Hull's Woolly Zoo is here!!!

Gertrude the Goat

Well, it’s finally here, Hull’s very own Woolly Zoo is now open for visitors here at the History Centre. A year in the planning, we’ve had exhibits sent in from all over Hull and the surrounding area. Way back in January 2017, when we set people the challenge of helping us to create a zoo made entirely out of wool, we had no idea how enthusiastic everyone would be. So we would just like to say a huge ‘thank you’ for making this project a great success, and we hope you have enjoyed being involved. But your part in this story isn’t over yet, at least not before you have come to see what your combined efforts have achieved. The exhibition runs from 1 February until 7 April and entry is free, although our hungry polar bear will welcome any donations towards the Centre’s outreach work.

Over the last few days, staff at the History Centre have been busy constructing enclosures, making sure the animals are well looked after and neatly turned out, and dressing the arcade so it looks its very best for the grand opening gala. At the last count we had over 220 animals, lovingly created by staff, volunteers and the general public. We’ve received a huge range of submissions. Our smallest exhibit is Gertrude, a 6cm needle-felted goat made by our very own Pete Dixie, whilst our largest animal is a 6ft giraffe named Daphne-Geraldine, brought to life by a creative team effort at St Barnabas Church.

Geraldine-Daphne the Giraffe

The experience of undertaking this exhibition has been quite different to those we have done previously at the History Centre. The stories we tell are usually explained using archives from our collections, selected by ourselves, and displayed alongside text panels. This time, we’ve been inspired by those archives to select our subject, but have sought input from the whole community to help us create an exhibition to tell our story in a fun and child-friendly way.

Constructing this exhibition physically has also been a new experience for us. We’ve had to become carpenters, painters and decorators, wire sculptors and seamstresses! Trips to DIY stores, craft suppliers and fabric shops have been necessary, and we’ve spent many a lunch break pompom-making in order to decorate the arcade space where we will be staging the exhibition.

Alongside the exhibition, we will be running a number of additional events. We will also be auctioning off exhibits that don’t have a home to go back to. You can bid on any animals with a green star on their name tags, and all proceeds from the auction will go to charities supported by the History Centre. On 3 February 9.30-12.30 we have our zoo themed History Makers session, when we will be reconstructing the Spring Bank Zoological Gardens in Lego, making animal masks, and creating cute pompom animals. On 13 February 12.30-13.30 our regular Lunchtime Club lecture aimed at adults will be on the story of Spring Bank Zoological Gardens, the inspiration behind our exhibition. Join us on 7 March for a ‘Knit and Natter’ at the History Centre when you can listen to a short talk about the Centre and our work, followed by a friendly knitting session where you can chat to fellow attendees and ask staff any questions you might have about using the Centre. Finally, on 28 March we will be holding a Teddy Bears’ Picnic for our young zoo enthusiasts. Pack a cold lunch, grab your favourite soft toy and come take part in our zoo trail before having lunch at the zoo.

All of our events are free, however the Knit and Natter and the Teddy Bears’ Picnic have limited places. Please call us or drop in to book a place. All children must be accompanied by a guardian during the History Makers and Teddy Bears’ Picnic events. With so much going on for children and adults alike, we are sure you will find something for you!

To give you a sneak peak, here's what we've been up to...

Exhibits in their temporary 'enclosures'...

Some late arrivals...

Stringing window hangings...

Preparing the exhibition panels...

Getting Daphne the Giraffe in place...

Verity and Claire, Hull University Archives

Hull's Woolly Zoo 2018 Extravaganza

A very Happy New Year to you all as we resume our normal activities following Christmas here at the History Centre. And whilst 2017 might be over, we are by no means any less busy as our first exhibition is just three weeks away!

Throughout 2017, those of you who are regular visitors to our Facebook page will have noticed hundreds of pictures of amazing woolly creations made by yourselves and staff here at the History Centre. These were sent in as a response to a year-long social media campaign. Through this campaign, we aimed to highlight a largely forgotten piece of Hull's history. During the 19^th century, Hull was home to a regionally famous zoo full of animals, including polar bears and elephants. Whilst the Hull Zoological Gardens were open daily to the public, every year the Hull Zoological Society put together a season of extravagant galas. These galas were held at the Zoological Gardens and always ended with a grand display of fireworks (probably not great for the animals!). 

