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A second and very large collection of Patent documents,
some relating to Coventry & Warwickshire companies is also available
for purchase, individually or as a complete collection. Click
here
for full details. December 2007
A large number of Birmingham Patents are available for purchase. To
see the complete list of documents click on the link
here
or in the column on the left. Please contact the seller direct for
further information. December 2007
Newsletter 29, Dec 2007 added to the web site. December 2007
The
University of Oxford - Continuing
Education. The department is running a course titled An
Introduction to Industrial Architecture on Thursday afternoons,
in Oxford, from the 17th April to 26th June 2008. Course fee
is £85. For full details click
here. November 2007
David Bright presented a splendid illustrated talk on the Mill &
Engine House at Warwick Castle at the November meeting. He is
extremely enthusiastic about his subject and has been involved with
the restoration from the very beginning.
November 2007
Martin Green, WIAS Chairman, announced that he
hopes to have filled the positions of Treasurer and Membership
Secretary in the very near future. November 2007
WIAS
Programme 2007/2008. The full programme of speakers through to
July 2008 is now available on the Programme
page. October 2007
Railways Remembered 2007/2008. Rob Foxon's marvellous archive
film shows continue to entertain enthusiasts with a variety of ever
changing topics. A new page has been added, with a link on the left
hand menu list, showing the programme for 2007/2008. There are local
venues at Rugby & Leamington Spa but if you can't get to those there
are plenty of others to visit. Click
here to see the list.
September 2007

'Windows on Warwickshire'. Have you visited this superb web site
yet? It contains hundreds of photo's of Warwickshire locations, some
as far back as the 1800's. There are some particularly good street
scenes of locations that have long since vanished. Try searching
with a place name or an industry name, for example, for some
surprising results. Click
here to visit the site. September 2007
Newsletter 28, September 2007 now available on the web
site. September 2007
2007/2008. Details of the new seasons meetings, until Christmas,
have now been added to the web site. Please note there is a change
to the original published programme. Meetings now take place in the
Pyne Room at Warwick School and for those who did not attend the
meetings at the end of the last season, this is a short walk from
the Sixth Form Centre, continuing in a westerly direction from the
Junior School car Park. In addition a form has been sent to all
members to try and update the membership database. At the AGM, Mark
Abbott ended his period as members' secretary and in the absence of
volunteers, the Chairman has taken over responsibility - hopefully
on a temporary basis! The Treasurer's post is also still vacant.
Martin Green, WIAS Chairman, September 2007
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The society is currently
seeking
1) TREASURER
2) MEMBERSHIP
SECRETARY
Please email us at WIAS for
further information

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Ice
House found in North Warwickshire. An email was received at WIAS
earlier this year from Kevin Wright of Grendon and will
interest members. Click here to
read the full story. July 2007
The
final meeting of the season included the AGM with a report from
the Chairman and Treasurer on the state of the society. Overall it
is very
healthy. Numbers at meetings have been up on previous years, on some
nights in excess of 60, and the
bank balance is well into the black! The society has outgrown the
6th Form Centre and meetings will continue to be held in The Pyne Room
for the foreseeable future. The committee announced they
are all prepared to continue for another year, with the exception of
Mark Abbott, who has carried out the joint role of Membership
Secretary & Treasurer for a long time. The Chairman thanked Mark for
the excellent work he has done. It is nice to know that Mark will be
continuing in his third role as Newsletter producer/editor. After
refreshments the evening concluded with two excellent slide shows,
the first by Richard King on some of the rather more obscure Warwickshire
sights of interest, and
the second by Martin Green on the IA of North Warwickshire.
There was also a short but very interesting film on the life and
work of Thomas Telford. July 2007
Lancaster Bomber B1 PA474. In October 2006 one of the two
remaining flying Lancaster's in the world underwent a full overhaul
at Coventry. Click here to see some
photographs. July 2007
Newsletter 27, the June Newsletter is now available on line.
