Hull History Centre
Encyclopedia
The Hull History Centre is an archive and local studies library that houses the combined collections of both the Hull City Council
and Hull University
archives and local studies resources. This collaboration between Hull City Council
, Hull University
, and the Heritage Lottery Fund
made Hull the first city in the UK to unite local authority and university collections under one roof.
, the Local Studies Library, and the Hull City Archives. The partnership that led to the purpose-built history centre in Hull began nearly ten years ago, springing out of a desire to provide greater accessibility to, and better preservation facilities for, the archives. Plans began to develop between Hull City Council
and the University of Hull
, and ultimately the Heritage Lottery Fund
made the dream a reality by providing the Hull History Centre with a £7.7 million grant, the largest ever lottery grant for a UK archive project. Building for the centre began in late 2007 and on 25 January 2010, the Hull History Centre was finally opened to the public.
The building itself was designed by architectural firm Pringle Richards Sharratt
with the goals of providing a highly accessible and visible structure, as well as a focus of local pride. The design of the upper floor features an environmentally controlled repository while the ground level features public spaces adjoined by a linear arcade overlooking a new park.
and the University of Hull
, along with other various local studies resources. The collections include the standard books, volumes, and documents, as well as maps, paintings, pamphlets, photos, and film. If lined up end to end, the History Centre's collections would cross the local 2,220 metre long Humber Bridge
four times.
The University Collections are made up of about 750,000 documents consisting of around 200 organizations, individuals, and families. The range includes:
The City Council Collections are made up of various records and documents of the city. The range includes documents relating to:
The Local Studies Collections are made up of approximately 150,000 items including books, printed items, large amounts of pamphlets and other material on vaious topics relating to Hull and the East Riding of Yorkshire. The range includes:
The History Centre also allows customers to view documents directly in the climate controlled searchroom. In order to view documents, customers must provide a County Archive Research Network (CARN) ticket. To obtain a CARN ticket, customers must bring a valid form of identification with their name and address. There is no charge to obtain a CARN ticket.
Customers can also borrow select items from the loan stock using a Hull Libraries library card.
Family events include storytelling, drama, arts and crafts, or other activities inspired by the archives of the History Centre. The adult learning courses offered vary from one day classes to five week courses, and explore family and local history. The centre's Education Officer works with local schools to create a programme of skills-based sessions that complement the national curriculum.
Additionally, the Hull History Centre offers venue hire, photocopying services, and help and advice from a specialist staff. The Centre is also equipped with full conservation and preservation facilities and services for the collections in its care.
and City Hall
. There is a small amount of parking, including disabled spaces, available in the adjoining pay and display car park.
Hull City Council
Hull City Council is the governing body for the unitary authority and city of Kingston upon Hull. It was created in 1972 as the successor to the Corporation of Hull, which was also known as Hull Corporation....
and Hull University
University of Hull
The University of Hull, known informally as Hull University, is an English university, founded in 1927, located in Hull, a city in the East Riding of Yorkshire...
archives and local studies resources. This collaboration between Hull City Council
Hull City Council
Hull City Council is the governing body for the unitary authority and city of Kingston upon Hull. It was created in 1972 as the successor to the Corporation of Hull, which was also known as Hull Corporation....
, Hull University
University of Hull
The University of Hull, known informally as Hull University, is an English university, founded in 1927, located in Hull, a city in the East Riding of Yorkshire...
, and the Heritage Lottery Fund
Heritage Lottery Fund
The Heritage Lottery Fund is a fund established in the United Kingdom under the National Lottery etc. Act 1993. The Fund opened for applications in 1994. It uses money raised through the National Lottery to transform and sustain the UK’s heritage...
made Hull the first city in the UK to unite local authority and university collections under one roof.
Background
Before the creation of the Hull History Centre, Hull's archives were kept at three separate repositories: the University of HullUniversity of Hull
The University of Hull, known informally as Hull University, is an English university, founded in 1927, located in Hull, a city in the East Riding of Yorkshire...
, the Local Studies Library, and the Hull City Archives. The partnership that led to the purpose-built history centre in Hull began nearly ten years ago, springing out of a desire to provide greater accessibility to, and better preservation facilities for, the archives. Plans began to develop between Hull City Council
Hull City Council
Hull City Council is the governing body for the unitary authority and city of Kingston upon Hull. It was created in 1972 as the successor to the Corporation of Hull, which was also known as Hull Corporation....
and the University of Hull
University of Hull
The University of Hull, known informally as Hull University, is an English university, founded in 1927, located in Hull, a city in the East Riding of Yorkshire...
