Ready for the asylum?
The National Archives have staff who scour sale catalogues and let us know if they find documents relating to Gloucestershire.
In early May they told us that a collection of architect’s drawings for Gloucestershire’s two county lunatic asylums had come on the market – priced at £2,200. The collection included attractive full colour elevations. The vendor agreed to reduce the price and hold them until the Archives knew if they could raise the money. The Friends agreed the plans would be a valuable addition to the Archives' collections and made a donation of £1,000. Tewkesbury Historical Society also made a donation and the balance came from council funds. Just days after first hearing about the plans, County Archivist Heather Forbes and Friends’ Chairman Clive Andrews took delivery of them.
Clive Andrews, Chair of FOGA with Heather Forbes, Head of Archives
Royal Charters
Some of the Archives’ most valuable possessions are the royal charters of the City of Gloucester, which date from 1155 to 1974. The Friends have provisionally agreed to contribute £250 towards the cost of having new protective enclosures made for them by conservation staff at the Bodleian Library. The enclosures will offer greater protection to the charters and their seals and enable them to be safely displayed from time to time. It is hoped the Friends’ donation, together with a contribution from the City Council, will demonstrate sufficient local support to secure a major grant from the National Manuscripts Conservation Trust for the balance of about £10,000.
For more information about the charter and Richard's gift to Gloucester visit www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/archives/learning-for-all/online-exhibitions/richard-iii/
A magical mystery tour
On Sunday 21 May a large group of Friends set off on their second mystery tour. Ably organised by Dr John Chandler, this time he took us to mid-Wales to discover the effects of the industrial revolution on local communities. In Brecon we had time to visit the cathedral before a walking tour showed how the fortified market town had been transformed into a wealthy commercial centre when iron production started nearby in the late 18th century.
Then on to the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Blaenavon to visit the best preserved 18th Century ironworks in the world, complete with rows of workers’ cottages. It was a site that was at the cutting edge of the industrial revolution. In between we had the pleasure of travelling through some of Wales’s most stunning countryside and hearing a brief talk on the Chartists and the Newport Rising of 1839. The verdict? Let’s have another mystery tour next year!
Someone must know the way?
If you are not a Friend already, why not join and know that your subscription will make a real contribution to Gloucestershire Archives? Visit www.foga.org.uk/ for more details.