History Talks
I am a very experienced speaker and adult education lecturer. My PhD (Nottingham University) was in Social and Economic History (specialist field Canal Boat People)and I am the author of Women and Children of the Cut (1995) and, with co-author Gill Foster Canal Boatmen’s Missions, (2004). I am currently working on a book on the history of the Ashby de la Zouch Workhouse.
My lively, well-researched and excellently presented talks are always popular with local history societies and other organisations.
Canal Boat People
The little-known men, women and children, who worked the canal boats of our inland waterways for two hundred years, had a very distinctive life-style. This talk looks at the particular difficulties of family life aboard a cramped narrow boat and the problems boat children faced at school.
Below Stairs: The life of a Victorian Servant
What was life like in ‘the big house’ from the point of view of those ‘below stairs’? This talk looks at the structure of a large domestic staff in an English country house and then takes you through a typical day in the life of the household. You will hear about the everyday duties of housemaids, cooks, butlers, footmen and others as well as learning some of the ‘tricks of their trade’. The talk is illustrated with case studies from various well-known country houses but if you have a large house locally, which is of special interest to your listeners, it may be possible to feature this too.
Packhorses and Packroads, Drovers and Droveroads
Reminders of this forgotten way of transporting goods and animals are all around us and they have a fascinating history. Follow in the footsteps of jaggers, packhorses and drovers over windswept prehistoric ridgeways, down forgotten holloways and paved causeways for a look at what they carried and how they operated. We will also consider how travellers found their way across desolate moors and how animals were prepared for the long drive to distant markets.
Canal Boatmen’s Missions
Canal boatmen were regarded by many as outsiders, ‘a race apart’. They were described as ‘vicious’ ‘demoralised’ and were known to drink heavily and use profane language. In the 19th century, It was believed by many that boatmen were increasingly involved in theft, poaching and violent crime, especially after the murder of Christine Collins in 1839. What was more, the nature of the boatman’s occupation meant that he laboured on the Sabbath and had no opportunity to attend church or receive the benefits of religion instruction. With these concerns so widespread, and given the religious and social fervour of the times, it was natural that the thoughts of Christian philanthropists should turn to that strange and little understood band of humanity, the canal boat people. From the late 1820s, boatmen’s chapels, missions and institutes began to appear along the towpaths. But they did much more than preach to the canal folk. Schools, coffee rooms, games rooms, even laundries and maternity rooms were provided by some. This talk will look at the work of the missions, the people who ran them and what they achieved.
Lost Canals and Tramroads of the East Midlands
There are many canals in the East Midlands which are now lost to navigation. Some of them have almost completely disappeared like the little-known Charnwood Forest Canal in Leicestershire or the Nutbrook Canal which once ran from Shipley through Ilkeston and Stanton to the Erewash. Many of these canals were served by equally fascinating horse-drawn tram roads. This talk can look at the East Midlands as a whole or focus on the canals or tramroads of your choice.
Black Diamonds, the development of the Leicestershire and South Derbyshire mining industry
From medieval times to the end of the nineteenth century, this talk looks at how mining technology changed over time, who owned the coal mines and how they were run. We will concentrate on the 18th and 19th centuries and include a look at working conditions and everyday life underground.
Foxton Locks and Inclined Plane
Both unique, both engineering wonders of their day, the story of these two attempts to raise boats over the high ground of South Leicestershire makes fascinating listening. The workings of the lift will be fully explained with illustrations and diagrams. Guided walks round the site can also be arranged.
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The Census Story
If you thought the 19th century Census of England and Wales was a dry and dusty old set of documents this entertaining and informative talk will change your mind. It looks at how and why the Census came about and how it was conducted in the 19th century. Who were the enumerators and what was it like to carry out their unenviable task in some of the less savoury areas of the industrial cities of the 19th century? Some interesting and highly amusing examples of entries in the Census returns will be cited! You are guaranteed a good laugh with this talk.
Goings on Below Stairs
This talk looks at what servants got up to when they weren’t working. Starting with everyday social interaction at mealtimes and free time, we’ll look at leisure activities and interests and what they did for entertainment – with or without the knowledge and approval of those upstairs. What happened on special occasions such as Christmas? Did they ever go on holiday? And what about the flirtations, courtships and seductions which were said to take place behind the green baize door? Based largely on memoirs and diaries of the servants themselves, this talk reveals all!
The technology of the English Country House
Long before the modern household appliances with which we are all familiar today, the English country house was full of fascinating technical innovations. Summoning the servants, heating and lighting the house, water supply and food preservation, are just a few of the areas where technology of the day had a part to play. What was central heating like in the early 19th century and how was electricity supplied in the latter part of that century? Find about this and much more in this fascinating talk.
Feeding the English Country House
Don't expect cookery tips and recipes with this talk. It's all about how a great country house was supplied with foodstuffs in the days before corner shops and supermarkets. From the kitchen garden to the so called ‘living larder’ of home farm, fishponds, dovecotes and poultry yards, all had their part to play. We'll also consider some of the food processing and preservation techniques that were needed before the food reached the kitchen.
Life in the Workhouse
What was it like to enter the workhouse? What was everyday life like? Did people ever get out? All of this and more is revealed in this talk. Includes sound and video clips of the Birmingham workhouse as well as a look at documentary evidence left by various workhouses in the East Midlands and elsewhere.
The Framework Knitters of the East Midlands
The stocking frame was invented in Nottinghamshire in the sixteenth century. This fascinating machine eventually led to the East Midlands becoming one of the main producers of knitted garments and even to the birth of the famous Nottingham lace. The frame was a large, hand-operated machine but it was at first used in the home and small workshops. Not until the second half of the nineteenth century did knitting become a factory-based industry. This talk will look at the development of the industry and at the lives and everyday experiences of the framework knitters and their families.
The Forest of Dean
Please note, this talk is about the industries of the Forest.
The Forest of Dean is an area of stunning natural beauty. Peaceful and unspoilt now, it was once a very different place. A Royal Hunting forest since at least Norman times, the Forest has always been a rather secretive place and whilst it welcomes visitors now, they were once shunned and banned from taking up residence. This talk looks at the fascinating working past of the Forest, from free mining to iron production, The Forest of Dean was a very important industrial area. The free miners with their customs and privileges are unique in the coal and iron industry and they have their own traditional methods – still carried on today – suited to their unique circumstances. If you don’t know what a gaveller is and you can’t tell a scowl from a churn, book this talk and a fascinating experience awaits you and your group.Carrying Coals from Leicestershire
Forgotten packhorse roads, lost canal routes, horse drawn tramways and an early mineral incline form the main focus of this talk as we investigate the way in which coal from the Leicestershire and South Derbyshire coalfield was carried to distant markets. The route of the little-known Charnwood Forest Canal will be revealed and the intriguing story of its early demise told. Discover how horse-drawn coal trucks once trundled from the now forgotten Willesley basin, along early railroads where now only fields or busy residential streets are to be seen. You will be surprised how much industrial history there is under your very feet!