Four New Victoria County History Projects 

This blog post was written by Ruth Slatter and Adam Chapman, Co-General Editors of the VCH.

The Victoria County History (VCH), is delighted to announce that its national network of place-based history is growing! 125 years after the VCH was founded, over the last few months it has welcomed four new and evolving VCH projects in Dorset, Kent, Lincolnshire and London. In this blog post, Ruth Slatter and Adam Chapman (Co-General Editors of the VCH) introduce these new projects.  

Founded in 1899, the Victoria County History aims to research, write and share the history of every place in England, from the earliest times to the present day. While some of our books were published well over a century ago, our project continues, with local VCH groups now active in 23 counties and two Ridings of Yorkshire, working on the histories of their own places and communities. 

Over the past few months four new VCH projects have been founded. Working in Dorset, Kent, Lincolnshire and London each is unique and exciting.  

Dorset 

Still in its very early stages, the new VCH Dorset project will be run by Mark Forrest, former collections archivist at the Dorset History Centre. The project will be overseen by a new VCH Trust full of local people with professional experience in historical and archaeological research, the heritage sector, and fundraising.  

One VCH Red Book on Dorset was published in 1908 (confusingly numbered Volume II!), focusing on the county’s medieval religious houses and aspects of its political, social and economic history. You can find part of this volume on British History Online (BHO). A second volume (numbered III and published in 1968 – not available on BHO), by Ann Williams, an eminent scholar of Domesday Book, provided an introduction, text and overview of Domesday in the county. In addition, some parts of what is now considered ‘Dorset’ were included in early 20th-century Hampshire publications. The new project will initially focus on developing a Big Red Book about the Isle of Purbeck and intends to start the research process at Corfe Castle. The project will engage local volunteers in archival research and are keen to anyone who would like to be involved.  

Mark Forest, VCH Dorset General Editor, said: “Many local historians and archaeologists have worked on Purbeck in recent decades, so we are fortunate to have a rich seam of expertise to draw upon as we start to produce the first topographical volume for the county.” 

If you’d like to get in touch with VCH Dorset, you can email Mark at mfdorseteditor@gmail.com 

Kent 

The new project in Kent is a collaboration with the William and Edith Oldham Charitable Trust titled ‘The Making of Maidstone’. Led by Jack Newman, the project focusses on the history of Maidstone between 1549 and 1660 (a very important period in the town’s history). While working towards a partnership publication on this subject, the project also aims to develop a collaborative environment in which community interest in the history of the town, and Kent more broadly, can thrive. As part of this process Jack is engaging volunteers in archival research, collaborating with artists, and developing educational materials for the area’s local schools.  

This new project will build on several existing VCH publications about Kent, including three Red Books published in the early 20th century (1908, 1932 and 1936) and two ‘England’s Past for Everyone’ VCH volumes on aspects of the Medway Valley. You can part of Volume II (1936) on British History Online.  

Jack Newman, ‘The Making of Maidstone’ project lead, said: “Through the creation of a VCH volume centred on this pivotal period of Maidstone’s history, we hope to bring together community groups, artists, students, and academics. With the support of The William and Edith Oldham Trust and the Kent History and Library Centre we will run workshops exploring the history of Kent and its records over the next three years. Additionally, we will offer online courses on digital approaches to local history. Our central aim is to generate a lasting legacy through this project which will facilitate future studies on Kentish history.” 

You can find out more about the project by visiting https://themakingofmaidstone.org/ or contacting Jack Newman at jack@themakingofmaidstone.org 

Lincolnshire  

This new initiative is based at the Centre for Fenland Studies, supported by the Spalding Gentlemen’s Society with Ayscoughfee Hall Museum, Spalding. The steering group is led by Michael Gilbert and Sue Hughes, with other experts from the University of Lincoln, and beyond. 

Just like Dorset, one VCH Red Book on Lincolnshire (also numbered Volume II) was published in the early 20th century (1906) and you can find part of this volume on British History Online. The new VCH Lincolnshire group will initially focus on researching and writing a pair of shorter, accessible, VCH Partnership Publications on the history of the town of Spalding. A growing group of volunteers currently meets once every month to work towards this goal and new joiners are very welcome. 

Michael Gilbert, of the VCH Lincolnshire steering group, said: “Alongside our aim to provide the first definitive history of Spalding, the “churches” project will allow us to actively engage other counties across the Fenlands.” 

Sue Hughes, also of the VCH Lincolnshire steering group, added: “To support the projects, we will be running a programme of history and heritage workshops from the Centre covering a wide range of topics. These will be led by experts in their fields and will include studies of the history of the region and its landscape, society and economy. There will also be sessions on how to locate and interpret primary source material.” 

If you would like to learn more about VCH Lincolnshire or how to get involved, please contact the team at fenland@scsoc.org.  

London  

The final ‘new’ VCH project is not entirely new, but a very exciting evolution of the longstanding VCH Middlesex project. Led by Francis Boorman, the plan is to establish a VCH Trust to support and promote research into the history of contemporary London’s 32 boroughs. These boroughs take in all or part of the historic counties of Essex, Kent, Middlesex and Surrey. 

Having recently published a VCH short on the Westminster parish of St George Hanover Square, Francis is now working on a VCH Partnership Publication about its near neighbour, St Anne Soho. Central to Francis’s work is collaboration with contemporary parish churches, the Westminster Archives, and other community organisations, such as the Museum of Soho. The same ethos will be applied to all VCH research across London.   

Over the past 125 years a substantial number of VCH publications have been published about the City and county of London, Essex, Kent, Middlesex and Surrey, including 34 Red Books, a volume specifically focusing on the medieval religious houses in London and Middlesex, and most recently, three short volumes on Westminster parishes. You can access digital versions of several of the Red Books through British History Online and all three shorts can be purchased through the University of London Press website.  

Francis Boorman, VCH London General Editor, said: “Having worked on short books covering single parishes in Westminster for over a decade, I’m really thrilled to be returning VCH work on London to a more ambitious programme that will better reflect the scale and diversity we find in the city, past and present. VCH London will continue to produce the brilliantly detailed research it is known for, while embracing a more varied output and sharing it with a wider audience. I can’t wait to work with more communities in London to explore their history and connect it with that of the wider metropolis.” 

To get in touch with VCH London by emailing Info@victoricountyhistory.ac.uk   

Professor Catherine Clarke, Director of the said VCH at the Institute of Historical Research (IHR), said: “The VCH is growing and evolving, well into its second century, and at a time when understanding our places, their past and their potential future has never been more important. It’s especially exciting to see the innovative and transformative work these four new projects are doing in their communities: creating training and skills opportunities, connecting with the heritage sector, and involving local people in researching the history of the places they care about.” 

All of these new projects have benefited from advice and guidance shared by other local VCH groups and will be supported by the team at the IHR, including co-General Editors Adam Chapman and Ruth Slatter. We look forward to sharing more about each new project over the coming months.  

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