History Day

Items

• Archives Hub
  The Archives Hub brings together descriptions of thousands of the UK’s archive collections. Representing over 390 institutions across the country, the Archives Hub is an effective way to discover unique and often little-known sources to support your research. New descriptions are added every week, often representing collections being made available for the first time. The Hub represents a huge diversity of content, from the archives of industries, institutions and researchers to the letters and manuscripts of writers and poets.
• Archives of IT
  AIT is a charity founded by Information Technologist and Businessman, Roger Graham OBE in 2015 to capture, preserve and share the voices of people from the UK IT and Telecommunications industry. Its principal aim is to prevent this lived experience of the development of IT from being lost, and to share it with current and future generations. In 2024 we conducted our 250th interview, giving AIT an unrivalled database of personal insights from those involved, mostly British citizens, in the IT industry. While doing this we demonstrate how IT, telecommunications and engineering has and continues to change the way we live and work. We also encourage the study of the industry’s history generally and through university placements and also provide educational resources for schools that inspire young people to consider a career in IT. Contact: Adrian Murphy, PR and Communications Manager: PR@archivesit.org.uk
• Archives of IT (AIT) History Day Introduction
  As part of History Day 2024, AIT has produced an introduction to the charity through a walkthrough video of its website and its collection of more than 250 interviews with pioneers of the IT and telecommunications industry, and its resources such as in-depth features and curated pages.
• Archives Portal Europe
  The Archives Portal Europe provides access to information on archival material from different European countries as well as information on archival institutions throughout the continent.
• Archives Portal Europe
  Archives Portal Europe is an online portal that aggregates the archival catalogues of European historical archives from more than 30 countries; through a simple keyword search, it allows searching in thousands of archives at the same time, locating documents and accessing them if they exist in digital form.
• Archives Portal Europe: the European archival heritage in one click
  Archives Portal Europe allows searches into 1000s of archives from 30+ countries, in 20+ languages, through a simple keyword search - we like to call it the Google of archives. This is a short video presentation of what APE does for #HistoryDay North
• Archives: Wigan & Leigh
  Archives: Wigan & Leigh collects, preserves and shares 800 years of history relating to all aspects of life in the Wigan borough. Housed in newly refurbished strongrooms in the Grade II listed Leigh Town Hall, our collections include: - First World War military tribunal records: one of only a handful of such collections to have survived anywhere in the country. -The Edward Hall Diary Collection: a near-unique source of life writing from the 17th to the 20th Centuries. - Lancashire and Cheshire coalfield relief records: documenting industrial history beyond our borough Our public engagement work includes school workshops, strongroom tours and reminiscence sessions in care homes, which are now gaining national recognition.
• Armagh Observatory and Planetarium
  Armagh Observatory and Planetarium is the oldest continuously active astronomical observatory in the British Isles. Within is a remarkable collection of scientific instruments, the telescopes still largely in situ and witness to the development of the astronomy since the Enlightenment.
• Art, life, love : narratives from the Benedict Nicolson Archive
  Benedict Nicolson (1914-1978) was an art historian and editor of the Burlington Magazine for nearly forty years. Born into an aristocratic but also liberal and bohemian family, and coming of age in the tumultuous interwar period, he encountered unprecedented opportunities and experiences. This display explores Nicolson’s extraordinary life through his archive. Created almost exclusively in a personal capacity, and documenting Nicolson’s relationships with both men and women, the material presents an incredible resource for the study of art history, social history and the history of gender, sex and sexualities.
• Association of Genealogists and Researchers in Archives (AGRA)
  AGRA has been the leading body for English and Welsh professional genealogists since it was established in 1968. To become Members, genealogists are required to have their work scrutinised by AGRA’s Board of Assessors and all of our Members and Associates agree to abide by a stringent Code of Practice. A list of our Members is available on our website under 'Find a Researcher'. AGRA also welcomes applications from people who wish to become a professional genealogist. AGRA is also prominent as a representative voice in matters relating to genealogy.
• Auction Catalogues in the Paul Mellon Centre Library
  The library holds approximately 15,000 auction catalogues, mainly dating from the late nineteenth century onwards, but with some eighteenth and early nineteenth century sales.
• Autograph Letter Collection
  An extraordinary collection of letters to Women’s Service Library (now The Women’s Library) of prominent correspondents dating from 1851 to 1975.
• Autumn in the Archives!
