Archives for London

06/05/2021

Looking after your records at Home

Looking after your records at Home

Why are my prints fading? Why do some of my books smell funny? How can I look after my documents?

31/03/2021

Stamps were a vital way to spread awareness of the campaign for Bangladesh. Indian Bengali Artist Biman Mallick became the first designer of Bangladesh's stamps.

On 29 April 1971 Biman Chand returned home exhausted from his teaching duties and was informed by His wife Aparajita that he has a phone call from MP John Stonehouse (who had been visiting East Pakistan on behalf of War on Want).

John rang again after few hours. They set up a meeting at Houses of Parliament.

Biman recalls conversation:

John Stonehouse said to me "Do you know the situation in Bangladesh?"
I replied "Yes I do".
"OK, they want to create stamps on behalf of Bangladesh - will you design them?"
I instantly replied "Yes!" without any hesitation. Then John Stonehouse told me to meet him tomorrow, but I told him I couldn't attend tomorrow as I was teaching college students but could meet him the day after. We meet that day and spoke for a while. I asked him for a design brief, which is a usual practise for a designer to a client to ask for a design brief. He replied, "There is no brief. We don't have much time. We would like to give you the full responsibility for the project." It was a huge responsibility.

Read full article on Londoni : https://cutt.ly/7x7zanj

See more of the ephemera that tells the birth of Bangladesh through the collection of Ujjal Das, much of which featured in London 1971, Dhaka exhibition supported by the British Council.

Image Courtesy of London 1971

BOOK VIA LINK IN BIO.

08/03/2021

Sign the Petition

Another petition that may be of interest to our members and followers. http://chng.it/rgkQcm5syy

STOP THE CUTS AND ACCESS RESTRICTIONS AT THE NATIONAL ART LIBRARY (V&A)

05/03/2021

Sign the Petition

Another wonderful archive collection in London unfortunately at severe risk from restructure and cuts. http://chng.it/zX2hmkV6Yx

Save V&A Theatre & Performance Department

21/02/2021

Photos from Tower Hamlets Local History Library & Archives's post

19/02/2021

Repairs and Treatments Through Time

Repairs and Treatments Through Time

See examples of historic repairs and learn why it is important for conservators to study old repairs.

30/01/2021

Sign the Petition

The Wallace Collection’s Senior Management have decided to close the Library and Archive to the public and make both staff members redundant.

They, like many others, need help to protect jobs in a time of great uncertainty for the library and archive sector and to support the vital role that archives and libraries play in the cultural sector.

There is a petition to encourage decision makers to think again about this course of action:
http://chng.it/WYRgcKGFPP

Save the Wallace Collection Library and Archive

27/01/2021

In commemoration of #HolocaustMemorialDay, we have a newspaper cutting image of a procession of over 30,000 members of the Jewish community leaving Stepney Green to attend an Anti-Nazi demonstration, July 1933.

Today we remember the victims and survivors of genocide #HMD2021

26/01/2021

We are pleased to announce our second online seminar, to be held on Wednesday 17th February 2021 at 6pm.

We will be joined by Peter Darley who will be looking at the watercolours of Edward Henry Dixon.

Dixon (1821-1884) painted watercolour landscapes of north London, from Holborn to Hampstead and from Somers Town to Tottenham. Prosaic rather than elegiac, his paintings represent an important social history at a time when landscapes were being dramatically transformed by the march of bricks and mortar.

Yet his paintings raise questions about the pitfalls in using such images as evidence of historical landscape - a subject little dealt with in any depth. What motivated his choice of views; how does his representation reflect the prejudices of the artist or his clients; and how reliable are the stated dates and captions?

Peter Darley is a retired civil engineer and economist who has worked in water resources development around the world, culminating in a scheme to replenish the Dead Sea from the Red Sea. Through Camden Railway Heritage Trust, which he founded in 2007, he is working to open up the remarkable industrial and transport heritage of the area to the public, while leading walks, giving talks and writing about the heritage.

