Local History News

From our blog

Celebrating Hampshire Historians: A Southampton Perspective

Published: 16th November 2022

For the past 18 months I have been a member of the Celebrating Hampshire Historian’s Project Team.

New Trustees Appointed

Published: 14th November 2022

The trustees of the Association are delighted to welcome two new members of the board who will be co-opted pending formal nomination and election at the Annual General Meeting planned for May 2023.

20s Streets – Local History Competition

Published: 14th November 2022

BALH is delighted to share in the launch of an exciting new Local History collaboration with The National Archives (UK).

From our blog

Old Palace School Bombing Project

Published: 7th November 2022

I have been researching my family tree for around 20 years and have strong links to Kent, Essex and East London and it was whilst I was researching my maternal line of Wootton’s, that I discovered a rather harrowing story involving one of my ancestors.

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Ways to Get Involved in BALH's Work

Published: 7th November 2022

At BALH, we are always interested in sharing the broad range of local history work being done across the British Isles. Whether you are just starting out, or you are a seasoned local historian with decades of experience, we’d love to hear from you! Below, we will explain some of the ways you can share your local history research with BALH.

‘Unexpected Sources for Local History’: BALH Regional Conference, Taunton

Published: 6th November 2022

Report by Vice-Chair Jane Golding

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English Synagogues and Local Jewish Identities

Published: 27th September 2022

Synagogues are Jewish places of worship. However, unlike some religious buildings, they are not in themselves sacred. It is the people and the rituals which take place within them that makes the building sacred. This means that there are few, if any, religious prescriptions as to how a synagogue should be built.

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Events to Attend This Black History Month

Published: 26th September 2022

The theme for this year’s Black History Month, which takes place annually in October, is ‘Time For Change: Actions, Not Words.’ Indeed, the month is seen both as an opportunity to reflect on the history of Black people in the United Kingdom and around the world, it is also an opportunity to learn from the past in order to positively shape the future.

Society of Genealogists collaboration: family and local history

Published: 20th September 2022

Family and local history are two parts of the same coin, inseparably linked.

The Yorkshire Society launch a new essay competition

Published: 7th September 2022

The Yorkshire Society are delighted to announce the inaugural Harry Gration History Prize, an essay competition open to everyone passionate about Yorkshire heritage.

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Heritage Open Days

Published: 2nd September 2022

Heritage Open Days, the national festival of history and heritage now spread over more than a week in early September, is probably well known to most people in the BALH.

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How further education students can breathe new life into local history where they live

Published: 28th August 2022

Let’s face it, more than a few local history societies are kept running by hard working volunteers from older generations who are passionate about the lives and stories of the people who lived and worked in and around their communities. That has been my experience here in Cambridge – where our town history is inevitably overshadowed by the chapel towers of the ancient colleges.

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Railway Work, Life and Death Project

Published: 5th August 2022

That the coming of the railways changed the UK is a well-known aphorism – but what impacts did they have at a smaller scale? Local historians have been wrestling with this question for a long time, thinking about population movements, life opportunities, occupational structures and more. But what of the people needed to run the railways - the workers?