A White Sheep and a Talking Horse

Here, Year 10 work experience student, Thomas, gives his thoughts on some of Derbyshire playwright Lawrence du Garde Peach’s plays. You can find out more about du Garde Peach in Thomas’s first blog post about him. Peach’s style is fast-paced, littered with exclamations, and exciting, but the dialogue isn’t particularly heavy on comedy. In one …

Lawrence du Garde Peach

In July we host a few students from school year 10 (age 15) for a week of work experience at the Record Office. As part of his placement, one of our students, Thomas, researched Lawrence du Garde Peach, whose literary archive we hold (reference D7686). Here's what Thomas found out: Lawrence du Garde Peach was …

The Gratitude of First World War Prisoners to Margery Swanwick of Chesterfield

A post from catalogue volunteer, Roger. The Record Office recently purchased several letters and postcards at an auction which illustrate aspects of humanitarian work during the First World War. Margery Eleanor Swanwick (1880-1959) a resident of Whittington, Chesterfield was active both in providing parcels of food and other comforts to Allied soldiers imprisoned in Germany, …

An Insider’s View of north Derbyshire Libraries around 1950

Nearly 40 years ago, the record office purchased a small bundle of letters primarily sent to Charles Kay Ogden, the founder of the Orthological Institute which was concerned chiefly with the development of Basic English.  Cataloguing volunteer, Roger Jennens, has recently listed all the letters and here he writes of the rich observations they contain …

Clay Cross Treasures – one volunteer’s quest through the archives

It seems logical to have an introduction. I’m Phil, I’ve been volunteering now at the Record Office for 4 ½ years. Prior to this I had worked here for 2 ½ years and got very attached to the place! I couldn’t be got rid of that easily! Over those 4 ½ years I have helped …

When truth may be stranger than fiction?

Record Office volunteer Roger Jennens sets the scene for a Victorian melodrama. Consider this rich Victorian narrative. Does this accumulation of events seem plausible? The story begins with the birth of the heroine: a collier’s daughter born in a small village located on the border of Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire. As a young woman she is …

William Nightingale’s ‘Domesday Book’: guest post by Dr Richard Bates

Did you know that in a couple of years it will be 200 years since Florence Nightingale was born?  Many people aren't aware that Florence's family was from Derbyshire, but to link with her anniversary, the University of Nottingham has a major Arts and Humanities Research Council funded project called Florence Nightingale comes home for 2020.  One of the researchers …

Matthew Goodden of Abergavenny: toll gate entrepreneur, forger of railway tickets

We have published a few previous posts about Roger’s work as a cataloguing volunteer.  In the following post, Roger tells us about another recent discovery in the records of the Thornsett Turnpike Trust: A document in this collection which made me curious was an invoice from Matthew Goodden of Abergavenny for water and gas supplied to a …

John Kenyon Winterbottom: turnpike trust clerk, not wholly trustworthy

We have published a few previous posts about Roger's work as a cataloguing volunteer.  In the following post, Roger tells us about some recent discoveries: In the mid-nineteenth century the Thornsett Turnpike Trust managed a number of roads in and around New Mills. Some Trust records have survived in Derbyshire Record Office collection D535, and in …

A week of work experience at Derbyshire Record Office

This post comes from Richard and Cara, who have been at Derbyshire Record Office all week on a work experience placement.  We are all agreed they have done really, really well. Work experience this week has been fantastic. We’ve done multiple activities such as conservation; Picture the Past and the NUM Project work. We’ve learnt …