, and ultimately the Heritage Lottery Fund
Heritage Lottery Fund
The Heritage Lottery Fund is a fund established in the United Kingdom under the National Lottery etc. Act 1993. The Fund opened for applications in 1994. It uses money raised through the National Lottery to transform and sustain the UK’s heritage...
made the dream a reality by providing the Hull History Centre with a £7.7 million grant, the largest ever lottery grant for a UK archive project. Building for the centre began in late 2007 and on 25 January 2010, the Hull History Centre was finally opened to the public.
The building itself was designed by architectural firm Pringle Richards Sharratt
Pringle Richards Sharratt
Pringle Richards Sharratt is an architectural firm that was formed in 1996 by John Pringle [b. 1951], Penny Richards [b.1950] and Ian Sharratt [b.1948]. Based in London, the practice has worked on public buildings, art galleries, museums, libraries, archives, university and transport buildings...
with the goals of providing a highly accessible and visible structure, as well as a focus of local pride. The design of the upper floor features an environmentally controlled repository while the ground level features public spaces adjoined by a linear arcade overlooking a new park.
Collections
The Hull History Centre houses the combined archives of Hull City CouncilHull City Council
Hull City Council is the governing body for the unitary authority and city of Kingston upon Hull. It was created in 1972 as the successor to the Corporation of Hull, which was also known as Hull Corporation....
and the University of Hull
University of Hull
The University of Hull, known informally as Hull University, is an English university, founded in 1927, located in Hull, a city in the East Riding of Yorkshire...
, along with other various local studies resources. The collections include the standard books, volumes, and documents, as well as maps, paintings, pamphlets, photos, and film. If lined up end to end, the History Centre's collections would cross the local 2,220 metre long Humber Bridge
Humber Bridge
The Humber Bridge, near Kingston upon Hull, England, is a 2,220 m single-span suspension bridge, which opened to traffic on 24 June 1981. It is the fifth-largest of its type in the world...
four times.
University Collections
The University Collections are made up of about 750,000 documents consisting of around 200 organizations, individuals, and families. The range includes:
- Pressure group records: including LibertyLiberty (pressure group)Liberty is a pressure group based in the United Kingdom. Its formal name is the National Council for Civil Liberties . Founded in 1934 by Ronald Kidd and Sylvia Crowther-Smith , the group campaigns to protect civil liberties and promote human rights...
(formerly The National Council for Civil Liberties), Union of Democratic ControlUnion of Democratic ControlThe Union of Democratic Control was a British pressure group formed in 1914 to press for a more responsive foreign policy. While not a pacifist organization, it was opposed to military influence in government.-World War I:...
, and Justice - Modern political papers: including John PrescottJohn PrescottJohn Leslie Prescott, Baron Prescott is a British politician who was Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007. Born in Prestatyn, Wales, he represented Hull East as the Labour Member of Parliament from 1970 to 2010...
, Kevin McNamaraKevin McNamara (politician)Dr. Joseph Kevin McNamara, KSG is a British Labour Party politician who served as a Member of Parliament for almost 40 years.-Early life:...
, Austin MitchellAustin MitchellAustin Vernon Mitchell is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Great Grimsby since a 1977 by-election.-Education and early life:...
, Chris MullinChris Mullin (politician)Christopher John Mullin is a British Labour Party politician and diarist who was the Member of Parliament for Sunderland South from 1987 to 2010...
, Sir Patrick WallPatrick WallMajor Sir Patrick Henry Bligh Wall KBE , MC, VRD was a British senior commando in the Royal Marines during World War II and later a Conservative politician. He was Member of Parliament for Haltemprice, East Yorkshire and subsequently for Beverley...
, and Jock HastonJock HastonJames "Jock" Ritchie Haston was a Trotskyist politician and General Secretary of the Revolutionary Communist Party in Great Britain.-Early years:... - Modern English literary manuscripts: including Philip LarkinPhilip LarkinPhilip Arthur Larkin, CH, CBE, FRSL is widely regarded as one of the great English poets of the latter half of the twentieth century...
, Douglas DunnDouglas DunnDouglas Eaglesham Dunn, OBE is a Scottish poet, academic, and critic. He currently lives in Scotland.-Background:Dunn was born in Inchinnan, Renfrewshire. He was educated at the Scottish School of Librarianship, and worked as a librarian before he started his studies in Hull...
, Archie Markham, and Alan PlaterAlan PlaterAlan Frederick Plater, CBE, FRSL was an English playwright and screenwriter, who worked extensively in British television from the 1960s to the 2000s.-Career:... - Landed family and estate archives: including Hotham of South DaltonBaron HothamBaron Hotham, of South Dalton in the County of York, is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1797 for the naval commander Admiral William Hotham, with remainder to the heirs male of his father. Hotham was the third son of Sir Beaumont Hotham, 7th Baronet, of Scorborough , and in...