Click here. The programme for
the remainder of 2007 is also available, click
here. July 2007
BBC
Country File, presented by John Craven and others, are
recording a feature on the canals in South Warwickshire to be shown
later this Summer. The programme is normally shown on a
Sunday, around lunchtime. Keep an eye open for the possible
appearance of a well know WIAS member! More information when
available. June 2007
Well done to all those members who managed to attend the
June meeting! In particular, a big thanks to the two speakers who
travelled - (or paddled!), from Kidderminster to give the second
part of their extremely interesting talk on the carpet industry.
Torrential rain fell from about 6.30pm in the evening and Warwick
town centre and the surrounding area came to a standstill. The short
journey from Leamington to the meeting took some members well over
an hour! Despite the terrible conditions we still managed to
muster about 40 members. June 2007
The
Coventry Model Engineering Society has been is existence, in one
form or another, since the early 1900's. Over the years the CMES
members have built and operated three railways for live steam
operation. The first was at the Memorial Park, Coventry from 1952
until 1980. Many WIAS members will no doubt remember the track close
to the Kenilworth Road. From 1981 the society operated a track at
Stoneleigh Abbey and when that site was sold for development it
moved to its present home at Ryton Country Park near Ryton on
Dunsmore. This is undoubtedly the biggest and best yet. The CMES has
splendid new website - click
here to
pay a visit. May 2007
George Singer & Coundon Court - a new page has been
added to the site following a recent visit by WIAS members to his
former home in Coventry. The visit included a splendid guided tour
by Richard Hoare, a former teacher at Coundon Court School for over
30 years.
Click here. May 2007

George Singer
Narrow Boat - this excellent series, screened on
Sky Television, is now available on DVD. Series 1 featured the
restoration of the large Woolwich motorboat 'Dover'. The DVD can be
ordered direct from the production company at
www.i2itelevision.com.
Visit their website and you will see a link to the appropriate
section. The company has also produced many other interesting DVD's. For more information contact:
Sam Green,
Series Producer/Director,
'Narrow Boat' & 'Narrow Boat Afloat',
i2i Television, PO Box
147,
Malvern, Worcestershire,
WR13 6YP, Tel: 01684 541 885
April 2007
Newsletter 26 now available on the web site. April 2007
Railways Remembered Archive Film Shows presented by
Rob Foxon. The full diary of venues for 2007 is now available.
Remember there will be a double bill at The Spa Centre, Leamington
Spa on Tuesday 1st May 2007. Bygone Britain in the afternoon and
Railways in the evening. March 2007
For full details and
timings click here
The Kenilworth Society has two interesting open
meetings in March and April to which all WIAS members are invited.
The first is an illustrated talk at Kenilworth Library on the 29th
March 2007 on the Grand Canal of China - The Grand Canal of China
is the longest canal in the world, far surpassing the next two grand
canals of the world: Suez and Panama Canal. It is 1,114 miles long
with 24 locks and some 60 bridges. The building of it began in 486
B.C. making it the world's oldest canal.
The second is on Sunday 29th April 2007
when there will be a guided tour of Coundon Court, Coventry, the
former home of George Singer, the Coventry car maker - Coundon
Court in Northbrook Road, Coundon was built in 1891 to the design of
Charles Gray-Hill for George Singer, founder of the Singer Cycle and
Motor Car Company. It is now part of Coundon Court School. March
2007
For full details and timings etc click here.
Following a 'crash' at the company that hosts our web site it may
have appeared to look a little out of date recently. When they
restored it from their backup the latest version they had was from
January 2007. It is very unusual for this to happen. All is now back
to normal and by way of an apology we have been
given an extra months free hosting. March 2007
Happy to
New Year to all WIAS members. The December 2006 Newsletter is now
available on the web site together with dates and topics for
meetings in 2007. Jan 2007
Rob Foxon's
Railways Remembered Archive Film Shows. Local dates added to
Programme page and full list of venues for 2006/2007 available.
Click here. Nov
2006
A new page
added with a few photo's connected with the Birmingham Pen Makers.
Oct
2006
The
following email may be of interest to members:
Dear Everyone!
As you may recall last year, i2i Television produced Discovery Real
Time's
highest rating series, of 2005, 'Narrow Boat', which followed the
restoration of a 1937 ex working narrow boat, the 'DOVER.'
Due to its success, we were commissioned to make a follow up series,
where
our presenter, Alan Herd, took the Dover down its old route, from
Birmingham
to London, on the Grand Union Canal.