We'll share more information shortly.
Members, stay tuned for an email invitation to book via Eventbrite.

We are pleased to announce our second online seminar, to be held on Wednesday 17th February 2021 at 6pm.

We will be joined by Peter Darley who will be looking at the watercolours of Edward Henry Dixon.

Dixon (1821-1884) painted watercolour landscapes of north London, from Holborn to Hampstead and from Somers Town to Tottenham. Prosaic rather than elegiac, his paintings represent an important social history at a time when landscapes were being dramatically transformed by the march of bricks and mortar.

Yet his paintings raise questions about the pitfalls in using such images as evidence of historical landscape - a subject little dealt with in any depth. What motivated his choice of views; how does his representation reflect the prejudices of the artist or his clients; and how reliable are the stated dates and captions?

Peter Darley is a retired civil engineer and economist who has worked in water resources development around the world, culminating in a scheme to replenish the Dead Sea from the Red Sea. Through Camden Railway Heritage Trust, which he founded in 2007, he is working to open up the remarkable industrial and transport heritage of the area to the public, while leading walks, giving talks and writing about the heritage.

We'll share more information shortly.
Members, stay tuned for an email invitation to book via Eventbrite.

15/01/2021

Tower Hamlets Local History Library & Archives

Tower Hamlets is filled with COVID related signage. From new opening hours, temporary closures and one way system arrows. What signs have you seen? Share them with us here: https://talk.towerhamlets.gov.uk/coronavirus-collection
#Archives #LocalHistory #EastEnd

01/01/2021

Wishing a very happy and well-deserved New Year to all of our wonderful members and followers! We hope to be able to see more of you in 2021.

30/11/2020

Catalogue Day 2020 at The National Archives - The National Archives blog

Friday marked the 20th anniversary of The National Archives Catalogue Day. This event normally takes place onsite and allows family and social historians, academics and archive and information management colleagues with an opportunity to hear about the latest cataloguing and digital initiatives running across the office.

In these challenging times they are not able to host the event at TNA, but have instead produced the first 'digital' event! Follow the link to read and hear about a number of projects currently being undertaken at TNA, together with an external contribution from Caroline Bolton, Senior Archivist at the University of Leeds.

https://blog.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue-day-2020/

The final Friday in November traditionally marks the annual Catalogue Day at The National Archives. Indeed, 2020 marks the 20th anniversary of this popular event, where family historians, academics, researchers and archival and information professionals gather to hear about cataloguing projects and....

27/11/2020

Archives for London's cover photo

27/11/2020

Coming up this Friday, a day exploring two major events in London's history - the Great Fire of 1666 and the Blitz during World War II, and what they meant for Londoners.
Join us and our amazing speakers for Evolution from the Embers.
Tickets and full programme at http://tinyurl.com/AfLevents

25/11/2020

London Metropolitan Archives

A book without a cover is a vulnerable book indeed!

This volume of General Court Rough Minutes (1791-1817) from Coram’s Foundling Hospital Archive arrived to the conservation studio without its cover.

The book is a large stationary binding, meaning it was made as a blank book to be used for business accounts, registers, or notes. This volume contains meeting minutes. The first several pages had detached from the rest of the textblock, and as the pages were not numbered, there was a high risk that pages could get lost or be inadvertently rearranged into the wrong order.

Foliation, as part of a conservation treatment, is the act of numbering each folio (as opposed to pagination, which is to number every page). We do this with a soft-leaded pencil. The standard is to use Roman numbers for the endleaves and Arabic numbers for the textblock.

#LMAConservation #BookConservator #ConservationExplained #ConservationForAccess

25/11/2020

Gotta love this...

"Hello!

Not only am I adorbs, I'm also a piece of radical history as my #label shows I was born at the East London Federation of Suffragettes' toy factory ❤️

LBTH Archives are looking after me 'til my new home at East End Womens Museum is ready."

