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A hydroplane near Huntingdon in 1913. This is one of a recent accession of stereo photos received at #huntingdonshirearchives, and the collection includes the handheld viewer too, so searchers who visit us in person can get the full stereo effect. More info in the Alt
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A stereo black and white photo (ie two images side by side, almost but not quite exactly the same) showing a very large biplane in a field. This slightly damaged photo was taken by Dr Reginald Grove of St Ives, Huntingdonshire, on Tuesday 15th April 1913. Dr Grove carefully noted a lot of extra information on the back of the print, including the aperture of f8, the exposure time of 1/20th of a second, and the time of day of 4 pm. Document ref HA D1757/7/48
January 14, 2026 at 10:58 AM
alanakeroyd.bsky.social
#randomdocument 20: "Bennet is punish’t Sixpence for pocketing the Cucumber & one Shilling for Blotting the Book." Always nice to see justice done for cucumber pocketing. From the Society of Cambridge Youths account book for 1764 #cambridgeshirearchives
A large and indeed rather deliberate-looking ink splot all across an 18th century account book page. From the Society of Cambridge Youths account book, reference CA 2675/2/1. The Society was formed in 1724 to ring the bells of Great St Mary's church in Cambridge; they still exist today.
July 31, 2025 at 10:46 AM
alanakeroyd.bsky.social
#randomdocument 19: St Ives cattle market 1886. Occasionally cattle would force their way through front doors and run upstairs, sometimes even breaking windows to fall to the street below. This photo is a favourite; it was once used in an episode of Sapphire and Steel #huntingdonshirearchives
St Ives cattle market, Huntingdonshire. The town's Broadway is filled with livestock and some surprisingly well dressed men, considering that they are surrounded by literally hundreds of cows. The buildings on either side are banks and shops, and in the distance is the spire of the parish church. (Doc ref HA PH68/14). A close-up of some of the people at the Cattle Market. They are wearing bowler hats, waistcoats and smart coats, and are carrying canes. (Doc ref PH68/14 part)
June 11, 2025 at 11:37 AM
alanakeroyd.bsky.social
#randomdocument 18: a tracing made in 1860 of one of William Palmer's 1656 plans of Soham and Fordham manor, showing the names of the people who held the right to farm each individual strip. #cambridgeshirearchives #manors #maps #mapsky #stripfields
A colourful tracing made in 1860 of a plan originally made in 1656. It shows the occupiers' names of individual strips. Document reference CA 107/PA. A detail showing people's names
April 22, 2025 at 9:41 AM
alanakeroyd.bsky.social
#randomdocument 17: I do like this technical drawing of a steam boiler. This plan was drawn up for Cambridge's sewage pumping station at the Riverside in 1923 #cambridgeshirearchives #steam #boilers
A wonderful technical drawing of a steam boiler from 1923 (document ref CA KCB/2/SE/1/4/3/33). I think the draftsman must have really liked boilers. It has been coloured with a dark blue wash that gives it a 3D look
April 4, 2025 at 11:24 AM
alanakeroyd.bsky.social
#randomdocument 16: the interior of the Overcote Ferry pub in Holywell near St Ives, Huntingdonshire, photographed about 1910. A bit dark and gloomy for modern tastes, no doubt. I prefer modern pubs 😀 #huntingdonshirearchives
A black and white photo of the interior of a pub, photographed in about 1910. Very grim and grubby it looks too. There is no one around. There is a grandfather clock in the corner, a fireplace by one wall, and two glasses on a table. Document ref HA PH46/1
April 2, 2025 at 3:02 PM
alanakeroyd.bsky.social
#randomdocument 15: Sir Henry Bishop's music for the Duke of Wellington's funeral march, 1852 (document ref R83/27). You can hear the music played on piano here www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbNS... #cambridgeshirearchives
The beginning of the the sheet music for the Duke of Wellington's funeral march. The document was printed in 1852 and it has yellowed significantly. There is a picture at the top showing 19th century British soldiers marching with drums.
March 25, 2025 at 11:10 AM
alanakeroyd.bsky.social
#randomdocument 14: Huntingdon's borough charter of 1205. This was long thought to be lost but it was found alongside many other town charters and records in a solicitors basement in 1941. The charter was in 2 pieces: you can see the vertical tear. More info in the replies! #huntingdonshirearchives
The 1205 charter. Originally there was a royal seal of King John at the bottom but that had been removed at some point in its history, and so the charter was discovered seal-less in 1941. (Document reference HB1/1/1)
February 17, 2025 at 11:40 AM
alanakeroyd.bsky.social
#randomdocument 13. A photo of German prisoners of war outside Warboys church in 1946. One of the POWs was pastor Kurt Schroeder of Westphalia, and in October 1946 he led a joint service at Warboys church with Rev Nelson Trafford the local rector. Doc ref HA HP91/30/2 #huntingdonshirearchives
Black and white photograph of German POWs outside the door of Warboys parish church. The POWs were held in a camp near the village, and they carried out agricultural work. Repatriation of German POWs did not begin until September 1946, well over a year after the end of the war in Europe; the final German POWs were not returned until 1948.
February 11, 2025 at 10:19 AM
alanakeroyd.bsky.social
#randomdocument 12. A photo that we accessioned just last week, showing members of the Histon and Impington village cycle club in 1908. What a grim lot they look too. None of their bicycles appears to have any brakes. But they do have a gun. Doc ref CA R125/005 part #cambridgeshirearchives #cycling
The members of Histon and Impington Village Cycle Club line up for the start of race, August 1908. A black and white photo showing five very serious cyclists head-on, their cycles held up by assistants. A man standing behind them is holding up a gun which looks worryingly like a real revolver rather than a starter's pistol. That's 1908 for you.