Finally, after a long production period, I can release the
transmission
times for the new series. The series will be transmitted from
Wednesday 1st
November, where there will be a double bill of
'Narrow Boat Afloat' from 10pm, on Discovery Real Time. Two
episodes of the
ten part series will be shown on subsequent Wednesdays over the
following
weeks.
I hope you enjoy the second series, as much as we enjoyed making
it! It was
a great summer!
Best Wishes
Sam Green
Series Producer - 'Narrow Boat Afloat'
i2i Ltd,
PO Box 147,Malvern, Worcestershire,WR13 6YP.
Oct 2006
The
September Newsletter has been added to the website. Sept 2006
Subscriptions of £10 per person/couple for the 2006/2007 year are
now due. Please pay the treasurer at the September meeting or
forward a cheque payable to 'Warwickshire Industrial Archaeology
Society' to his address which can be found on the 'Contact Us' page.
Sept 2006
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Update - Chedham's Yard was the overall winner! Sept 2006
Chedham's Yard, Wellesbourne is one of the contenders in the
2006 BBC Restoration Series. When William 'Bill' Chedham
lay down his tools at the end of his final day of work, closed the
door and walked away from Chedham's Yard he left behind him a
perfectly preserved portrait of the life and working conditions of a
professional wheelwright and blacksmith. To read all about this
and the others locations in the 2006 series click
here. Aug 2006 |
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The AGM took place on Thursday 13th July 2006, the final meeting of
the season. Accounts showing a healthy balance were presented and
adopted by the members and the current committee, all agreeing to
continue in office for another 12 months, and were duly re-elected.
Mark Abbott our long serving treasurer would very much welcome an
offer of assistance with a view to eventually handing over the
job, which he done since 1989, in the future. After the refreshments
there were slides, power point presentations and a DVD, mostly
featuring aspects of IA in North Warwickshire and one from New
Zealand. The meeting generally felt that North Warwickshire had been
neglected by the society to a certain extent. There is a lot of IA
up there waiting to be discovered, recorded and photographed and
hopefully this short session acted as a taster. Perhaps now is the
time to get out there with the camera during the long summer break ?
July 2006
2 new pages added with photo's of Atherstone and some shots of
Friese-Green's former premises in Bath. July 2006
New images from Atherstone added to the photo
gallery. June 2006
June 2006 Newsletter now available on line. Remainder of 2006
programme added. June 2006
Richard & Peter apologise in advance for the lack of a sales table
at the June meeting. They hope to be present at the July meeting.
June 2006
If you have not already had a look, visit the Windows On
Warwickshire web site. There are hundreds of photographs in various
categories of Warwickshire towns villages and countryside. Many of the photo's are of
interest to I.A. enthusiasts, for example in the Kenilworth section
there are shots of the old gas works, the factory in Moorlands
Avenue, and some great street scenes from the turn of the century. To visit the site click
here. May 2006
The Open Road is a series of films made in 1924-26 by Claude Friese-Greene
using an early colour process partly developed by his father William
Friese-Greene and which his son Claude perfected. The film traces a
journey by car from Land's End to John O'Groats and offers an
extraordinary vision of Britain in the 1920s in colour. Currently
showing on BBC2 the film was released on DVD on the 3rd May 2006. To see
the location of Friese-Green's studio in Bath click here. May 2006
Visit the Warwickshire Communities Web Site and learn about the
exciting projects they are developing. Click here. April 2006
Roger Cleal is looking for a web site on Royal Mail Post Boxes and
has sent this interesting photo of a motorcycle and mail box, possibly
taken in India between 1900 and 1914. A search on Google will produce
many results, but if anyone knows of a really good site please contact
Roger direct at the next meeting or at Roger Cleal. April 2006
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Jeromy Hassell -White and Poppe, was the subject of the March
meeting. Over 50 in the audience enjoyed a very professional talk and
slide show from someone who said 'he didn't give talks !' Coupled
with the maps showing the vast scale of the operation on their site to
the north of Coventry City Centre, the slides, and short film of a Royal
visit to the factory, the members were told an extremely interesting
story including how White and Poppe slipped easily from the
development and manufacturing of engines into munitions as WWI
approached. Let's hope for a return visit from Jeromy in the future.