This story has long intrigued a number of us here at the History Centre, so we decided to make it our first exhibition of 2018. But we wanted to make this exhibition a little bit different, out of the ordinary - much like the Zoological Gardens were. So, we decided to try and recreate the zoo out of wool... The response to our social media appeal for exhibits was overwhelming, and we now have all the components for what will hopefully be a fantastic exhibition. 

The exhibition will be free to enter! It opens on the 1 February, and will run until the 7 April. During this time, we will be holding a number of free events aimed at both children and adults. Events programmes are available to pick up at the History Centre, and you can contact us for further information at hullhistorycentre@hcandl.co.uk or on 01482 317500. Keep an eye on the History Centre’s Twitter feed and Facebook page, and of course here on the blog, for further updates over the coming weeks…

Verity and Claire, Hull University Archives staff

Digital Archives – working with depositors

On this, the first International Digital Preservation Day, we here at the University of Hull working on the City of Culture Digital Archive project are thinking about our experiences of some of the earlier stages of digital preservation: working with depositors to share expectations from both sides, fact-find and prepare records as fully as possible for their transfer to the archive early in 2018. There will be a range of artist and participant depositors but the bulk of the archive will be received from the Culture Company which was founded to deliver the year’s activities. There are currently in the region of 100,000 digital records in scope for this project. 

The Culture Company’s Asset Bank which contains thousands of image and video files

One of the key differences between this project and others I have worked on is the immediacy. As archivists working with “traditional” records we often expect a delay of some years between records being created and used and then becoming “archival”.  In this project our intention is to capture the activities of a single year and once that year is over to process them through Archivematica and provide public access to what we can as soon as possible. 

There are some huge advantages to this approach. We know that working with digital archives can present a complex set of issues surrounding ownership, software, file types and beyond. We’re in the brilliant position that where there is doubt we are able to approach the record creators directly and seek clarification. I have been able to sit down with members of different teams to talk to them about how they create, store and share records. 

The City of Culture team are extremely busy delivering a packed programme of cultural events and activities. Whilst they are very supportive of the development of the archive, on a day-to-day basis they often have limited time to engage in the administrative activities that would help make processing the archive at a later stage easier. This means that in some cases, records that should be on the team SharePoint or Asset Bank sites are liable to linger on personal drives and that files are stuck with meaningless titles or are stored in labyrinthine folder structures. 

The Culture Company’s team SharePoint site where they store and share records

Whilst for archivists this is hardly a new phenomenon, we have been grateful to receive support in tackling this from the senior management team at the Culture Company who have declared one day in December “Archive Day”. 

On Archive Day no meetings will be allowed and everyone will be asked to concentrate solely on sorting out their digital files. This will help the Culture Company as much as it helps us as it will help to ensure that staff don’t leave at the end of their contracts with important records still saved locally and will also give them the opportunity to flag any records with commercial or other sensitivity that we, without that insiders’ perspective, may not immediately recognise. It makes sense for the people who know the records best to do this work.

Hopefully by the time the next International Digital Preservation day rolls around we’ll be in a good position to talk about some of the technical components of digital preservation. In the meantime my tips for the early stages of a digital archive project are:

• Be prepared to encounter a small amount of jitters from depositors – I’m sure we’d all be a little daunted at the prospect of all our records suddenly being made public! Reassure them that this is not the case and come prepared with a good knowledge of the legal landscape in this regard. Encourage questions.
• Advocate for the digital archive at a high level within the organisation you are collecting from – they are the ones with the authority to ensure that records are managed well!
• Get out there and talk to digital preservation colleagues at other institutions – we’re all in a great position to learn from each other.

Laura Giles, City of Culture Digital Archivist
l.giles@hull.ac.uk

Tell The World: Ebenezer Cobb Morley, Founding Father of the Football Association - The Hull Connection

The 2017-2018 football season is well under way with all the usual excitement and tensions that the game brings, but without the Hull connection and a man from humble beginnings, the Football Association (FA) as we know it, may never have been formed.

Ebenezer Cobb Morley (1831-1924), widely recognised as the founding father of the Football Association, was born at 10 Garden Square, Mason Street, Hull on the 16 August 1831.

