April 20, 2025
Upminster and Hornchurch, in Havering, London, have rich medieval histories and agricultural roots. Upminster evolved into a garden suburb in the early 20th century, while Hornchurch transitioned from a small agricultural community to a suburban area post-1920s. Today, both towns blend historical charm with modern amenities, reflecting their dynamic growth.
October 24, 2023
Our Victorian city dwellers moved frequently. After moving house myself I wondered why they moved and what gave them a sense of belonging? How did they find stability moving from lodging house to lodging house? And how did the lack of personal objects hinder memories?
October 7, 2022
The original role of the coachman took many guises. He may have worked on the stagecoach, the mail coach, for a doctor, for other professionals, or for families of the middling sort, and of course for the upper classes. It Read more…
August 26, 2022
Three decades or so ago, many family historians would have felt a tinge of disappointment to discover their ancestors were agricultural labourers. Possibly because those working within the farming industry of the 18th, 19th and to some extent the early Read more…
August 22, 2022
Much has been written about illegitimacy in the nineteenth and eighteenth centuries, but were things any different for the single mother in the early to mid-twentieth century? Yes and no might be the answer to that question. In the twentieth Read more…
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