 Recently representatives from the Friends of the William Salt Library presented a cheque for £15,764 to fund restoration work on original library shelving in the William Salt Library Trustees Room. The shelving was installed in 1918 when 19 Eastgate Street became the new home for the William Salt Library, after the collection outgrew its first home in Market Square. The building has a long and fascinating history which is being uncovered and reinterpreted as part of the Staffordshire History Centre project.
 Learning Officer Lizzie Short at Springcroft Primary School
Exploring Staffordshire's manufacturing past
The Engagement team are working with Springcroft Primary School in Blythe Bridge to develop ideas and themes for the new 'Beneath our Feet' touring exhibition.
Last week we joined pupils and staff at Springcroft to explore Staffordshire's manufacturing history. The pupils got hands on with raw materials, created a soundscape of industrial Stoke-on-Trent and explored our photo archive. During the school assembly the pupils also also met the nefarious 'Mr Moneybags' and learnt more about the grim realities of life as a working class child in 19th century Staffordshire, before defeating him through strike action! The groups enjoyed travelling back in time, handling historical objects and dressing up: a huge thank you to everyone involved!
 Some of the Bawdy Courts volunteers researching at Eastgate House
Bawdy Courts Project
The Bawdy Courts volunteers have been looking at the value of the Bawdy Court papers for investigating wider themes in social history and local history.
Most recenty we have posted a series of articles about faculty cases, which are about changes to church buildings and vicarages. Clearly these are fascinating for the history of the buildings themselves and tell us about buildings now long gone. They can also tell us about wider issues in the community, for example, a faculty concerning Keddleston parsonage is part of the story of the relocation of an estate village. Two other posts about faculty cases explore memory and memorialisation: an article about St Mary’s church in Lichfield looks at buildings as memorials; and a post about a faculty for the removal of memorials at West Bromwich church looks at the tenacity of memory over centuries.
Go to the Bawdy Courts of Lichfield blog to find out what the group has uncovered.
The Archives and Heritage team are hosting a range of activities across the county through the school summer holidays. Full information is available on our blog. We also have a programme of touring exhibitions (see below).
For more ideas about days out for the family visit the Enjoy Staffordshire website
Exhibitions
Keeping the lights on: A history of Rugeley Power station
This exhibition looks back on the history of Rugeley Power Station and the people who worked there. Visit the pop-up exhibition at Heath Hayes Library until 1 September 2023.
Our County, Our Climate exhibition
This small exhibition explores memories of extreme weather events in Staffordshire through artistic responses. In 2021 local people were invited to participate in creative workshops in Stafford, Burton-upon-Trent and online. These included poetry, storytelling and paper art. Participants were asked to think about and record their experiences of extreme weather and climate.
The exhibition will be visiting Codsall Library from Wednesday 2 August until Monday 5 September.
Family Activities
Friends of Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Archives (FoSSA)
A visit to Blithfield Hall and Church with Cosy Bagot-Jewit
Wednesday 20 September 2023 at 2.00pm
£10 members, £12 non members
The Hall is set in an attractive rural location close to Blithfield reservoir and is Grade 1 listed. Now mostly apartments, we shall be able to see and tour the wing occupied by the Bagot-Jewitt family, descendants of the Bagot family. We shall have tea/coffee and cake in the Great Hall before a tour the church and visit to the Orangery.
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