Houses in Garden Square showing numbers 2-5 [L 402]

Princess Street showing gates leading to Garden Square, c.1930 [L 405]

His father, Reverend Ebenezer Morley was an independent minister at the Holborn Street Chapel, and it was here that he was baptized in September 1831. He was named Cobb after his mother Hannah’s maiden name. Unfortunately we know little else about his early life in Hull except that, despite not being educated at a public school, he became articled to a solicitor and qualified in law in 1854. He went on to practice as a solicitor, and had chambers at 3 King’s Bench Walk, Temple, London. 

Morley was an all-round sportsman and, after settling in Barnes in South West London, he joined the London Rowing Club. It was with friends and colleagues from the rowing club that he founded the Barnes football club. His nonconformist background and schooling appear to have had a great influence on him and this, together with his passion for the game, led him to believe that football should have rules.

He wrote to Bell’s Life suggesting that rules should be imposed on the game, as had occurred in cricket. This led to a meeting of representatives from a dozen London and suburban clubs, which meeting was held at the Freemason’s Tavern in London on the 26 October 1863. It was at this meeting that the Football Association of England was formed. Morley himself drafted the thirteen original laws of the FA at his home in Barnes.

We can only imagine how violent the game was before the laws were introduced as number 13 stated: 'No player shall wear projecting nails, iron plates, or gutta percha [a form of natural rubber introduced to the west in 1843] on the soles or heels of his boots'. A dangerous game indeed!

Cobb Morley was elected the first Honorary Secretary of the F.A. in 1863, a post he held until 1866. He then became the second president of the F.A. (1867-1874), and even scored the first goal in a representative match between London v Sheffield on the 31 March 1866.

Morley, a remarkable man in every aspect, lived life to the full and died at the grand age of 93 years. He died from pneumonia on 20 November 1924. By this time, the original Wembley Stadium had been open for eighteen months, and football as we know it had become a more structured and ordered tournament game, both locally and internationally. We should therefore celebrate with pride our city's connection to Ebenezer Cobb Morley and all he achieved.

If you want to find out more about this remarkable man, his family and life, please see our research guide available on the History Centre Website.

Carol Tanner, Collections and Access Manager (Hull City Archives)

Tell the World: The Mole Behind the TV

The 23rd October is celebrated by chemists as Mole Day – 23/10 reflects the 6x10²³ atoms in one mole, the mass of an element equal to its own atomic weight.

In this blog we’ll be looking at chemistry in Hull, including one piece of research that helped create the modern digital world – the development of Liquid Crystal Displays (LCDs) at Hull University.

Liquid crystal research at Hull took off in the 1950s under the supervision of George William Gray and Brynmor Jones (future Vice-Chancellor and namesake for the university library). As head of the Liquid Crystal Research Group (LCRG), George W. Gray led the university’s pioneering research throughout the next 40 years. His 1962 book, Molecular Structure and Properties of Liquid Crystals was the first English-language book published on the subject.

Professor George Gray promoting liquid crystal technology, 9 Apr 19179 [U PHO/C4544]

Liquid crystals were of particular interest because of how they changed colour under an electric current, potentially leading to better electrical displays. The breakthrough came in 1973 when the team worked out how to synthesise crystals in the cyanobiphenyl group, liquid crystals that were stable at room temperature and could be used in electronic systems.

This breakthrough led to a whole new wave of electrical devices, from aircraft computers to pocket calculators, and eventually to modern LCD computer and television screens. There’s a good chance you’re reading this on an LCD screen right now!

Hull University continues George W. Gray’s research into visual technologies through the expanded Liquid Crystals and Photonics Group (LCPG).

Microscope footage of liquid crystals forming [U DLCR/11/10] 

Chemistry in Hull isn’t confined to the university labs. Many industrial chemical companies have set up factories in the city, taking advantages of Hull’s docks to import raw materials and export finished products.

Perhaps as many as ten paint manufacturers were active in the Hull during the 19th Century, of which the Sisson’s Brothers are probably the most well-known today. Thomas Sissons started as a whale oil merchant before opening a paint factory around 1803 – since good-quality paint was made from whale oil, this step was just cutting out the middle-man.

A more colourful side to Hull’s chemical past is found in along Morley Street in Stoneferry. One of the many business set up by local pharmaceutical giants J. Reckitt & Sons Ltd was a synthetic ultramarine factory, creating hundreds of tonnes of bright blue dye from 1884 onwards. After German dye imports were halted by the First World War, it became Britain’s biggest ultramarine manufacturer, a title which it held until its closure in 2007.

