Stan Hirst

A lot of Sheffield water originates from Redmires Reservoir, which was built in the 1830’s.  Iron ore pipes were laid in the streets and lead pipes connected to houses.  There were also lead-lined cisterns. Sinclair White, in 1886, drew the authorities’ attention to the fact that lead poisoning was more prevalent from houses supplied by … Read more

Another interesting talk from Dr Dunkley

The West Stockwith basin at the River Trent end of the canal. John attended Sheffield University and became a chartered civil engineer.  In 1981 he became involved with the Chesterfield Canal Trust, a registered charity with many volunteers. The Past:  The canal was built in 1777.  James Brindley being the engineer.  It was a magnificent … Read more

Comedy – Cinema’s first Genre?  By Martin Carter. Martin briefly covered: The first 30 years of cinema How comedy became a popular genre The early actors and stars In 1895 at the Grand Cafe, Paris, Auguste and Louis Lumiere were the first to set up and show films.  They were billed as “life as it … Read more

Collingwood was born in Newcastle in 1748. He was named Cuthbert after the saint from Holy Island. His father was a Newcastle trader and not a wealthy man. He began his naval career at the age of twelve on HMS Shannon under the command of his uncle Richard Braithwaite. After five years he became a … Read more

Neil worked in the publicity department of the town hall, and on the 70th anniversary of the Sheffield blitz, decided to write a book filled with recollections of the blitz from people who lived through it. The reason for the blitz was to wipe out the armaments factories of the East end but the bombs … Read more