Books in the Through Time series

This fascinating selection of photographs traces some of the many ways in which Sussex has changed and developed over the last century.

The importance of the attractive town of Hexham began when St Wifrid built his great monastery there in the 7th Century, of which only the unique crypt remains beneath the Priory church. It was bounded by a wall that separated it from the Market Place and the civil administration, which includes the Moothall and Old Gaol. These areas still form the nucleus of the town, which lay in the turbulent Border country between England and Scotland. The vital industry of tanning and glove-making has now gone, but there are smaller industries in its place. The town is a focus of music, the arts and sport. The Queen's Hall houses library, cafe, galleries and theatre. It is linked by roads and by the early Carlisle-Newcastle railway which bring in tourists and local people for many activities such as the Hexham Gathering and the Abbey Arts Festival. Much has changed, but the historic centre remains intact. The author has lived here for over 30 years and is an Honorary Steward and Bailiff of the town.

Felixstowe owes its existence to the 19th-century fashion for seaside holidays when the gentry and businessmen chose to build their summer residences in the parishes of Walton and Felixstowe. In earlier centuries Walton had been the more significant settlement, with a manor and a castle. Even the later fort guarding the Suffolk side of Harwich harbour was often considered to be part of Essex. When the Dutch landed on the Common in 1667 and were defeated by Land guard Fort's garrison, all England heard of the place and King Charles II himself paid them a visit. Join Mike Rouse on this fascinating visual journey around this popular and colourful town, as he shows us what affect history has had on the area through time. This new collection of photographs, carefully selected by the author, is sure to surprise and delight residents and visitors alike.

The Manor of Northam dates back to the Norman invasion and is well recorded in the Domesday Book, being part of lands owned by a Saxon Lord called Bristric, and this appears to be the first recorded evidence of what was in the area. There is evidence of prehistoric settlements and much evidence during the Saxon era, when Vikings raided the area. Westward Ho! has its drowned forest and Stone Age kitchen midden hidden beneath the sands, where the sea still exposes deer antlers, flints and ancient pottery. A late Victorian venture with its pier and its palm trees and its grand hotels, it was intended as a holiday resort to challenge Torquay. The surrounding parish, containing about 2700 acres of land, is also included.

From its beginnings as an Anglo-Saxon settlement, through its development as an agricultural centre with all its related trades and services, the market town of Otley has seen many changes. The invention of Otley's world-famous Wharfedale printing machine contributed to the development of Otley's printing and engineering industry. The railway arrived in 1865, terraced houses replaced thatched cottages and unpaved thoroughfares gave way to tarmac. Today, such changes continue. The railway and most of the factories have disappeared but Otley has retained its popular market town character. The medieval bridge, the twelfth-century parish church and the medieval Kirkgate street plan still serve the townspeople. The selection of photographs in this book show the present alongside the intriguing past, taking readers on a trip around the historic streets of Otley.

Devizes is a typical bustling Wiltshire market town. Architecturally the town boasts a variety of buildings spanning almost a thousand years, and over 500 are currently listed. The town, located centrally in the county of Wiltshire, continues to thrive as a commercial hub despite losing the canal to industrial traffic and the railway by the mid-1960s. A range of industries have made Devizes their home, including Brown & May and Wadworth's, and there has been major development in and around town. This series of images - many not published before - has been drawn from the collection housed at the Wiltshire Museum. The museum is also the recipient of all profits made by this book.

Situated within the South Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Dartmouth is a popular tourist destination on the River Dart. As Ginny Campbell's beautifully illustrated pages show, it has an abundance of history. Its port was the sailing point for the Crusades of 1147 and 1190, and the Pilgrim Fathers visited in 1620 to repair the Speedwell. The area boasts many picturesque medieval and Elizabethan buildings, including the Butterwalk, where Charles II once dined, and Dartmouth Castle, which has guarded the mouth of the river for over 600 years. The admiralty began officer training on the river in 1863 and, in June 1944, 485 ships departed from the river carrying American servicemen to Utah Beach for D-Day.

Derby is an exceptional and underrated city. It was an important centre of the Midlands Enlightenment, boasting Dr Erasmus Darwin and John Whitehurst FRS among its eighteenth-century residents. It produced an artist of international repute in Joseph Wright ARA and has been a centre for the production of fine porcelain and fine clocks for almost three centuries. It was a county town for five centuries and was in its Georgian heyday much admired by writers such as Daniel Defoe. Despite the best endeavours of a peculiarly unappreciative and iconoclastic bunch of city fathers over the years, many of its fine Georgian and Regency features have managed to survive. In 90 pairs of photographs ranging from 1765 to the present, Maxwell Craven has attempted to show why it is still a city of which its citizens can be proud and how it has changed, in places out of all recognition.

Richmond upon Thames was the first borough to be known as the 'Queen of the Suburbs', before Ealing or Surbiton were known by this sobriquet. With around 100 parks and green spaces, including Kew Gardens and Richmond Park, as well as fine examples of Tudor, Regency, Georgian and Victorian architecture, Richmond remains a desirable place to live, with a long and interesting history. In Richmond upon Thames Through Time, author Paul Howard Lang hopes to show how Richmond, to a great extent, has retained the 'Queen of the Suburbs' title. Telling the story of Richmond and its environs through a selection of beautiful photographs and postcards, he showcases the many changes that have taken place over time, as well as what has remained the same. This is an essential volume for anybody who is familiar with this attractive, historic town.