Industrial plants across Stoneferry, North Hull, C.1930s [C TDP/2/1/3]

More information about Hull’s chemical industries can be found in the Hull History Centre, starting with the Trade Directories from 1834 onwards.

The History Centre also holds the records of the Liquid Crystals Research Group (U DLCR), including some of the original lab equipment and test samples, as well as the Queens Award for Technology shield, awarded to the university in 1979.

Tom, TNA Digital Archives Trainee

Freedom: Doodles & Drawings - Art in the Archives at Hull History Centre

Archives...what does that word mean to you? Does it conjure up visions of boring dusty documents and illegible text? Think again!

With the Turner Prize launch just around the corner, we've gone arty with the theme of this fortnight's City of Culture blog at Hull History Centre...

Following on from the 'Cabinet of Curiosities' exhibition at Hull's Maritime Museum, here at Hull History Centre we have created a new exhibition, funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund. 
It will challenge your view of archives by showcasing some of the wonderful doodles and drawings to be found within our collections. Through beautiful sketches, watercolour paintings, drawings and doodles you will discover that archives are not all about text. Illustration has long been used as a wonderful way to exercise freedom of expression, and you will see how images can add as much to our understanding of the past as the written word.

Cairns Foster shop [C TDR]

The items within the exhibition span the 14th through to the 21st centuries and include artwork created by volunteers and staff who have taken inspiration from collections at the History Centre. Come along and see art in all its many guises, from medieval doodles through to modern day sketches. There will be interactive elements to help demystify the work carried out at the History Centre where staff work to manage and preserve the City's documentary heritage.

Illuminated letter from Bench Book 1 [C BRG/1]

Hidden amongst the exhibits is our oldest illustrated inhabitant, Ranulph the rabbit. At almost 600 years old he can’t move very fast so you have a good chance of spotting him! 

'Doodles and Drawings' opens at Hull History Centre on the 10th October 2017 and runs through to 6th January 2018. There will be events and activities running alongside the exhibition so don't forget to check the History Centre's website for further details.

Carol Tanner, 
Access and Collections Manager (Hull City Archives)

Freedom: The Art of Political Expression

At Hull History Centre we hold many collections which document a wide range of political issues and campaigns. With City of Culture’s ‘Freedom’ themed events in full swing, we thought we would use this blog to highlight some hidden gems.

Below you will find a selection of items showing how individuals and campaign groups have used art as a means of political expression. Look out for the curve ball which hints at issues of censorship and freedom of speech.

Election poster produced by the Municipal Association Group, mid-20th cent. [U DAS/29/61]

Visual posters like this one, produced by the Municipal Association Group as part of an election campaign, can tell us lots about the issues particular local elections were contested on. Whilst election statements and party manifestos can also tell us such information, visual representations can help us understand the different ways in which messages were put across to the electorate.

Cartoon sent by Victor Weisz to Audrey Jupp-Thomas, 18 Jan 1956 [U DJT/10]

Victor Weisz, born in Berlin to Jewish parents, was a gifted caricaturist and political cartoonist. Before moving to Britain in 1935 as a result of his strongly anti-Nazi political position, his work had appeared in German newspapers. In Britain his work appeared in the News Chronicle, the Daily Mirror, Evening Standard and the New Statesman. By the 1940s he had adopted the pseudonym 'Vicky', became a British citizen in 1947, and tragically took his own life in 1966.

Poster issued by the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection, 1980s [U DBV/28/2]

Founded in 1898 by Miss Frances Power Cobbe, the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection plays an important part in the history of the animal rights movement in Britain. For a century the BUAV has been leading campaigns against vivisection, testing of cosmetics on animals, and use of animal testing in the development of treatments intended for human use.  

Circular issued by The National Council for Civil Liberties, c.1934 [U DCL/74/4]

The censorship of visual expressions of opinions was a common feature of many political regimes during the 20th century. This fact shows that opponents of a particular position have long believed visual messages to have a strong impact on the spread of information and the persuasion of individuals.

If any of these items have piqued your interest, you can investigate further by paying us a visit and delving in to the collections.

Claire Weatherall (Assistant Archivist)

Freedom: Hull and the Abolition of the Slave Trade

This installment of the City of Culture blog looks at the issue of 'freedom' through the lens of the end to slavery. The 23^rd August hosted the International Day of Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition. The Abolition of the Slave Trade Act was passed on 25 March 1807 that outlawed the British Atlantic slave trade and in 1833 Britain passed the Abolition of Slavery Act, ordering the gradual abolition of slavery in all British colonies. However, it was not until 1888 when slavery was finally abolished, Brazil being the last country in the Western world to do so.