Pictures of the remaining Lockhurst Lane buildings, presently being
re-furbished, on the right. |

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Unknown to most people, the former
Coventry City Police Force had a brick built Police Box built on the
wall outside the factory. (Most boxes were of the wooden Dr Who
'Tardis' type and were removed around 1967 following the
introduction of the first personal radios. Amazingly this box still
exists complete with its flap which used to house the public phone
for emergency use. The building now contains electrical equipment.
March 2006 |
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Roger Cleal has discovered MAGIC! MAGIC is the first web-based
interactive map to bring together information on key environmental
schemes and designations in one place. MAGIC is a partnership project
involving eight government organisations who have responsibilities for
rural policy-making and management, and although it has been designed to
meet the needs of the partner organisations, the facility is available
to anyone over the Internet. Click
here
to have a look at somewhere you know in detail. March 2006
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Newsletter No.22 is now available on the web site, remember you can
read it on line or download it and save it on your own PC. This
issue contains a fascinating article by Peter Chater on the history
of Harbury Windmill near Leamington Spa. Click
here to go direct to
the newsletter, the article is on page 3, or click on the image to
see a larger version. March 2006 |
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Members enjoyed a splendid illustrated talk at the February meeting. The
topic was Emscote Mill, remembered locally by many from its final
use as a manufacturing plant by Shire Pies. Although the buildings were
there for many years not everyone realised they had originally been
built as a mill alongside the canal near the site occupied by the new
Tesco. A well attended meeting with 50 plus members and visitors
present. February 2006
Toby Cave has discovered an interesting item on the world wide
web. The site features The Craig Telescope. 'In 1852 a
telescope stood on Wandsworth Common in London. It was the brain child
of one man, the Reverend Mr. John Craig of Leamington Spa and it
represented the biggest refracting telescope in the World at the time.' Click
here to read all about it. February 2006
As a result of the January meeting we all now know a lot more about
Thomas Brassey thanks to an excellent talk by member Roger Cragg. An
interesting 'short' item on Spanish manhole covers followed the
refreshment break! Chairman Martin Green mentioned at the meeting that
members have a vast store of information on a wide variety of topics and
are always welcome to give a talk at our monthly meeting. Just let
Martin or Mark know. January 2006
The web site has had a minor New Year makeover including, an improved
title banner and hyperlinks that now subtly change colour when you hover
over them. A photo gallery is under construction and older items of news
can now be found in the news archive. There are new links
under the Information Pages heading on the left of the screen. January 2006
Peter Coulls sponsors the first Talyllyn Railway item to be saved for
the Narrow Gauge Railway Museum, one of the original slate wagons of
1865 (TR001). This is in memory of TOM CHARMAN, a true enthusiast, from
his many friends in the Warwickshire Steam Engine Society and the
Warwickshire Industrial Archaeological Society. Click
here to visit the NGRM web site. December 2005
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Newsletter No.21 now available to read or download and save.
See Peter Chater's discovery of a cob wall in Claverdon on
Page 2.
December 2005 |
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The Industrial Railway Society has recently published 'Industrial
Railways and Locomotives of Warwickshire' Preliminary Draft
ISBN 1 910556 30 1 140 pages of text + four pages of maps, (no photos),
£9.00 (soft cover). This has much of interest within, but could do with
the input of WIAS members on certain aspects of things such as the
cement industry.
Anthony Coulls, Collections Care Manager, Locomotion - the National
Railway Museum at Shildon, Shildon, Co. Durham, DL4 1LD. Tel. 01388
771446. Fax. 01388 771448.
acoulls@sedgefield.gov.uk November 2005
At the October meeting our chairman Martin mentioned a new web site
featuring Birmingham's history. It is extremely interesting and well
worth visiting. Click on this link to go straight to it.
Made In Birmingham. Another site of particular interest to us
locally is to be found at
Pioneers of the Machine Tool Industry. Well worth visiting.