, Sykes of Sledmere, and Constable Maxwell of Everingham - Trades Union and labour archives: including numerous local trades unions and national figures such as W.E. Jones, Lord Ammon, and Julia Varley
- Business Records: including Ellerman's Wilson LineEllerman LinesEllerman Lines was a cargo and passenger shipping company that operated from the late nineteenth century and into the twentieth century. It was founded in the late nineteenth century, and continued to expand with the acquisition of smaller shipping lines until it became one of the largest shipping...
, Earle's Shipbuilding & Engineering CompanyEarle's ShipbuildingEarle's Shipbuilding was an engineering company that was based in Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England from 1845 to 1932.-Earle Brothers:...
, and The Hull & East Riding Co-operative Society - Religious archives: including local Quaker records, some papers of Selby AbbeySelby AbbeySelby Abbey is an Anglican parish church in the town of Selby, North Yorkshire.-Background:It is one of the relatively few surviving abbey churches of the medieval period, and, although not a cathedral, is one of the biggest...
and Marrick Priory, and of Conrad NoelConrad NoelConrad le Despenser Roden Noel was an English priest of the Church of England. Known as the "Red Vicar" of Thaxted, he was a prominent British Christian Socialist...
and Stanley Evans - South-East Asian manuscripts: including research collections of Mervyn Jaspan, David Bassett and Harry Parkin
City Council Collections
The City Council Collections are made up of various records and documents of the city. The range includes documents relating to:
- Boroughs: including the royal charter of 1299, issued by King Edward IEdward I of EnglandEdward I , also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England from 1272 to 1307. The first son of Henry III, Edward was involved early in the political intrigues of his father's reign, which included an outright rebellion by the English barons...
which established the city of Kingston upon Hull, title deeds of property purchased and sold by the corporation, financial records, and miscellaneous documents relating to the Corporation (later Hull City CouncilHull City CouncilHull City Council is the governing body for the unitary authority and city of Kingston upon Hull. It was created in 1972 as the successor to the Corporation of Hull, which was also known as Hull Corporation....
) - Civil Parishes: including documents relating to the Parish of Drypool, the Parish of Garrison Side, The United Parishes of Holy Trinity and St. Mary, The Parish of Sculcoates, the Parish of Southcoates, and the Parish of Sutton and Stoneferry
- Watching, Lighting, Cleansing and Paving Authorities: including documents from Assessors for lighting and cleansing the streets of Hull, The Hull and Myton Improvement Commissioners, and The Sculcoates Improvement Commissioners
- Boards of Health: including documents from Beverly Rural District, Cottingham Urban District, Holderness Rural District, Hessle Urban District, The Kingston upon Hull Board of Health, Skirlaugh Rural District, The Newington Board of Health, and Sculcoates Rural District
- School Boards: including documents from The Hull School Board, The Newington School Board, and The Sutton and Stoneferry School Board
- Poor Law Authorities: including documents from Kingston upon Hull Incorporation for the poor and The Sculcoates Board of Guardians
- Institutions and Companies: including documents from The Hull Borough Asylum, The Hull Gas and Light Company, and the Newington Water Company
Local Studies Collections
The Local Studies Collections are made up of approximately 150,000 items including books, printed items, large amounts of pamphlets and other material on vaious topics relating to Hull and the East Riding of Yorkshire. The range includes:
- Periodicals: including local school and parish magazines, newsletters from local societies, and business journals of local companies
- Directories: including the directories of HullKingston upon HullKingston upon Hull , usually referred to as Hull, is a city and unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It stands on the River Hull at its junction with the Humber estuary, 25 miles inland from the North Sea. Hull has a resident population of...
(1791–1939, with local sections of national directories from 1781), North RidingNorth Riding of YorkshireThe North Riding of Yorkshire was one of the three historic subdivisions of the English county of Yorkshire, alongside the East and West Ridings. From the Restoration it was used as a Lieutenancy area. The three ridings were treated as three counties for many purposes, such as having separate...
and East Riding of YorkshireEast Riding of YorkshireThe East Riding of Yorkshire, or simply East Yorkshire, is a local government district with unitary authority status, and a ceremonial county of England. For ceremonial purposes the county also includes the city of Kingston upon Hull, which is a separate unitary authority...
(main file 1872-1937, but some East Riding Village entries from 1823), and LincolnshireLincolnshireLincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
(1856–1972) - Electoral Registers: including electoral registers of HullKingston upon HullKingston upon Hull , usually referred to as Hull, is a city and unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It stands on the River Hull at its junction with the Humber estuary, 25 miles inland from the North Sea. Hull has a resident population of...
(1835–present) and East Riding of YorkshireEast Riding of YorkshireThe East Riding of Yorkshire, or simply East Yorkshire, is a local government district with unitary authority status, and a ceremonial county of England. For ceremonial purposes the county also includes the city of Kingston upon Hull, which is a separate unitary authority...