January 31, 2025 at 11:21 AM
alanakeroyd.bsky.social
#randomdocument 11. An extract from a 1602 pedigree of the Cromwell family, showing Owain Glyndŵr as part of their ancestry. Oliver Cromwell, who would later also take up arms against the monarch, was only three years old when this pedigree was made. #huntingdonshirearchives #owenglendower #wales
Owain Glyndŵr's entry on the Cromwell pedigree of 1602. The entry includes a potted biography of him. "He was afterwards dryven to great extremytie and was for wante of foode in the end myserably famished in the Mountayns in the 10 yeare of H4." Doc ref HA 5170.
January 27, 2025 at 10:16 AM
alanakeroyd.bsky.social
#randomdocument 10: Cornelius Vermuyden's signature on his contract to drain the Fens, 1650. In return he received £1K and 4K acres of land. All done by 1652, but the legal position suddenly became unclear in 1660 because all the contracts had been made under Cromwell. #cambridgeshirearchives
Cornelius Vermuyden's signature and seal, on the contract he made with the Bedford Level Corporation. He was paid £1,000, about £183,000 in today's money. From document R59/31/X/51/1.
January 22, 2025 at 10:16 AM
alanakeroyd.bsky.social
#randomdocument 9. Part of Bateman's 1757 map of St Neots showing Eayre's bell foundry, which was indeed built in a bell shape. Eayre started there in 1735. Many of his church bells still survive today, as does the foundry, which was taken over by a brewery as an oast house. #huntingdonshirearchives
Eayre's gatehouse to his bell foundry, from Bateman's map of St Neots of 1757. A coloured map with a little drawing of the gatehouse on it, called "the Foundery." Doc ref HA 223/26A
January 21, 2025 at 10:33 AM
alanakeroyd.bsky.social
Here's a newspaper cutting about Nazis getting thrown into a river, pasted inside the City of Ely Amateur Swimming Club's minute book of 1939-1940. Document ref CA 2620/1/3. #randomdocument #cambridgeshirearchives
Newspaper cutting of July 1941 about the City of Ely Amateur Swimming Club summer gala, which involved people dressed as Nazis ending up in the river Ouse.
January 20, 2025 at 2:08 PM
alanakeroyd.bsky.social
From our archives /7. A set of grim predictions for 1620-1630. I think the Cottenham vicar in the early 1600s pasted these into his register so he could keep track whether they came true or not. We have a 2nd version in another collection. Ref CA P50/1/3 #randomdocument #cambridgeshirearchives
A set of handwritten predictions, from a 17th century parish register held at Cambridgeshire Archives
January 15, 2025 at 11:35 AM
alanakeroyd.bsky.social
From our archives /6. A plan for a new tollhouse near Ely in 1825, part of the Cambridge to Ely turnpike trust. This road is now the A10 and I drove along part of it earlier this morning. Sadly no tollhouse though! Doc ref T/E/AP24 #cambridgeshirearchives #randomdocument #turnpikes
Plan and elevation of a new tollhouse near Ely, dated 1825. Very nice the place looks too. A big bungalow really, with a projection at the front so that the tollgate keeper can keep an eye on the road.
January 14, 2025 at 11:12 AM
alanakeroyd.bsky.social
From our archives /5. Fen skating used to be huge in the Cambridgeshire fens. Here's the one-mile amateur race at Swavesey in 1893 between local man A.E. Tebbit from Milton and F. Hiam from Stratford. Tebbit won. Doc ref CA 695/Z29. #cambridgeshirearchives #randomdocument #fenskating #skating
Black and white photo of two men skating on the frozen river Ouse in 1893. The amateur race at Swaevsey. They are wearing no protective gear at all.
January 13, 2025 at 9:47 AM
alanakeroyd.bsky.social
Brrr it's cold. But the winter of 1891 was even colder. Here are some very dapperly dressed lads by the frozen river Ouse at St Ives in Huntingdonshire. Love the bowler hats. Document HA WH2/1. From our archives /4 #huntingdonshirearchives #randomdocument
A black and white 19th century photograph of some snappily dressed young men by a frozen river, with bowler hats and canes. There's a younger looking lad in the foreground with a cap and who looks a bit cheeky, like he's thinking about pushing you backwards on the ice
January 10, 2025 at 10:32 AM
alanakeroyd.bsky.social
From our archives /3. An extract from Bowen's 1749 map of Huntingdonshire showing the town of Huntingdon, "a town of great antiquity once very large and populous." The circle of trees on the left indicates Sapley Park, a remnant of a medieval Royal Forest. #huntingdonshirearchives #randomdocument
Extract from a 1749 map showing Huntingdon, Godmanchester and (on the left) the fenced-in area of Sapley Park. Document reference HA accession 1590.
January 9, 2025 at 12:43 PM
alanakeroyd.bsky.social
From our archives /2. Tuberculosis patients at Papworth TB settlement, photographed in 1920. Document ref 1140/5/14/124.
#randomdocument #cambridgeshirearchives #papworthhospital
TB patients, 1920. A black and white photograph showing men lying in hospital beds while another man looks on.
January 8, 2025 at 10:06 AM
alanakeroyd.bsky.social
Random document 1. A detail from the original architectural plans of Old Shire Hall, from 1930, showing the main entrance. Doc ref CC7/ARCH/Z.1 part. #cambridgeshirearchives #randomdocument
Architectural plan of the main entrance to Old Shire Hall, 1930. A beautifully crafted drawing showing the doors, main steps and the windows on either side.
January 7, 2025 at 10:02 AM