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The Great Yarmouth Suspension Bridge Disaster of 1845
Historian article
Many communities have cataclysmic disasters which tend to dominate or define their local history. Gareth Davies reveals that the sudden collapse of the Great Yarmouth Suspension Bridge is a telling example of this trend.
Beside the waters of the River Bure in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk stands a shiny black memorial...
The Great Yarmouth Suspension Bridge Disaster of 1845
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Out and about in Sheffield
Historian feature
This article was commissioned by the Sheffield Branch of the Historical Association in response to an editorial invitation for items of wide Local History interest to be submitted for publication. It is hoped that John Salt's insight will encourage members to visit Sheffield and also give them ideas on what...
Out and about in Sheffield
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History of the Cumbria Branch
Branch History
Cumbria Branch was founded in November 1971 as a result of a very successful tour of Hadrian's Wall, led by Peter Southern. We decided we needed a more permanent influence of the H.A. in Carlisle and Cumbria. There had been a Carlisle Branch earlier in the C20th but it folded...
History of the Cumbria Branch
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Formation of the Public History Committee
Public History Committee
The Historical Association is pleased to announce the formation of a Committee for Public History which held its first meeting in May 2009. Dr Andrew Foster, a member of Council, is the first chair of this committee and gave a brief account of its purpose at the AGM held in...
Formation of the Public History Committee
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Hull & East Riding Branch History
Branch History
The origins of the Hull branch of the HA go back to 1921. However the branch really came to life when Dr Fred Brooks arrived as Reader in Medieval History at the new University College of Hull. From 1930 to 1977 he was the mainspring of the activities and growth...
Hull & East Riding Branch History
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Out and About in South London
Historian feature
In an unusual Out and About feature, the Young Historian Local History Senior Prize winner Flora Wilton Tregear shows us what her local area can tell us about the history of public health.
Taking the DLR out from Lewisham you pass through Deptford Bridge station towards Greenwich. Here my father...
Out and About in South London
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Swansea Branch History
Branch History
History of the Swansea BranchThe first Swansea Branch of the Historical Association was established in 1923. Unfortunately, the activities of the branch are unknown as no local documentation from that time has survived. All that is certain is that by 1925 it had ceased to meet.Following a suggestion by the...
Swansea Branch History
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Join and explore all you love about history
Information
HA membership starts from as little as £39.50 at concessionary rate, and £59.50 at individual rate. You can also get two extra months for free by quoting the code OL19 over the phone.Call us on 0300 100 0223 or join online today
Discover local branch talks and visits
With over 45 vibrant local branches across the...
Join and explore all you love about history
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Bolton Branch History
Branch History
The Bolton Branch of the Historical Association, having been founded in 1927, celebrated its 80th birthday suitably spectacularly in October 2007. Not only did it have, for the occasion, a distinguished Chief Guest as visiting lecturer, and an audience of nearly 200, but it also had a large, decorative and...
Bolton Branch History
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The Historian 157: United States
The magazine of the Historical Association
5 Editorial (Read article - open access)
6 Ending Camelot: the assassination of John F Kennedy – Nicolas Kinloch (Read article)
11 Letters
12 Anti-Americanism in Britain during the Second World War – Kit Kowol (Read article)
17 The portrayal of historians in fiction: people on the edge? – Michael Bender (Read article)...
The Historian 157: United States
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Exeter Branch History
Branch History
A Brief History of the Exeter BranchExeter was one of the seventeen pre-First World War branches, founded in November 1906, the same year as the Historical Association itself. The Exeter branch was founded by Professor Walter (W.J.) Harte who became President of the (national) Historical Association 1932-36. Harte was appointed...
Exeter Branch History
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Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Branch History
Branch History
History of the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Branch of the Historical AssociationThe Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole branch of the HA was founded in December 1922 and has been in existence ever since. Its history can be followed in the annual reports sent to HQ, in the complete set of committee...
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Branch History
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Ealing Branch History
Branch History
The Ealing Branch was formed shortly after the second world war. Among its founder members was Gordon Batho, then a schoolboy at Ealing County Grammar School for Boys and now President of the Durham branch of the Historical Association and Emeritus Professor of Education at Durham University. The Ealing branch holds...
