Swindon in the Past Lane

In 1420 eleven year old Margaret Beauchamp became sole heir to her father's considerable estate, including some 3,000 acres in the parish of Lydiard Tregoze. Five years later she married Sir Oliver St John, when the St John story at Lydiard House begins. A house has stood on the site of the Palladian mansion in Lydiard Park since the 13th century and until 1943, when it was purchased by Swindon Corporation, had just five owners, the Tregoze, Grandison, Beauchamp and St John families. During the 500 years of St John occupancy the house had the odd makeover, was remodelled in the middle of the 18th century and then left in a state of benign neglect until the death of Lady Bolingbroke in 1940 when the trustees of her will put the property on the market. For more than 70 years the local authority has restored and refurbished the fabric of the building, tracked down and purchased furniture and artefacts that once belonged to the house, including numerous stunning portraits and p...

Today is Jon Ratcliffe's last day behind the enquiry desk in Local Studies at Swindon Central Library as the busy department is reduced to one full time post and one part time. Jon has worked with the Local Studies team for two years, one year volunteering and one year as a member of staff. He will be greatly missed by his colleagues and the many visitors to this fantastic archive who have benefited from his knowledge of local and family history research. His area of expertise has been the architecture of our town, both old and not so old and he has contributed some stunning photographs to the library online archive. When the latest round of restructuring hit the library we were assured there would be no further cuts to front line staff. However, Local Studies has been hit under the guise of back room efficiencies. I for one am not convinced by this argument as the immediate impact is a reduction in the number of hours the enquiry desk will be able to open. Visitors needing h...

Keith, the friendly face of Penhill Library As the Swindon Advertiser broke the sorry news of library cuts across the town, what were the staff up to? Despite the demoralising process of restructuring, the third time in as many years, library staff rolled up their sleeves and treated visitors to a super National Libraries Day. Among the treats on offer at Central Library were mulled wine and music and for the youngsters storytime included a visit from Phil Voller from Wings over Wiltshire who brought along a special guest - an owl! At Liden Library the lucky winners of February's prize draw will be treated to a meal for two at the Liden Arms while craft materials are on offer to young prize winners. And at Penhill, Neighbourhood Library Manager Leah pulled out all the stops to celebrate the day.  Her project to record local reminiscences included a contribution from two local residents who shared their memories of more than 50 years of borrowing books at Penhill Library....

Today a trip to the Wiltshire and Swindon Record Office couldn't be easier for Swindonians on the trail of their family history. Gone is the long trek down to Trowbridge where for over 35 years Wiltshire's historic records were housed in a former mattress factory. Opened in October 2007, the state of the art Wiltshire and Swindon History Centre is now a short drive away in Chippenham - and just 13 minutes by train. Wiltshire's much-needed new archival repository has been a long time in the coming. When an inspection in 1998 declared that the Trowbridge building had failed to meet the British Standard 5454, falling below standard on fire and flood defences, action was urgently required. If fire and water didn't attack, the Public Record Office might, removing Wiltshire's heritage to the National Archives building at Kew, so the rumour circulated. Fortunately Wiltshire County Council and Swindon Borough Council rose to the challenge and an agreement to develop ...

So you've looked at all the photographs, talked to Aunt Bertha and you now know that great-granddad was born in the railway village, the next step is the census returns. In 1800 Parliament passed the Census Act and the first official census of England and Wales took place on 10th March 1801 when results revealed the population stood at approximately 9 million. With the exception of 1941 a census has taken place in England and Wales every ten years since then, although those between 1801-1831 were basically just a headcount and most of the statistics were eventually destroyed. With adult ages rounded down to the nearest five years and no indication of relationship between occupants, the 1841 census can be a tricky one to navigate. However, each subsequent census contains more fascinating information. A required field to be completed in the 1851 returns was whether any of the occupants were 'blind, deaf or idiot' while in 1871 and 1881 the required information inclu...