West Yorkshire Archive Service

Death, Disaster and Dubious Dumplings: Life and Death in Victorian Yorkshire

There are many hidden gems in the collections held by the West Yorkshire Archive Service. Amongst these are a series of handwritten notebooks complied by Thomas Taylor, County Coroner from 1852 – 1900.

From mining disasters to natural causes, these notebooks record details of the inquests into sudden deaths, accidental demises and mysterious ends. Eye witness accounts and details of people’s lives are recorded, providing a fascinating insight into life and death in 19th century Yorkshire.

In 1868 wealthy Eliza Coulson died from eating bad beef and dubious dumplings. Sarah Hughes died in 1870 from natural causes "accelerated by fright occasioned by riotous proceedings of a mob".

Not all the deaths recorded in the notebooks were natural or accidental. Sarah Ann Koyton died suddenly in 1889 from "excitement and passion" after a row with a neighbour over a washing line. In 1864 the verdict at the inquest on 19 year old Keziah Booth suggested foul play. Keziah’s deathbed statement, written up in the notebook, accused her lover, William Dawson of poisoning her as she was "in the family way".

Personal details about other family members can also be found in these notebooks, revealing unique insights into the lives and deaths of our ancestors.

If you’d like to know more and you aren’t able to visit one of our offices, West Yorkshire Archive Service’s new ‘Ask the Experts’ service can search these amazing records for you, with prices starting as low as just £12.

To order research visit our Eshop or download an "Ask the Experts" application form at www.archives.wyjs.org.uk

Scheduled Collections work closure, 4th-8th November 2013

All five offices of the West Yorkshire Archive Service will be closed for collections work during the following weeks:

Monday 4th November to Friday 8th November 2013

During this time archive staff will be working on improving access to the local authority collections in our care

Staff will continue to respond to urgent written and telephone messages during this period. Please note that the above date replaces the previously advertised closure date – as such all our sites will be open as normal 21st-25th October.

From Bread and Butter to Prison and Porridge

Skeletons in cupboards are part and parcel of doing a family history. Dark criminal secrets, missing ancestors and tales of past misdeeds litter the trail of most budding family historians. Often, these tales seem impossible to verify as the details are lost in the murky midsts of time.

But now, WYAS’s research service might just be able to help.

West Yorkshire Archive Service holds a wide range of records that can reveal a dark dimension to your family history. From the unusual - such as the 1812 conviction of James Brown Whitkirk for grave robbing - to minor offences such as drunkenness and ‘using profane language’, the archives may hold unique stories about your ancestor that can’t be found anywhere else in the world.

The case studies below give a fascinating insight into the stories we can uncover – can we help you find your black sheep of the family?

The WYAS Research service is happy to help. For the incredible rate of just £24 per hour, our archive experts will delve into our records to see if we can find your mystery ancestor!

For enquires email research@wyjs.org.uk or telephone 01924 305980. To order research visit the eshop at https://eshop.wyjs.org.uk or download a Research Service application form at www.archives.wyjs.org.uk

Case Notes of Hannah Hemingway, Wakefield by wyorksarchives

Case Notes of William Weddill of Sheffield by wyorksarchives

Bradford Archives closed at 5pm on Friday 14th December due to the refurbishment of Bradford Central Library.

We will re-open on Friday 25th January 2013 offering a limited Fridays-only service by appointment in the new Leeds searchroom at Nepshaw Lane South, Morley, Leeds LS27 7JQ.

We will continue to respond to enquiries during this time

e-mail: bradford@wyjs.org.uk

Tel: 0113 393 9785

Keep up to date by checking our website

Bradford Archives refurbishment:

Bradford Archives will close at 5pm on Friday 14th December due to the refurbishment of Bradford Central Library.

We will re-open on Friday 25th January 2013 offering a limited service by appointment in the new Leeds searchroom at Nepshaw Lane South, Morley, Leeds LS27 7JQ.

We will continue to respond to enquiries during this time

e-mail: bradford@wyjs.org.uk

Tel: 0113 393 9785

Keep up to date by checking our website

Heritage Lottery Fund Success

West Yorkshire Archive Service is pleased to announce that we have received initial support for a £3.6million bid from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) to create a new permanent home for Wakefield's archives.