Part of the Slavery Collection at Hull History Centre

Hull as a city will be forever associated with the abolition of the slave trade primarily due to William Wilberforce’s leadership in the parliamentary campaign. Wilberforce was of course not Hull’s only Member of Parliament to address the slavery issue. David Hartley (MP for Hull 1774-1780 and 1782-1784) formally brought the slave trade to the attention of the House of Commons and in 1776 introduced a debate “that the slave trade is contrary to the laws of God and the rights of men”.

Until emancipation, slaves were considered the property of their owners, which meant that they were subject to the whims of their owner and local slave laws. Families could be split up, and people could be sold, gifted and inherited as property. The sale and trading of human beings as property seems an incomprehensible act. And yet at the History Centre we have found deeds and mortgages within our collections that show property and people grouped together as if they are one and the same thing.

Mortgage of an estate in Westmoreland, Jamaica, listing c.300 slaves [C DDX/35]

A collection that is currently being listed and will soon appear on our online catalogue at reference C DDI consists of deeds relating to properties in Antigua, Jamaica, Barbados and elsewhere. Held within the collection is a mortgage for £3,000 for the repair of damage caused by a hurricane to a plantation in the island of Barbados. This gem of a document also provides details of the slaves working on the plantation, giving their name, sex, employment, country, age, and in some cases even their date of birth. Similarly a mortgage is held at reference C DDX/35 that includes a list of approximately 300 slaves at a Lincoln estate in Westmoreland, Jamaica, which provides their names, colour, age, whether African or Creole, and in some cases it even gives the name of their mother.

Documents such as these are of international importance; they not only enhance our understanding of the slave trade but record the very existence of individual slaves. At the Hull History Centre we also house a special collection of over 1100 books relating to the history of slavery and its abolition from 1492 until 1888. It is important to remember the past in order to have the wisdom to prevent the same mistakes in the future.

Laura Wilson, Librarian/Archivist

The Gold Nose of Green Ginger

On Saturday 19th August we welcomed a very special treasure, given to the city for safekeeping and on display in our arcade until 11 November..

In 1967, foundations to lay the first houses on the Bransholme estate were being laid.  During the excavations, workmen were puzzled when they came across a small casket buried deep within the crowd; pulling it out and brushing the dirt away, they opened it to reveal a strange gold object inside.

Described as ‘looking like a ginger root…roughly in the shape of a warty nose’, it had two nostrils and braided silk ties, indicating it was perhaps worn ceremonially at some point.

The Gold Nose of Green Ginger, as we now know it is called, has been mentioned throughout the annals of history, but has always been considered an urban myth. Shortly after its discovery on Bransholme, it swiftly disappeared again – no one knows quite why, but some reports claim that those who came into contact with it were blessed with unexplainable and plentiful good luck, so it was hidden from public interest until it could be fully understood. 

Others say it was stolen by someone who wanted to be exclusively imbued with fortune, while others believe it was quite simply lost.

There is no evidence to suggest when and/or where The Gold Nose was first documented. 

Some theories suggest a boar, long considered a magical creature and deeply connected to the earth’s energies, had been foraging for food in the water meadow that became Bransholme and unearthed it (the name Bransholme coming from the old Scandinavian phrase meaning ‘wild boar water meadow’). Other variations on this story tell of the boar having special powers and turning the root gold itself. 

But what exactly is it? One popular theory relates to the discovery of excavations in the 1970’s in Wroxeter, Shropshire, where a set of Roman-period gold eyes - believed to bring healing to those suffering from ophthalmological conditions - were discovered. It is thought they were an offering to the gods; could The Gold Nose be something similar? What we do know is Roman discoveries have been made across the region, including Roman coins found at Castle Hill and across Bransholme, so it’s possible.

We also know that an amulet known as a ‘Bulla’ was given to male children in Ancient Rome nine days after birth. Meant to protect against evil spirits and forces, these would often be made of different materials depending on social status; usually lead or leather, but gold in wealthy families. There have been suggestions that The Gold Nose could be a variation on this, but this is so far unproven. Laboratory analysis does however confirm it is made of real gold.

