This week Local and Family History’s Josh Flint and Scott Ramsey – PHD Researcher, School of History, The University of Leeds – tell us about the exciting Exhibitions from the International Brigade Memorial Trust and the Basque Children of ’37 Association coming to the Leeds Central Library from the 19 March – 5 April. This…
Tag: Leeds
November 11, 1918: A Brief History of Leeds on Armistice Day
Librarian Antony Ramm takes a look at Leeds on the day the First World War ended… When the Lord Major Joseph Henry announced to the people of Leeds that “the armistice has been signed and that fighting has been stopped from 11 o’clock this morning,” he sparked celebratory scenes which commenced almost immediately. Crowds began…
Tales from Circus 250: A Topography of the Circus in Leeds, Part I
To mark the 250th-anniversary of Philip Astley’s leap into show-business with his ring of entertainments near to Waterloo in London, the Secret Library presents a short series of stories from the glory days of the Circus in Leeds and the surrounding area. NEW BRIGGATE Charles Adams opened his Grand Circus on the site in New…
On Some Pre-1841 Sources of Leeds People
As part of a series examining family history resources for beginners, librarian Antony Ramm, takes a brief look at some useful sources for genealogy in Leeds prior to the publication of the 1841 census… It is surely no exaggeration to say that the vast majority of people doing family history are well-aware of the Census and…
Crime and Punishment in Leeds, 1850
Volunteers’ Week takes place every year from 1-7 June. Leeds Libraries held a celebratory reception yesterday, recognizing the efforts of our volunteering team – including event supporters, At-Home Service deliverers, partners and, of course, heritage volunteers – several of whom have written for this very blog. Today, we hand over to another of these, Joan Ellis,…
“We Smile”: A Curious Donation of Photographs
by Antony Ramm, Local and Family History, Central Library We recently received a new addition to our collections: a photograph album featuring images of holidays in the North of England during 1920 and 1921. The album was donated to us in the hope we could identify the people depicted in the photos and then –…
“Abysmal Performance of Depravity Rock”: The Sex Pistols in Leeds, December 1976
by Antony Ramm, Local and Family History, Central Library Forty-years ago this week, the Sex Pistols finally began their 1976 UK tour. “Finally,” because – as the BBC has remembered this week – all but three of the projected dates on that tour were cancelled following the band’s notorious TV appearance on Bill Grundy’s Today show. Those…
Remembering the Barnbow Tragedy: 100 Years Ago Today
by Louise Birch, Local and Family History, Leeds Central Library Leeds Central Library’s recent exhibition The Barnbow Story in Pictures used photographs taken from the munitions factory to give insight into the lives of the women who worked there. A selection of the exhibition photographs have been included below but, if you would like to…
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