If it happened, it was in the news.
Thanet Advertiser – Friday 04 April 1947 This is a fascinating newspaper advertisement from 1947 for a service called Rediffusion. Here’s a breakdown: Rediffusion Technology in 1947 What is Rediffusion? Rediffusion was a service that allowed people to listen to crystal-clear radio broadcasts without owning a traditional radio set. Instead of using traditional radio waves, […]
The Morning Post – Wednesday 31 March 1830 This article describes an event reported in The Morning Post newspaper, dated 31 March 1830. It recounts a shocking and socially disgraceful incident that took place in a crowded marketplace. In summary, the article portrays a deeply degrading episode in which societal norms, gender inequality, and public […]
Family notices in old newspapers are important because they provide essential details about individuals, relationships, and communities, offering a rich resource for genealogical research and insights into social history. Here is an example: Gloucester Citizen (Thursday 8th December 1927): BIRTHS, MARRIAGES AND DEATHS. Notices of Births, Marriages and Deaths, In Memoriam Notices, Acknowledgements of Sympathy, […]
The handling of meat in Britain during the 1800s was an area of significant concern due to the lack of comprehensive food safety regulations, leading to widespread public health issues and increasing media coverage of scandals and legal cases. Thame Gazette – Tuesday 17 September 1867 A butcher in Walworth was fined £10 or faced […]
FRIGHTFUL ACCIDENT ON THE NORTH KENT RAILWAY. Also on this page: The State of Rail Safety in the UK During the 1850s Importance of Historical News Articles for Historians and Genealogists Free to use British Newspaper Research Service COLLISION OF TRAINS. Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard – Saturday 04 July 1857 A frightful accident occurred a […]
Tavistock Gazette – Friday 22 October 1875 Tavistock Football Club. — At a meeting held at the Queen’s Head Hotel, on Monday last, Mr. G. Gibbings in the chair, it was resolved: — That the club be called the “Tavistock Football Club.” That the annual subscription be 3s. That the laws of the club be […]
In its era, “The Poor Man’s Guardian” was a defiant voice of the working class, a radical, illegal newspaper that challenged oppressive laws and censorship, pushing for press freedom, workers’ rights, and social reform during a time of political repression and economic inequality. Poor Man’s Guardian – Saturday 26 December 1835 FULL PDF The final […]
RIOTS IN TRAFALGAR SQUARE. Illustrated Police News – Saturday 19 November 1887 Sunday’s proposed demonstration in Trafalgar Square to demand the release of Mr. O’Brien and other Irish patriots ended in a most futile manner. It is absurd to suppose that an unorganised body of men like the demonstrators proved to be could defy the […]
Western Times – Friday 06 December 1940 This news article provides an interesting snapshot of wartime Britain, revealing how the upheaval of daily life affected young people. It offers a glimpse into the juvenile justice system of the time and the community’s efforts to address and correct youth crime amid the broader backdrop of World War II. […]
Hull Packet – Tuesday 01 February 1803 This newspaper article from 1803 describes a violent murder that took place at Greenwich Hospital, a historical institution that housed retired sailors or “pensioners.” The story is notable for the brutal and premeditated nature of the crime, as well as the murderer’s complete lack of remorse. Summary of Events: The […]
Much like today, news media has always demonstrated its sensational side. The Illustrated Police News was a highly popular newspaper especially during the Victorian and Edwardian era, full horror and shock. Here is a classic case from 1909 reporting a murder in North London with sensational images on the front page with limited editorial buried […]
At Shire Hall in Nottingham, crimes were dealt with and recorded in the newspapers along with many names and help for historians years on. This free to use service (covering the period 1750 – 1950) aims to assist individuals interested in their UK family history or British history in general. If any information is unearthed […]
Since auction websites like eBay entered the online arena the success of moneymaking ventures by some has in a way caused serious social and devastating historic damage. I am referring here to the thousands who have unwittingly taken advantage of these websites by selling off literally tons of “family junk”, “rubbish from the attic” and […]
The Exeter Bank had been established in 1769 along with England’s first hotel, The Royal Clarence, destroyed by fire in 2016. Mr. Short was in Oxford in July 1776 and placed this advertisement in the Oxford Journal on Saturday 6th July: Oxford, 5th July. 1776. LOST, last Night, – An Exeter Bank Note, signed Short, […]
The Nottingham Review and General Advertiser for the Midland Counties – Friday 04 June 1830 reports the extraordinary story of a recently deceased 100 year old man with a long and dubious past. “The veteran rogue. On Friday the 21st ult., John Shepherd was interred in Ripponden churchyard. The deceased was 100 years old; he […]
A lamplighter in Whitechapel, going about his business in the early hours of Wednesday the 14th of July 1869, was set upon and assaulted. Various excuses were made when the case went to court as was reported in the Clerkenwell News: “At Worship-street, yesterday, James Hart, 23, described as a gas fitter, residing in Goulston […]
What became the amazing Princetown Railway over Dartmoor from Yelverton to Princetown was fraught with danger during it’s creation. During it’s building phase there were news stories of danger caused by the weather or those constructing it. Exeter and Plymouth Gazette – Friday 29 December 1882 reported an event of a ‘riot’ by some navvies […]
The Morning Post on Tuesday, the 7th of October 1845 was reporting a significant number of accidents involving children. It highlighted only too well the plight of youngsters during this era and how their lives were quite frequently endangered by the lack of care, attention or action from adults around them. Articles like this, apart […]
Born in the late 1700s in Trinidad, Peregrine Clarke came to England as a servant. Described in the media as a “handsome young man of colour” he seemed to be quite a charmer. He did have quite an extraordinary life. His time in England ended suddenly when found guilty of robbery. He was sentenced to […]
Cheltenham Chronicle – Thursday 07 April 1836 Robberies on tracks and roads were commonplace as we well know. Indeed after dusk the highways were places to avoid where possible. Newspapers were full of stories of highway robberies and many generations later films and television dramas immortalised these violent criminals to almost heroic proportions. In 1836 […]
News coverage of events during the First World War in a way marked a new beginning of the manner in which correspondents cover conflict. The journalists working 100 years ago have left behind a unique and outstanding record of this dramatic moment in history. In the coming years you will see through Old British News […]
Morning Post – Wednesday 28 December 1831 The case of the John Chapman an occasional body-snatcher. Marlborough Street – Carriage robbery. “John Chapman, a fellow well-dressed, who was a few months since convicted at Kingston for body-snatching, was yesterday placed at the bar for re-examination before J.E. Convant Esq., charged with aiding in the following […]
Friday 24th July 1908 and crowds of Edwardian Devonians welcome home their Olympic sporting hero Fred Holman when he arrived by train at Queen Street (Central) Railway Station. Dawlish man Fred had victoriously won the 200 metres Breast Stroke Contest in London. Hundreds were ready to carry Fred shoulder high to the Guildhall where he […]
As the Victorian age was slowly coming to a close the brave and exciting Edwardian era was to bring a brief and thrilling period for invention and development. Experiments in wireless broadcasting were already underway, cable telegraph transmissions throughout the Empire were already established, the motor car was beginning to feature on our roads and […]