It may also be significant that Meaux Abbey – which in the Middle Ages owned the land on which Bransholme was built – is known to have had a magnificent collection of golden objects; perhaps the Nose is a rare survival.

But how did The Gold Nose come to Hull History Centre? 

Back in April, a local group of experts was called in to investigate the discovery of a large cache of crates found in a previously unknown vault beneath the city. During their extensive investigations, The Green Ginger Fellowship was drawn to a crate that smelled unmistakably of ginger; upon opening it, they discovered The Gold Nose lying within. 

After much public interest in this unexpected rediscovery, The Gold Nose began a momentous two-month residency from Saturday 17 June 2017 at North Point Shopping Centre in Bransholme, Hull, displayed for the public to view at close quarters and make wishes on. It has now been handed back to the City of Hull for safekeeping, residing with us until it continues on its adventure. 

Freedom: Yorkshire Day

This History Centre City of Culture blog explores the anniversary of 'Yorkshire Day'... 

Created by the Yorkshire Ridings Society, it was first celebrated in Beverley in 1975. Yorkshire Day was initially conceived as a protest against the Local Government reorganisation of 1974, during which the county of Humberside was created. Humberside was never universally popular and many believed that the name change did not recognise the cultural, social and economic differences between the opposite banks of the Humber. In short, both sides felt that the creation of Humberside removed the areas's ancient and historic associations with Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. The East Yorkshire Action Group (EYAG) was formed in 1974 and campaigned for the return of the East Riding of Yorkshire and the abolition of Humberside. 

Morden's map showing the East Riding of Yorkshire, 1695

The date of 1^st August was chosen to celebrate Yorkshire Day because it is the anniversary of the Battle of Minden (1759) and the end of slavery within the British Empire (1834). With these things in mind its easy to see how Yorkshire Day can also be conceived of as a celebration of freedom: freedom of expression; freedom of identity; and freedom of person. 

Battle of Minden

The Battle of Minden was a military engagement in the Seven Years War, fought between the French and an allied force comprised of Prussians, Hanoverians and British regiments. One of the five British infantry regiments involved in the battle was the King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry. As the story goes, whilst marching to battle the British soldiers passed through rose gardens and stopped to place white roses on their headdresses and coats. The allied army was victorious and so, in commemoration of the victory and to remember the fallen, the King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, now part of the Yorkshire Regiment, wear a white rose in their caps on 1^st August.

Emancipation of Slaves

The emancipation of slaves in the British Empire in 1834 was the culmination of a decades long struggle for which Yorkshire MP, William Wilberforce, had campaigned tirelessly. The British slave trade had been abolished in 1807, but Wilberforce and his fellow campaigners had to fight another 27 years to see the end of slavery within the British Empire. Wilberforce died only three days after hearing that the Slavery Abolition Act had been passed by Parliament. William Wilberforce was born in Hull and many items relating to him and the abolition movement are now displayed at his family home, Wilberforce House, on High Street in Hull. The Hull History Centre also maintains a Special Collection of books relating to Wilberforce, slavery and the abolition movement. Many of the books in the collection can be borrowed using a Hull Libraries card.

Recent Yorkshire Day Celebrations

The county of Humberside was eventually abolished in 1995, returning Hull and the surrounding area to Yorkshire proper. However, this didn't mean the end to Yorkshire Day. In recent years, the Yorkshire Society has organised an annual gathering on 1st August of Lord Mayors, Mayors and other civic notables from across Yorkshire for parades and other festivities. The host town or city changes each year and Hull has played host twice, in 1999 and 2007. The unveiling of the Yorkshire flag as an official emblem, recognised by the Flag Institute, was also conducted in Hull on 29 July 2008. 

Hull History Centre's Yorkshire Collections

Pamphlet produced by the East Yorkshire Action Group [U DEY]

The History Centre holds various books and archival collections relating to Yorkshire and its history. We provide free access to many Yorkshire newspapers via our microfilm collections and through access to the British Newspaper Archive Online website. Our local studies book collection contains many titles on the history of Yorkshire. Amongst our Yorkshire-related archival material, the East Yorkshire Action Group Records [U DEY] are a key collection documenting protest against the creation of Humberside and the loss of identity this was seen to cause. All this material and much more, can be accessed for free here at the History Centre.  

From all of us here at the Hull History Centre, we hope you have a very happy Yorkshire Day!

Verity Minniti, Archives Assistant (HUA)

Freedom: Hypocrite - The Real Story?

