but the vicar in Chew Magna recorded for posterity this and other insights into life and death in his community.
4 August 2017
News
Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.24 Here be Dragons
This heraldic red dragon decorates the only Tudor illuminated manuscript in our collections, the 1590 charter of Queen Elizabeth I to the citizens of Bath. We know that charters were purchased, not given, and the city must have paid dearly for such elaborate decoration, which includes flowers, a harp, a portcullis, a fleur-de-lys, and a golden lion. The 1590 charter was important to the inhabitants and governing Council of Bath, setting out in precise terms the powers of the Council, its area of responsibility, including ownership of the hot springs. You can see more dragons at the Victoria Art Gallery’s 2017 summer exhibition: https://www.victoriagal.org.uk/events/here-be-dragons
21 July 2017
News
Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ BathRecordOffice No.23 Jane Austen lived here
On 5th May 1801 Jane Austen wrote: "We looked at two houses in Green Park Buildings, one of which pleased me very well." But it wasn't until 1804 that Jane and her family made the decision to live at No. 27 Green Park after three years spent in Sydney Place. Jane would have seen the newly-built Green Park houses with their pristine clean stonework and not soot-encrusted as this photograph of 1982 shows. Today we can enjoy the beauty of the stonework as Jane did, thanks to stone-cleaning projects of recent years.
21 July 2017
News
Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ BathRecordOffice No.22 Carnival 1962 style
Italian Carnival was the theme of the Bath Festival in 1962. This picture from our Festival archive shows Festival guests in masked carnival costume. Guests included HRH Princess Margaret and the entertainment took place in Parade Gardens, where flaming torches illuminated gondolas on the River Avon. This year’s Bath Carnival takes place on Saturday 15th July.
14 July 2017
News
Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No. 21 American Museum Garden, Bath
This idyllic picture of summertime was painted in the gardens of the American Museum at Claverton Manor by local artist Malcolm Ashman. The image is from the archive of the Bath Society of Artists, whose 2017 Open Exhibition is currently being held at the Victoria Art Gallery in Bath, running until Saturday 15th July. The Society was established in 1904 and the archive dating back to its foundation was recently placed in the care of Bath Record Office.
12 July 2017

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News, Blogs and Press Releases

News, Blogs and Press Releases

Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.37 A Map of Bath in 1787

Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.36 World War I Discovery Day Saturday 4 November 2017

Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.35 Bath College rowers 1900

Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.34 Lansdown Tennis Club 1890s

Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.33 A bumper harvest at Twerton

Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.32 Drop-in & see our collections & site of Bath’s Cold War HQ

Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.31 Guildhall weather station & free basement tours

Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.30 Bathampton Village Show

Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.29 Free Family History Fair

Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.28 Wellow in 1902

Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.27 Pioneering Preservation

Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.26 Bath Chandeliers in the White House?

Celebrating 50 yrs in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.25 Celebrating LGBT History: cross-dressing in the 1700s

Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No.24 Here be Dragons

Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ BathRecordOffice No.23 Jane Austen lived here

Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ BathRecordOffice No.22 Carnival 1962 style

Celebrating 50 years in 50 objects @ Bath Record Office No. 21 American Museum Garden, Bath