October 2005
We are now members of the Industrial Archaeology and History Web Site
Ring. At present there are 102 members of this ring of sites and you
can travel from one to another in sequence or just select a random site
and see what you get. They are all vetted, including our own, and follow
an I.A. theme. Use the box at the bottom of the home
page to get started and pay some visits. October 2005
Members are reminded that subscriptions for the 2005/2006
season are now due. Provisionally, and subject to agreement by the
membership at the September 2005 meeting, the amount payable will remain
as for the last season: £10.00 per person or couple with an additional
meeting payment of £1.00 per person to help cover refreshment expenses.
Payment should preferably be made at a meeting, but payments by post are
acceptable Please note that receipts for postal payments will not be
sent out, but instead will be available for collection at a subsequent
meeting. Cheques should be made payable to Warwickshire Industrial
Archaeology Society please. September 2005
Programme to March 2006 and Newsletter No. 20 now available.
September 2005
Rob Foxons
Railways Remembered Archive Film Shows. Full Autumn - Winter 2005
programme now available - see the Programme
page. August 2005
The last
meeting before the summer break ended with an interesting talk on
Milestones in Warwickshire and further afield, a fascinating subject. On
the way home from that meeting I checked to see if the one in the wall
at Coventry Rd and Tainters Hill, Kenilworth was still there. It's gone
and it's place is neatly filled in with two sandstone blocks. Anyone
know where it is ?? This was presumably next in the link to the one
at Gibbet Hill crossroads and the other, near the Memorial Park,
Coventry which prompted some discussion at the meeting. July 2005
During the
summer you may feel inclined to take some IA photo's on your
travels - why not send them to the web site to share with members. email
to:
webmaster@warwickshireias.org July 2005
New
page added with some shots by Derek Billings of Kenilworth Station in
the 1970's. July 2005
Thanks to
everyone who helped make the June AGM meeting a success.
All members of
the WIAS committee were happy to continue and were re-elected for the
coming year. Chairman Martin Green thanked those who attended meetings
commenting 'you are the society'. The society accounts were not
available on the night but the chairman reported from extracts that the
finances were in good shape. Slides and talks completed
the evening following the conclusion of the official business. Members
particularly enjoyed the free beer supplied by Jane from her micro
brewery at Church Lawford and the nibbles that accompanied it. (Coffee
sales seemed very low for some strange reason!). Belated
birthday greetings to our chairman Martin ! June 2005
The June
edition of the Newsletter, No.19, is available on line from the
Newsletters page and the programme to December 2005 has now been
added. June 2005
On the 17th
May 2005 the Corris Railway Society took delivery of its brand new
narrow gauge steam loco Tattoo. Click
here to see the
photo's. Tattoo has been built from scratch to the original design of
the Corris No.4 Kerr Stuart, (now Talyllyn Rly No.4, Edward Thomas). May 2005.
At the May
meeting Peter Cross-Rudkin gave an excellent talk with slides
illustrations entitled 'William James - Father of the
Railways'. To learn more about this extremely interesting local man
visit the web site dedicated to him. Click
here.
May 2005.
Change
of date. The AGM will now take place at the June 2005 meeting and
there will a number of talks by members. If you wish to contribute,
stand for election or become more involved in any way please
contact
us. April
2005.
A new booklet called Kenilworth's Last Brickworks
is now available. This look at Cherry Orchard Brickworks, in photographs, has been
compiled by WIAS member Derek Billings. Price to members
is £2.50, (normal price £3.50 + postage). For more information click
here.
April 2005.
The more recent newsletters are in Adobe Format, go to the Newsletter
Page right click on the
link to a newsletter and chose the 'save target as' option
to download the newsletter quickly to your computer. You can then view
it at any time without going on line. Feb 2005.
Subterranea
Britannica the web site devoted to the study of 'Man Made &
Man Used Underground Places!', has a recently added a new article concerning
the old Newbold Tunnel on the Oxford Canal.
Click on this link to learn more
www.subbrit.org.uk - Mark W Abbott.
Feb 2005.
2005 Cruising Programme for the steam narrow boat
'President'
is now available, click
here
to see the proposed venues. Feb 2005.
Following
the recent talk on Birmingham Glass Making, why not buy yourself a copy
of Dr Michael Hodder's excellent new book 'Birmingham
The Hidden History'.