This contribution to the History Centre's City of Culture blog marks the first in our 'Freedom' series.....

Earlier this year you may have seen Richard Bean’s play The Hypocrite at Hull Truck Theatre (or our more far-flung readers may have seen its transfer to the RSC at Stratford upon Avon). The play is a farce telling the highly fictionalised story of Sir John Hotham, Governor of Hull at the start of the English Civil War. The Sir John of The Hypocrite is a rather hapless figure, bullied by a harridan of a wife and acting out of craven self-interest, before meeting his end on the executioner’s block.

Hollar's plan of Hull showing how the town looked during the 1640s

Our current exhibition at the History Centre, Plots, Intrigue and Treason: Hull in the Civil War, tries to show something of the real story of Hull and Sir John Hotham using some of the documents held here. We’ve also borrowed Sir John and Lady Hotham’s costumes from The Hypocrite, and we have an incredible model of Beverley Gate which you can also see on display.

The story of Hull in the English Civil War (now more properly known as the Wars of the Three Kingdoms) sits rather nicely within the Freedom strand of the City of Culture year. Ideas of freedom run throughout the wars. The Scottish church fought for its freedom when the King and the Archbishop of Canterbury attempted to reform it in 1637-1640. The Irish Confederate Wars began in 1640 as the Irish people tried to free themselves from the English policy of plantation, whereby Irish Catholics’ land was confiscated and given to English or Scottish Protestants to settle. In England, Parliamentarians fought for freedom from a tyrannical monarch, while Royalists fought for freedom from a Parliament overreaching its bounds.

Illustration of Sir John Hotham on horseback [LP.920 HOT]

In Hull, Sir John Hotham famously refused to allow King Charles I to enter the town of Hull on St George’s Day 1642, closing Beverley Gate against him. Was this an expression of freedom against a despotic king, or an act of political self-interest?

Illustration of Charles I [L CWT/1]

Charles proclaimed Sir John a traitor, but Parliament backed his actions. Just 14 months later, though, Sir John was arrested on charges of treason against Parliament. After a court martial, he was executed in 1645. How did this happen? Why not visit the exhibition to find out!

Sarah Pymer, Assistant Archivist (HUA)

Roots and Routes:Crossing the Humber

In this last instalment of our 'Roots and Routes' quarter of the History Centre's City of Culture blog, we take a look at how people have attempted to cross the Humber. As we explore this topic, we 'bridge' our way into the 'Freedom' quarter of 2017...

The Humber has long being a natural barrier and has defined the north. It once separated the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Northumbria from those of the south, whilst today it separates East Yorkshire from Northern Lincolnshire. This, however, has not prevented people from crossing the river, which has been traversed by boat and foot. 

The Romans were thought to have crossed the Humber on foot between Wintringham and Brough, this being possible because the river used to be wider and its flow, therefore, slower than present. However, the crossing was more likely made by boat, from a possible Roman jetty near Wintringham, which would have been revealed by low tide. Some of the earliest documented evidence of boat crossings can be found in an Edward II charter (1315), which states that a ‘ferry be established and forever maintained from Kyngeston upon Hull across the water of Humbre unto the County of Lincoln… for conveying and carrying… men horses, carts, corn and other things’. 

Barton Ferry, Waterside, 1801 [L.386/6(92)/2]

In the 18th century, the journey was 5-6 miles and, if the wind and tides were favourable, took around 1.5 hours. Conditions were not always favourable however, and in 1787 Charles Dibdin recalled his journey from Barton to Hull which took four hours and saw a customs officer fall overboard: ‘I am sure I shall endure nothing in my voyage to India that will exceed what I then experienced’. The last official ferry service across the Humber ceased at 16.30 on 24 June 1981, when the paddle steamer ‘Faringford’ made a final return journey from New Holland to Hull.

The Industrial Revolution enabled the Victorians to develop their own ideas of how to connect the north and south banks. In 1872 a railway tunnel under the Humber costing £960,000 was proposed but got nowhere. 

OS Map showing proposed rail link between Hull and North Lincolnshire, 1914 [C DMX/153]

Another railway tunnel was later suggested to connect Welton and South Ferriby. Like the earlier proposal, this came to nothing. With the drive of the industrial revolution, railways became the most convenient method of transporting goods, so in 1914 a railway link was again proposed, this time from Paull to Northern Lincolnshire. 