This fascinating selection of photographs traces some of the many ways in which the Cambridgeshire Fens have changed and developed over the last century

Wakefield city centre has undergone a complete makeover during the twentieth century, something that still continues today as it tries to come to terms with modern building regulations, commercial and consumer needs, and the requirements of the motorist. Dubbed the 'Merrie City' in the Middle Ages, the city has a long history as a prominent market town and epicentre for the wool trade. Wakefield then developed further in the eighteenth century, thanks to its links with the corn, coal mining and textiles trades. Evidence of the city's intriguing past survives in its iconic buildings and structures, which include Wakefield Cathedral, the old Wakefield Bridge and the listed buildings in the Civic Quarter. Join author Peter Tuffrey as he reveals the bygone scenes and modern views of this historic city and the surrounding area.

Very few buildings that stood in the centre of Plymouth before the War still remain. The city was devastated by enemy bombing especially during 1941. Many of the old, narrow, congested streets were destroyed completely, changing the face of Plymouth forever. After the War, a new modern City Centre was built with first class stores and spacious streets. Vast changes have also occurred in the areas surrounding the centre. Some areas are now totally unrecognizable but often a bit of old wall, post or fence will be exactly the same as it was a hundred years ago making it easier to work out where an old building, factory or farmhouse might have once stood. This book will prove appealing to both people who are interested in the history of the city and also to those who are interested in how the area has changed over the years.

This fascinating selection of photographs shows how Beccles has changed and developed over the last century.

This fascinating selection of photographs traces some of the many ways in which Bournemouth Airport has changed and developed over the last century.

The Manchester Ship Canal was a huge engineering achievement. It included seven swing bridges and the aqueduct at Barton, and helped turn the cotton-producing capital of Great Britain into an inland seaport. This was a feat many at the time believed could not be achieved. One of the wonders of the modern industrial world, the Manchester Ship Canal, with its huge locks and ocean-going vessels, was a magnetic draw for enthusiastic Victorians who marvelled at its construction. This book looks at the changes and development of the Manchester Ship Canal through time, from its origins as a thriving economic hub in the late nineteenth century, to an important retail, leisure and media centre in the early twenty-first century and beyond. Join Steven Dickens as he explores the history of this 36-mile-long inland waterway in the north-west of England, which links Manchester to the Mersey Estuary and the Irish Sea.

This fascinating selection of photographs traces some of the many ways in which Liverpool has changed and developed over the last century.

In ad 78/80 the Romans under Agricola established a base near the Solway Firth and called it Luguvalium. From that distant beginning it grew to become England's largest city, stretching to Scotland in the north, the Solway Firth in the west, the north Pennines in the east, and almost to the Lake District in the south. At Cold Fell (2014 feet) it has the largest point of any English city. Carlisle played an important part in being at the centre of the border troubles, and it was the last place in England to know peace. This lavishly illustrated book shows the extraordinary changes that have taken place in this fair city down the centuries and provides a striking account of the changes that have altered Carlisle's appearance. The book acknowledges the transformation that has taken place in Carlisle and celebrates the character and energy of the local people as they move confidently into the twenty-first century.

Widnes is an industrial town within the borough of Halton, in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, with an urban area population of 57,663 in 2004. It is located on the northern bank of the River Mersey where the estuary narrows to form Runcorn Gap. Directly to the south of Widnes across the Mersey is the town of Runcorn. Upstream and 8 miles to the east of Widnes is the town of Warrington, and downstream 16 miles to the west is the city of Liverpool. Historically part of Lancashire, prior to the Industrial Revolution Widnes consisted of a small number of separate settlements on land which was mainly marsh or moorland. In 1847 the first chemical factory was established and the town rapidly became a major centre of the chemical industry. Widnes continues to be a major manufacturer of chemicals and there has been a degree of diversification of the town's industries. Widnes lies on the southern route of the Liverpool to Manchester railway line. The Sankey Canal (now disused) terminates in an area of Widnes known as Spike Island.

Battersea has grown to be a fashionable and vibrant district of south-west London. Referred to as Patricesy in the Domesday Book, Battersea was historically best known for market gardening, providing fruit, vegetables and flowers for the City of London. However, the area moved from rural to urban with the coming of the railways, industry and large-scale housing from the 1840s, provoking a population growth from 4,000 to 120,000 by the beginning of the twentieth century. Glimpses of the past can still be seen around modern Battersea, but much has changed over the years. Using a selection of old and new photographs, local historians Simon McNeill-Ritchie and Ron Elam trace Battersea's unique journey over the past century. Featuring landmarks such as Battersea Power Station, Battersea Dogs & Cats Home and Battersea Park, this book is essential reading for anyone who knows and loves this famous South London district.

Chatham has had an association with the Royal Navy since Elizabethan times, moving to its current site in 1622. It provided the facilities to build, repair, maintain and supply ships. In the mid-nineteenth century, work began on expanding the dockyard into St Mary's Island, where three huge basins and five new docks were constructed, almost quadrupling its size, in order to support twentieth-century vessels. Work then commenced on a new home for Royal Navy seamen. The new barracks, HMS Pembroke, opened in 1903 providing accommodation for 5,000 officers and ratings for the following eighty years. The dockyard and barracks finally closed in 1984 and the Royal Navy bid farewell to Chatham. However, its legacy remains and its many historic dockyard and barrack buildings provide a warm welcome for residents and visitors alike.