(1949–present) - Newspapers: including 40 local titles including the general York Courant, as well as the following main titles, available to view on microfilm- Hull Packet (1787–1886), Hull Advertiser (1794–1867), Eastern Counties Herald (1838–1884), Eastern Morning NewsEastern Morning NewsThe Eastern Morning News was a newspaper based in Hull. Founded by William Saunders in 1864, it ceased publication in November 1929....
(1864–1929), Hull News (1852–1929), Hull Times (City and County Editions, 1857–1984), Hull Daily News/Evening News (1884–1929), and the Hull Daily MailHull Daily MailThe Hull Daily Mail is the local daily newspaper for Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire and is published along with the free weekly, Hull Advertiser. There used to be a weekly sports paper, the SportsMail, but this folded in 2006...
(1885 to present) - Local Government Records: including Hull Corporation (now Hull City CouncilHull City CouncilHull City Council is the governing body for the unitary authority and city of Kingston upon Hull. It was created in 1972 as the successor to the Corporation of Hull, which was also known as Hull Corporation....
) Minutes (1887 to present) and Humberside County Council Minutes (1973–1996) - Census Returns: full returns available to view on microfilms include Hull and Sculcoates Poor Law Union areas (i.e. town of Hull and immediate surrounding villages, 1841–1901) and Complete East Riding of Yorkshire (1851), with additional returns available to view electronically
- Maps: including Hull town maps (16th century to present), Ordnance Survey maps for Hull and East Riding at various scales (1852 to present), East Riding Enclosure maps, Geological Survey maps, Agricultural Land Classification Survey maps, Soil Survey maps, and Goad Plans
- Illustrations: a collection of over 9,000 loose illustrations including drawings, prints, photographs, postcards, and framed paintings; in addition, a separate collection of 2,000 photographs in the Health Department Collection taken by the Hull Corporation Health Department around the early 1900s
- Ephemera: including theatre bills and programmes, posters, football programmes, postcards, timetables, tradesmen's publicity, etc.
- Special Collections: collections organized by subject of particular interest to the area, including William WilberforceWilliam WilberforceWilliam Wilberforce was a British politician, a philanthropist and a leader of the movement to abolish the slave trade. A native of Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire, he began his political career in 1780, eventually becoming the independent Member of Parliament for Yorkshire...
and Slavery, Andrew MarvellAndrew MarvellAndrew Marvell was an English metaphysical poet, Parliamentarian, and the son of a Church of England clergyman . As a metaphysical poet, he is associated with John Donne and George Herbert...
(1621–1678), Whales and Whaling, Winifred HoltbyWinifred HoltbyWinifred Holtby was an English novelist and journalist, best known for her novel South Riding.-Life and writings:...
(1898–1935), Fosters & Andrews (organ builders), and Amy JohnsonAmy JohnsonAmy Johnson CBE, was a pioneering English aviator. Flying solo or with her husband, Jim Mollison, Johnson set numerous long-distance records during the 1930s...
Access to the Archives
The Hull History Centre offers various ways to access the archives. The online catalogue provides information on over 225,000 documents. The Centre also has a collection of newspapers, census records, and burial records available for viewing on microfilms.The History Centre also allows customers to view documents directly in the climate controlled searchroom. In order to view documents, customers must provide a County Archive Research Network (CARN) ticket. To obtain a CARN ticket, customers must bring a valid form of identification with their name and address. There is no charge to obtain a CARN ticket.
Customers can also borrow select items from the loan stock using a Hull Libraries library card.
Other services
Hull History Centre also regularly offers a range of learning activities such as family events, adult learning courses, and school sessions. The Hull History Centre regularly updates their website with the upcoming events and activities offered.Family events include storytelling, drama, arts and crafts, or other activities inspired by the archives of the History Centre. The adult learning courses offered vary from one day classes to five week courses, and explore family and local history. The centre's Education Officer works with local schools to create a programme of skills-based sessions that complement the national curriculum.
Additionally, the Hull History Centre offers venue hire, photocopying services, and help and advice from a specialist staff. The Centre is also equipped with full conservation and preservation facilities and services for the collections in its care.
Location
The Hull History Centre is located on Worship Street, just off of Freetown Way, only a few minutes walk from Queen's GardensQueen's Gardens, Hull
Queen's Gardens is a sequence of gardens in the centre of Kingston upon Hull, England. They are set out within a area that until 1930 was filled with the waters of Queen's Dock...
and City Hall
Hull City Hall
Hull City Hall is a Civic Building in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England.The City Hall does not perform an administrative function for Hull's council, as this is based in the Guildhall....
. There is a small amount of parking, including disabled spaces, available in the adjoining pay and display car park.