Ealing Branch History
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Out and About: exploring Lancaster’s ‘glocal’ history online and on foot
Historian feature
The city of Lancaster has many important historical landmarks from both the medieval period and the time of the Industrial Revolution. In this article Sunita Abraham and Christopher Donaldson describe the thinking behind a guided historical tour they have devised for the city. This involves engaging with modern technology, placing Lancaster within a...
Out and About: exploring Lancaster’s ‘glocal’ history online and on foot
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Manchester Branch History
Branch History
Manchester Branch is proud of its role in the foundation of the Historical Association (HA) in 1906. Professor Thomas Frederick Tout and others at Manchester University had been discussing the idea of forming an Association to promote the teaching of a more relevant and vibrant form of history than was...
Manchester Branch History
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Local Authority Housing
Classic Pamphlet
Local authority housing has been a distinctive feature of the British housing system throughout the twentieth century. This pamphlet outlines the development of local authority housing in Britain from its origins in the late nineteenth century to the present day, focusing on the ways in which policy changes have affected...
Local Authority Housing
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The Institute of Historical Research
Public History Podcast
The following podcasts are from an interview between Dr Andrew Foster, chair of our Public History Committee with Professor Miles Taylor, Director of the Institute of Historical Research. The podcasts look at the work of the IHR - what it aims to do for the historical profession and wider public, the...
The Institute of Historical Research
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Out and About: The castles of Castle Cary
Historian feature
In this article, Chris Culpin explores the surprising story behind Castle Cary’s long-vanished castles. Through conquest, rebellion, siege, and demolition, Castle Cary’s forgotten castles reveal a dramatic chapter of local and national history...
Out and About: The castles of Castle Cary
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Contribute an Article to The Historian
Contribute
The Historian is the journal of the Historical Association that is for all our general members and for teacher members who want a little bit of extra subject knowledge.
Containing a mixture of themed articles, regular features and general interest, the journal comes out four times a year. Articles are...
Contribute an Article to The Historian
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Doing history: The Old Poor Law in a Regency York Parish 1795–1847
Historian feature
In this regular feature called Doing History, history enthusiasts describe a piece of research they have undertaken and how it sheds light on aspects of local and national history. Here Steve Barrett shows how his exploration of archives in York provided interesting insights into the controversial issue of poor relief, with a focus...
Doing history: The Old Poor Law in a Regency York Parish 1795–1847
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Birmingham Branch 1907-2007
Branch History
The Branch was founded in May 1907, a few months after the Historical Association was established. The founding Branch President was Professor John Masterman, Professor of History (1902-09) in the University of Birmingham's Department of Commerce, as it was designated in those days. He was one of several historians in...
Birmingham Branch 1907-2007
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Out and about in Glasgow
Historian feature
Glasgow's George Square statues -‘Through the looking glass'
History is often illumined by writers of genius but Glasgow did not produce a Zola, a Balzac, a Dickens or even an Arnold Bennet. We are, therefore, thrown back on looking at other manifestations of a powerful and wealthy city to augment...
Out and about in Glasgow
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Central and Local Government in Scotland Since 1707
Classic Pamphlet
This pamphlet provides an interesting approach to a historical topic which has been too frequently covered from a single viewpoint. The pamphlet delivers a thoroughly Scottish approach to the nature of the 1707 Union and the changing nature of Scotland in the following centuries. It highlights the disparity of the...
Central and Local Government in Scotland Since 1707
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Canterbury Branch History
Branch History
Although active between the wars, the Canterbury Branch had faded into oblivion by the 1960s.The arrival of the University of Kent at Canterbury brought about the Branch's revival in 1971-1972, led by Peter Roberts, Grayson Ditchfield and Donald Read, and a programme was arranged for 1972 -3. Among those on...
Canterbury Branch History
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Doing history: Manorial Court Records
Historian feature
Manorial records are often associated with the medieval period, and while they are a valuable resource for medieval historians, they actually span from the twelfth to the twentieth century. Sarah Pettyfer sheds light on these often-overlooked records, helping family and local historians explore them with confidence...
Doing history: Manorial Court Records
