Christmas is a time of year when many people send cards and letters to loved ones and here at Dorset History Centre we have some lovely examples of these. In 1896 17 year old Francis Arthur Marten was serving on HMS Nelson. On the 12th of December he wrote a letter home to his father… Read more Christmas Correspondence
House history is something we frequently get asked about here at Dorset History Centre. There are a whole variety of reasons why knowing about a property can be important, be them legal, academic or just plain curiosity. We hold a range of sources which can help house historians find more information about their property. Maps… Read more Archives A-Z: H is for houses
At this time of year many of us are spending our free time in the garden. Our collections reveal a passion for gardening going back centuries. Changing fashions Plans for alterations to the grounds at Frampton House demonstrate the changing fashions in eighteenth century garden design (reference: D-SHE/22). In 1778 a survey of the grounds… Read more Archives A-Z: G is for gardens
Inspired by the popular festive song, staff at Dorset History Centre have been delving into the archives for items related to the Twelve Days of Christmas – with a sprinkle of artistic license! A partridge in a pear tree A 1760’s inventory from Corfe Castle lists pear trees planted in John Bond’s orchard. The varieties… Read more Twelve Days of Christmas from the Archives
Were you aware that in 1965, winner of the Miss World international beauty pageant and one-time Bond girl, came from none other than our own fair county? Watch, as blonde bombshell Lesley Langley wanders about Weymouth in these latest of photos from the Herbert Photographic Collection. A mayoral reception along the Esplanade, press teams pointing… Read more Miss World’s whistle-stop Weymouth tour!
Listing the Bournemouth Borough archive reveals the efforts and experiences of Bournemouth people during the Second World War; from a report about the courage of survivors of the Blitz to strange finds amongst bundles of paperwork. The Bournemouth Borough archive (ref: DC/BH) covers nearly a century of records, from the late 1800s to the late… Read more Bournemouth’s Second World War ‘Big Effort’
Ask any foreigner and they’ll say the British are obsessed with the weather. Nowadays we can access an up-to-date, worldwide forecast at any time and, being British, we love to talk or moan about it. However this is not a new phenomenon. Details of the weather over the last couple of centuries can be found… Read more The British and the weather
Staff at Dorset History Centre have been looking at the treatment of patients at the Dorset Asylum during the First World War. Dorset History Centre holds the archive of the Dorset County Lunatic Asylum, covering the period from 1829 -1989. The archive includes patient records, committee minutes, accounts books and plans of the hospital, amongst… Read more Spotlight on mental health in World War 1
Recently catalogued documents from the Poole Borough collection reveal historic attitudes to public punishment. The Tudor period was a bad time to be a criminal! Death sentences could be handed out for everything from murder to theft and even begging. In an era when public executions were common, and even seen as a form of entertainment, punishments… Read more Poole’s Pillory
During World War One it took only two days for a letter to reach the front. By the war’s end, two billion letters and 114 million parcels had been sent and received by Britain. A few of these have been deposited in the archives and offer a personal perspective on the war. Gifts from home… Read more In their own words: letters from World War 1
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