Roger Cragg
presents an illustrated talk at the Cambrian Society, Coventry on 11th
February. See the programme page for full details. Jan 2005.
Newsletter
17, Dec 2004, has been added to the site. Dec 2004.
Mark Abbott's excellent production is now
displayed in Adobe Format. The
advantage is that it looks just like the paper version we are familiar
with - the disadvantage is that with a dial up internet connection it
takes a while to open as the file size is quite hefty. Just sit back and
be patient and it will appear. Most PC's have
Adobe Reader installed and you should be able to read it
without problem. If you do not have it, visit
www.adobe.co.uk or click on the
icon below and download the free version. Please leave any
comments in the visitors book! Dec 2004.
The
November meeting was an illustrated talk by John Boynton of
Kidderminster, based largely on his recent book,
'The London &
Birmingham Railway between Birmingham and Coventry'. If you did
not buy a copy on the night you missed a bargain! It is extremely well
written with excellent photographs. If you would like a copy for £10
plus p&p please email
the webmaster for details. Dec 2004.
After an
excellent talk, (and tasting), on Warwickshire Cheese Making at the
October meeting, click
here
to visit the Fowlers of Earlswood Cheese Makers web site. Oct 2004.
Newsletter
16, Sept 2004 now available on line in its traditional format.
First
Autumn Season meeting is on Thursday 9th September 2004. We look forward
to seeing all members and visitors and hope you had a pleasant summer
break.
The second series of 'Restoration' has been won by The Old
Grammar School at Kings Norton Village, Birmingham. I used to to pass it
daily for many years and it's well worth a visit. To visit the BBC
'Restoration' web site and learn more click on the logo above..
Following a
tip off from Toby Cave at the AGM, we have discovered an interesting web
site that gives much information about the explosion and disaster at
Baddesley Pit, North Warwickshire in 1882. It was the worst in its
history, 32 men lost their lives. Click
here to visit the site.
Newsletter
15, June 2004 now available on line in its traditional format.
Tie Plates A home is needed for an
unusual item of IA ? Click here to
learn more!
Visit the
updated Sales Table for a range of
items.
After
WEEDON! Further to the excellent meeting on Thursday 13th May, members
may like to visit a web site called
'Subterranea
Britannica.' This site is devoted to the study of 'Man Made & Man
Used Underground Places!'. It has an excellent page on
The Royal Ordnance Depot, Weedon with many photographs, entries on
numerous underground Military and Civilian Sites and a splendid
affiliated site on closed railway stations. Thanks to prospective member
Roger Cleal, a former R.O.C. member for supplying this information.
Why not
visit the Ordnance
Survey web site and see the latest maps of the UK. You can also call
up old maps
mainly from the 1880's, very handy when looking for IA sites.
Don't miss
the CVRTC Heritage Classic Commercial Motor Show at Gaydon, Sat & Sun
12th & 13th June.
The Spring
programme for 2004 has now been arranged, details on the
programme page and
Newsletter 13, December 2003 has been added.
The
Cherry Orchard Brickworks site, Kenilworth, is about to be
re-developed for homes. Richard Storey & Peter Riley took a final look
round. Click here to read more
and see some photos of what's left.
The Sites &
Monuments Record for Warwickshire is now on line. It includes over 9000
historic finds across the county and about 2000 images. Visit the site:
www.warwickshire.gov.uk/timetrail

Visit the
Odibourne
Press Web Site for local history publications on the Kenilworth
area.
Newsletters
8, 9, 10, 11, 12 available now, more pictures will follow in due
course.
The speaker
at the September meeting was Dr Mike Hodder, Planning Archaeologist from
the Conservation Group at Birmingham City Council. During his talk he
recommended a visit to their web site, it is full of interesting
information on the work they have carried out in Birmingham. Click on
the link below to pay a visit.
The BBC
Restoration series has finished with viewers voting in the final for
Victoria Baths, Manchester. To see more of the series and all of the
buildings featured, follow the link below to the BBC Restoration web
site.

The BBCi
History site is full of information some of which is of I.A. interest.
If you missed a particular radio programme you can play it at any time
via the web site. Use the link below.
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