Whilst some Victorian engineers believed tunnelling to be the way to go, others proposed constructing a bridge. In 1883, the first ideas for a bridge were proposed. It was to be 5900ft long and 900ft high. It would be almost century later before the Humber was finally bridged. Opening on 24 June 1981 the Humber Bridge was, at the time, the longest suspension bridge in the world. It held this title for almost 17 years before being eclipsed by the Akashi Kaikyō Bridge in Japan in 1998. Today it is the world’s eighth longest suspension bridge.

Humber Bridge proposed design, 1931 [L.624.1/84]

For some, the Humber has provided an opportunity to test human ability and endurance. Among this group was Irwin Hales. He swam the estuary three times whilst taking part in the ‘championship crossing’ held from 1906-1913. The course ran from New Holland to Hull pier, and his 1913 swim was done in a then record-breaking one hour and one minute. Pete Winchester, known as ‘King of the Humber’ for his record breaking 68 swims, is said to be the only man to have completed a swim from Hessle Foreshore to Grimsby Dock Basin. 

The Humber may have been one of the last of the UK’s great estuaries to be bridged, but efforts to cross have been made for almost 1000 years. And so, even without a bridge, enthusiasm alone has been connecting the north and south banks for centuries.

Neil Chadwick, Archives Assistant

Roots and Routes: Whaling - From Hull to the Arctic

Whaling has a long and important place in the history of Hull. Beginning around the 16^th century, the trade involved hazardous journeys up to the Arctic regions where the whales were to be found. These journeys had to be undertaken in the summer when there was less ice around. In the early years ships only went as far as Greenland, but slowly as the Arctic regions were explored whaling crews ventured further and further north where they encountered more and more hazards. The majority of ships were not built for the whaling trade but were converted from other uses. The ships had to be specially adapted for the icy conditions and this was done by ‘planking’. Extra layers of wood had to be attached to the inside of the hold to strengthen them.

Map showing areas traversed by whaling crews sailing out of Hull [L WHA.639]

From the 18^th century, the whaling trade had become a significant part of the country’s economy. In 1733 the British Government was offering a bounty of £1 per ton per ship to English merchants involved in whaling. By 1754 this had risen to £2 and, in that same year, four Hull whaling ships sailed to the Arctic. With the increase in profits to be made, so came an increase in the numbers of ships involved in the trade and by 1799 there were 34 whaling ships sailing out of Hull. Arguably though, the heyday of the trade came in the early decades of the 19^th century, and by 1820 more than 60 of our city’s ships were involved in whaling. Hull became the largest whaling port in the country and the trade was an important part of the town’s economy. From catching the whales, to creating and using the by-products of the trade, Hull’s merchants and tradesmen became rich from the proceeds. Whalebone had a huge variety of uses and there were manufacturers at Hull who made ribs for umbrellas, hoops for crinolines, corsets and buttons amongst other things; the oil was also a valuable commodity.

Extract from the Neptune's log book, 1821 [L DMWH]

The Local Studies collection holds a number of journals kept by the crews of Hull based whaling ships, and these are available to read on microfilm. Reading the entries in the journals, you are made aware of problems faced by the men involved in the trade: From ships not being able to leave port because there was no wind; to them being blown off course because of too much wind. The biggest difficulties were encountered as the ships explored the territories further beyond the Arctic Circle, with the immense cold, snow and ice.  Melville Bay appears to have been notorious for bad weather and gales. The only means of navigation was by the sun and the stars and many of the journals include the comment ‘sun obscured’ instead of a latitude reading. If the ship drifted into the pack ice (known as being beset), it could only be a matter of time before the ship was squeezed so much it would break. 

Extract from the Neptune's log book, 1821 [L DMWH]

As conditions became more dangerous there were huge losses, including 9 ships lost in 1821. With these and similar disasters, added to the fact that whale oil was becoming less of a necessity, the trade began to decline. However the trade did carry on, and even witnessed a revival in the 1850s and 1860s. However, the revival was short lived and the last whaling ship, the Diana, sailed out of Hull in 1866. She was to spend the winter in the Arctic, unable to get home and when she finally arrived in Hull on 26 April 1867, she had lost her captain and 13 members of the crew.

If you want to find out more about Hull’s whaling heritage, why not come and look at the whaling log books? Just ask us in the library to point you in the right direction!

Elaine Moll, Librarian and Archivist