#ExploreYourArchive

20/11/2020

The first online #AfLSeminar coming soon - Wednesday 16th December!

We are delighted that historian Ian Stone has offered to give our first online seminar in December. The topic will be the Masons’ Company and Huguenots in early eighteenth-century London.

This seminar will be held on Zoom on 16th December - further details will be made available shortly.

We hope as many of you as possible will be able to join us.

20/11/2020

Our 7th Lockdown Newsletter is out, and it's a cracker!

We hear from one of our newer Board Members, Miten, on the transition to home working at the Wellcome Library, as well as from colleagues on happenings and developments at the Parliamentary Archives and Salters' Company and an excellent account of an exciting visit (yes that's right - an actual physical visit - remember those?!) to the Marx Memorial Library.

Become a member to receive this latest edition!

Our Subscription Rates for 2020-21 are as follows:
1. Individual membership - £12
2. Institutional membership (1 or fewer employees) - £20
3. Institutional membership (2 to 5 employees) - £50
4. Institutional membership (6 or more employees) - £100

Members for 2019/20 have had their membership automatically carried over into 2020/21 - the fee for 2020/21 should therefore be treated as a voluntary donation.

For details on how to join or donate, send us a direct message!

20/11/2020

Do you remember your male family members or friends being in the kitchen when you were growing up? Did they cook on a special occasions or have a particular dish they were really good at?
#HBAHHome #ExploreArchives

When looking through our collections all the images we could find of people in kitchens at home were of women. We struggled to find any pictures of men in the kitchen.

Do you remember your male family members or friends being in the kitchen when you were growing up? Did they cook on a special occasions or have a particular dish they were really good at?

#HBAHHome #ExploreArchives

11/11/2020

18th Annual LGBTQ+ Conference: UNORTHODOX

18th Annual LGBTQ+ Conference: UNORTHODOX

18th Annual LGBTQ+ Conference

22/10/2020

London Metropolitan Archives

One of the longest items we hold at London Metropolitan Archives is a plan of the original Blackwall Tunnel (now the Northbound side), with geological information, made for the Chief Engineer’s Department of the London County Council (LCC) in the 1890s.

The plan is made up of 10 separate sheets which have been stuck together, with a total length just short of 10 metres. The dimensions mean that it is both difficult to view and Conserve.

Unfortunately, the plan is Unfit, due to cracks where the sheets have been joined, and the fragile state of the left-hand side of the plan (the North end of the tunnel).

#Conservation #PaperConservation #BlackwallTunnel

22/10/2020

The AfL Lockdown Newsletter is 6 month's old! Where are the months going?!

Lots of Autumnal archival goodness in our October edition, including:
- a blog post introducing the new ‘Sounds From Home’ initiative, the first in a planned series of short video tutorials suggesting creative or practical projects for lockdown, using material from London Metropolitan Archives (LMA) as sources of inspiration;
- an update on The National Archive's program of events and activities for Black History Month running all through October, and
- London Archives news including the latest services to reopen their doors to researchers.

We're always on the look out for new content and images on #historic #London, its #archives and your #research to include - you can send your contributions to our Editors at [email protected].

Become a member to receive this latest edition!
Our Subscription Rates for 2020-21 are as follows:
1. Individual membership - £12
2. Institutional membership (1 or fewer employees) - £20
3. Institutional membership (2 to 5 employees) - £50
4. Institutional membership (6 or more employees) - £100

Members for 2019/20 have had their membership automatically carried over into 2020/21 - the fee for 2020/21 should therefore be treated as a voluntary donation.

For details on how to join or donate, send us a direct message!

