Mrs Caudle first appeared as a character in Punch magazine in 1845. She was portrayed as the archetypal nagging wife, always telling her husband off for something. The West Kent Guardian reveals the real Mrs Caudle This article from the West Kent Guardian reveals that the real-life Mrs Caudle was also a woman not to be messed with. The newspaper published the following court report on Saturday 26 July 1845. West Kent Guardian – Saturday 26 July …
London
We’re pleased to report that The British Newspaper Archive added an extra 240,000 newspaper pages in June, so you’ve got plenty of new stories to explore this month. Search the newspapers New title: London’s Illustrated Times The additions include a brand new title, the Illustrated Times. Published in London, the newspaper reported on local, national and international news. Each edition featured a number of beautiful images, like the one shown below. More newspapers to search from 1752-1954 …
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Historical newspapers are full of reports about local criminal trials. These are a great resource for both historical research and genealogy. Not only can you track the sorts of crimes that were being committed and how people were punished, you might also find your ancestors’ names mentioned. Search local court reports The Morning Post and the long-haired Londoner Court reports can often make for rather amusing reading, containing the actual words, excuses, and explanations of the people involved. We’ve …
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You could win one of these fascinating history books on our Facebook page this week: How to enter Comment on our Facebook post to let us know which book you’d like to win before 23:59 (GMT) on Monday 23 June 2014. We’ll contact three lucky winners the following day. What you could win Alex Daley, Fighting Men of London: Voices from Inside the Ropes Gill Hoffs, The Sinking of RMS Tayleur: The Lost Story of the Victorian …
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‘Give us also the right to our existence’ At Bow Street in London on 16 November 1928, Miss Radclyffe Hall’s novel, ‘The Well of Loneliness’, found itself in the dock on a charge of obscenity. The powers-that-be had decided that they did not like the novel’s ‘unnatural offences’ – hence the decision to prosecute. The magistrate eventually decided that the book was obscene and ordered that it be destroyed. Here is a newspaper story that reports on this famous literary …
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On 4 November 1890, the Prince of Wales opened the world’s first electric underground railway at the King William Street Terminus in London. The line ran from King William Street to Stockwell and, after its inauguration on 4 November 1890, it opened to the public the following month. Here is a contemporary newspaper story that reports on the grand opening. Register today!
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Annie Oakley (aka Phoebe Ann Moses), the sharpshooter who found fame in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show, died in North Star, Ohio, on 3 November 1926 – she was 66. Oakley was a champion rifle, wing, and trick shot. She received international fame. On one occasion, when Annie was in London, ‘five monarchs were present, and one of them, a man who was afterwards to rule as Wilhelm II of Germany, expressed a desire to have the ash removed from …
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‘Errand boy who became a millionaire’ Sir Thomas Johnstone Lipton, the Glasgow-born self-made man who worked himself up from errand boy to become a millionaire, died in London on 2 October 1931 – he was 81. Below is a newspaper report (published the day after his death) that offers an overview of Lipton’s amazing life and achievements. This image of Sir Lipton, shows him in the uniform of the City Lieutenancy. Discover more about Sir Lipton …