The Local Historian Volume 9 Number 7 August 1971

By Donald M. Woodward

A study of agrarian change over four centuries, with particular emphasis on developments in farming practices and techniques. Woodward argues that in the early 20th century the prevailing view was that the 'agricultural revolution' ran parallel to the industrial revolution, but he suggests that this is not the case. Instead, he shows how modern research has refuted this argument and has indicated that agricultural change was already well advanced by the mid-18th century and can be traced back much earlier. He highlights the theory that in the 16th and 17th centuries agriculture expanded because of the increasing area of land under cultivation, rather than as a result of improved yields or productivity of existing cultivated land. However, he also considers a range of other competing theories about the causes and nature of agricultural expansion.

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By Peter Perry

Study of an underused source with much potential for agricultural history research. Newspaper advertisements - though inevitably not an unbiased source - give substantial contemporary information about topics such as farm sales, the letting of farms and other properties, land values, the sale of crops and livestock, equipment in use, the land market and the changing nature and pattern of landownership, as well as descriptions of buildings, estates and land use. The evidence of the letting market can be used as an indication of prosperity, as in times of difficulty owners were forced to find new tenants. Perry uses figures gathered from a series of advertisements to show how land sales were affected by agricultural depression. Stock and equipment sales are also an indicator of relative prosperity or difficulty, since they usually followed a tenant's departure from a farm. Advertisements may include details of the vendor and also give reasons for the sale itself.

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By E.M.H. Ibbotson

Article based on extracts from the recollections of a farm labourer from Ilmington, in the Cotswolds, who recalled life in the late 19th century, detailing his memories of themes such as family life; rural lifestyles; and the problems and difficulties which resulted from the protracted late-Victorian agricultural depression and decline.

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By Michael Pollard

Study of folk-songs, which are regarded as being within the wider dimension of oral evidence since they were passed down orally until the end of the 19th century. Pollard discusses the folk tradition and considers the songs collected at the beginning of the 20th century by Cecil Sharp which helped to bring folk song to the attention of musicians, composers and historians. He gives examples from popular, regional, and street songs and indicates sources which are available to the local historian.

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By Basil Skinner

A review of the state of local history in Scotland, and its organisation, making comparisons with the English experience. Key differences in the practice of local history between the two countries include the location of primary source material, with a less clear arrangement of archive repositories and a relatively greater role for the Scottish Record Office, but with much material kept locally; the existence of very few county history committees in Scotland, and the absence (then) of a national body to encourage local history; the lack of any equivalent to the English Victoria County Histories series; and the marked absence of local history courses and research in the field of adult education. The author calls for more involvement from the Scottish universities.

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By Peter Spufford

In this article Spufford reviews a series of publications which to a greater or lesser extent relate to family history, including titles which offer basic introductions to the techniques and sources for family history research; Richard McKinley's paper on Norfolk surnames in the 16th century; and local publications on Nottinghamshire and Cheshire. The article includes extensive comment on the development of family history and community research in the 1960s.