  As History Day takes place during November, let’s explore some archival collections around the theme of ‘Autumn’!
• Barts Health NHS Trust Archives
  The archives and objects cared for by Barts Health are amongst the largest and most important hospital and healthcare collections in the UK, spanning over 2.5km of shelving and nine centuries of history. Our collections span from 1137 to the present day, and includes records relating to staff, patients, buildings and management of the hospitals in the current Barts Health group, as well as numerous other hospitals, institutions, charities, organisations and individuals relating to health care and training in the City and East London.
• Bees in the Collections
  The University of Reading houses one of the largest collections of bee-related material in the United Kingdom. The works contained within provide vital insights into historic social and political perceptions of the world’s most important pollinators. This online exhibition showcases some of the most significant apian-related works, held by the University and beyond, from the sixteenth to the twentieth century which demonstrate how social and cultural perceptions of bees and hives changed as British society evolved. The online exhibition curated by Olivia Blackburn, as part of a student project, ‘Bees in the Collections’, which was supervised by Professor Helen Parish and Dr Rohan Deb Roy from the Department of History, University of Reading.
• Believe in Me CIC
  Believe in Me CIC is a community interest company, empowering young people through education. We create projects to engage young people about South Asian history – specialising in Indian Military history in particular. Believe in Me CIC is about youth engagement through education and raising awareness of South Asian histories not taught in mainstream education
• Bethlem Museum of the Mind
  Bethlem Museum of the Mind records the lives and experience and celebrates the achievements of people with mental health problems. Our aim is to make our collections more accessible, and to provide accurate information to help in their interpretation.
• Beyond the Botanical in Kew's Persian collections
  The co-curators of the current "Persia Reimagined: From Herbarium to Heritage" exhibition write about the Persian collections in Kew's Library & Archives and the social and cultural histories tucked away within.
• Birkbeck, University of London
  Birkbeck Library holds a range of archives and special collections, which include papers, books and bibliographies. They relate to individuals associated with Birkbeck or to books given as gifts or purchased by the College. For a general overview of archives and how to make use of them, please see the guide below:
• Bishopsgate Institute
  Bishopsgate Institute Special Collections and Archives document the experiences of everyday people, and the extraordinary individuals and organisations who have strived for social, political, and cultural change. They are repository to world renowned collections on London, Activist, Feminist and LGBTQ+ Histories, as well as home to the Great Diary Project and the UK Fetish Archive.
• Black Cultural Archives
  Since 1981 Black Cultural Archives (BCA) has embarked on the journey to collect and preserve materials that redress the historical balance and representation of people of African and Caribbean descent in Britain. Our archive collection is now one of the most comprehensive collections that document the history and cultural heritage of Black Britain. Originating as a community archive amassed over many years, the archive has been transformed into a professional archive that meets international quality standards and houses over 50 sq metrics of archival materials across two sites. With the support of Heritage Lottery Fund, archivists and trained volunteers continue to catalogue, contextualise and expand the archive collection. Our unique archive collection differs from conventional, traditional archives as it remains rooted in the community that created it.
• Book review: The Age of Wonder by Richard Holmes
  Archivist Kate Bond reviews a classic group biography of 18th-century scientists like William and Caroline Herschel, whose working papers are held in the RAS Archive
• Borthwick Institute for Archives
  Our mission is to support and expand the University of York's cultural endeavour and contribute to human understanding through collecting archives, rare books and artworks; preserving them; and making them widely available for research to all people, now and in the future.
• Brian Sewell : an introduction to the archive
  Brian Sewell (1931-2015) was an art historian, art critic, author and media personality. He lead a remarkable life: born in 1931 to a single mother, he studied at the Courtauld Institute of Art and found fame both as Anthony Blunt’s unofficial spokesman following Blunt’s exposure as a Soviet spy and later in his role as daily arts correspondent for the Evening Standard. All his life he felt like an ‘outsider’ – this becoming the title of his published autobiographies – a reference to various aspects of his character and also his sexuality (he described himself as gay). This Sewell Archive, documents almost every part of his life and this display provides an introduction to the collection.
• British Association for Local History
  Local history enriches our lives both as individuals and as whole communities. It is an area where amateur and professional can meet and work profitably together. We need your support in promoting this important educational cause. The more members we have, the more effectively we can represent the interest of local historians. BALH aims to encourage interest and enthusiasm for local history amongst learners of all ages and to share and promote best practice, knowledge and skills.