13/10/2020

Cataloguing

This is a great little piece from a project completed a few years back about the process of archival cataloguing and the things Archivist's have to bear in mind - we thought our members and followers might it find of interest! https://takingaccountproject.wordpress.com/cataloguing/?fbclid=IwAR0gsCQMyGiTyQe4xrHYk7ZGw-yOZHF3ISMNL0G8ZwkFZH1jHpvkrqL3faQ
#ExploreYourArchive #cataloguing #archives Thanks to Dr Daniella Gonzalez for sharing via the Section for New Professionals (ARA) page!

The Taking Account of our Past project is based on cataloguing the Smith, Son and Wilkie chartered accountants papers. But what is cataloguing and why do we do it? The term ‘cataloguing’ covers a r…

13/10/2020

Archives for London | LinkedIn

Why not check out our newly-updated LinkedIn page?! We'll post details of our events here as well as on our Twitter and Facebook and continue to seek out and engage with like-minded groups and relevant content for you, our lovely members and followers!

Archives for London | 27 followers on LinkedIn | The Independent Voice for Archives in the Capital. For everyone interested in archives in or about London. | Archives for London (AfL) brings together everyone interested in archives in or about London – users, practitioners and enthusiasts. Through...

24/09/2020

The 5th AfL Member's Lockdown Newsletter is out!

Filled with lots of #London #archives goodness - and some rather impressive veg grown by our very own AfL Chair Anne! Plus London Metropolitan Archives has reopened! Now there's some welcome good news...

Here's a sneaky peak of the front page for those of you out there who are somehow still not members of our fantastic group! Join us now to read on! 😉

Contributions welcome - we'll continue this newsletter whilst we can't meet in person. Just PM us to find out where to send content, news or your images from Lockdown.

24/09/2020

Archives for London's cover photo

17/09/2020

Are you interested in Bangladeshi community history in the East End and the impact of the 1971 Liberation War?

A new artist led project commemorating the 50th anniversary of Independence needs local people to get involved to explore by exploring these histories with Tower Hamlets Local History Library and the National Portrait Gallery.

Are you interested in the history of the Bangladeshi community in the East End and the impact of the 1971 Liberation War?

Work with us as a paid Citizen Researcher to explore our collections + support a exciting new public art commission as part of our Bangladesh 50 Years Project

Deadline 1st Oct

Full Details: http://www.towerhamletsarts.org.uk/?cat=15&cid=72099&guide=ArtsInfo
#BD50

12/09/2020

London Metropolitan Archives

London is a city that has been shaped by protest and 1840 saw the culmination of years of campaigns against the Slave Trade in Europe and America.

Taking place in Exeter Hall on the Strand, the World Anti-Slavery Convention lasted 12 days. A convention may not appear as a protest like public demonstrations have, but the Convention was an act of dissent, nonetheless.

In 1832 the government introduced several reform acts, one began the process to abolish slavery in the British Empire. In 1834, all enslaved individuals under six were freed, but the majority still were forced to complete ‘an apprenticeship’ for their former master and in reality the transatlantic slave trade still existed.

Transatlantic networks between Britain and the United States fostered much anti-slavery communication. The American Anti-Slavery Society encouraged ‘warfare against the soul-destroying system of slavery’ and appealed to Britain to create a national campaign against slavery in 1840. So later that year the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society organised the World Anti-Slavery Convention.

Over 500 abolitionists from Canada to Mauritius attended the meeting, attracting around 1,000 daily spectators. American and British women delegates appeared on the first day to take their seats as official delegates but after hours of contentious debate organisers made it clear that the meeting was for ‘gentlemen only’. Women were relegated to the spectators’ gallery.

After leaving the convention, Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton resolved to hold their own convention back in America and advocate for women’s rights. Eight years later they hosted the Seneca Falls Convention in New York - the first women's rights convention in the US.

The meetings of the Anti-Slavery Society continued to take place at Exeter Hall and their significance meant the phrase ‘Exeter Hall’ became a metonym for the Anti-Slavery lobby.

#Protest #ExeterHall #Reform #AntiSlavery