Our aim is to provide a brand new, secure and stable environment for the collections of the former West Riding, as well as for those relating to Wakefield district. It will also improve access to our records, allowing them to be explored in a much more welcoming environment than we can currently offer.

Our Stage 1 bid included an application for over £200,000 of development funding . This has been awarded and will help us develop our plans further to apply for a full grant at a later date

The Archive Service’s Wakefield collections are currently held in the former Registry of Deeds on Newstead Road, which is no longer fit for purpose.

Wakefield Council has allocated a site for a replacement building, where the Service will have the space to reconnect communities with their archives, including our large collections of mining records relating to former coalfield communities which are currently held at our Leeds office.

We will also have facilities to offer better training and guidance for those wishing to explore archives relating to family and local history, and to offer a wider range of volunteering opportunities, especially in our highly regarded conservation unit.

A first-round pass means our project meets HLF criteria for funding and HLF believes the project has potential to deliver high-quality benefits and value for Lottery money. Our application was in competition with other supportable projects, so a first-round pass is an endorsement of our outline proposals. Having been awarded a first-round pass, we now have up to two years to submit fully developed proposals to compete for a firm award.

Unlocking the archives

We’re giving researchers an extra 10 ½ hours a week to consult the millions of documents in our care!

Our Wakefield office is opening on Fridays for the first time in 10 years and is also now able to provide a full service over lunchtime.

Whilst everyone is welcome to visit the office on Fridays, it is hoped that the new Friday sessions will especially attract researchers new to the world of Archives, with friendly staff and plenty of advice on offer.

Everyone is a celebrity at the Archives

Let us give you the Star treatment!

Even the stars can be surprised by what is found in the archives.

We have recently worked closely with the BBC One family history programme "Who Do You Think You Are?" and viewers saw them unearth some fascinating information about the family of Mirfield-born star of stage and screen Sir Patrick Stewart in the 29th August episode

Every family tree is interesting and family historians now have access to a wealth of online resources. Working in partnership with Ancestry.co.uk we have already made a large number of parish and non-conformist registers available online.

You may think that you have found everything that can be found - but we could have some surprises for you! For a limited period our Research Service is offering you the chance to have your own "Who Do You Think Are?" expert examine your existing family tree. They can offer you professional advice on how to continue with your own research and ways to potentially fill in the gaps in your family tree.

For more information on our research service click here, email research@wyjs.org.uk or call us on 01924 305980.

You can order research through our Eshop or you can pick up a Research Service application form from any of our offices.

It could the start of a new chapter in your family history.

Searching for names? We have got over 20 million of them!

Your ancestors may be found in The West Riding Registry of Deeds - a nationally unique resource for family historians.

Our experienced staff can help you to:

Discover if your ancestors owned land in the West Riding of Yorkshire between 1704 and 1970.
Find personal names, houses, businesses and more
Decipher difficult old handwriting

Our Deeds cover West Yorkshire and beyond ? from Halifax to Harrogate; and from Settle to Sheffield, there might just be one of your ancestors in the Registry of Deeds!

For enquires email research@wyjs.org.uk or telephone 01924 305 980

To order research visit the Eshop or download an application form

Luddite Bicentenary

2012 was the bicentenary year of the Luddites in West Yorkshire. In 1812 certain areas of the West Riding of Yorkshire saw major outbreaks of violence by people who have come to be known as 'Luddites'. The Luddites were mainly croppers, a small and highly skilled group of cloth finishers, who, at a time of the worst trade depression since the 1760s, facing deepening poverty, rising wheat prices and food scarcity, turned their anger on the new cropping machine, which they feared would put them out of work

A commemorative booklet has been produced to celebrate the Luddite Bicentenary. The 25 page booklet aims to give an insight into life in 1812, the major events of riots and murder as well as the individual stories of some of the Luddites and the personal suffering undergone by their widows and children, who were visited by the Quaker, Thomas Shillitoe.

You can buy a copy either online via our E-Shop or in person at any of our offices

Treasures of the West Yorkshire Archive Service

The top five treasures from our district collections have now been chosen by you! The winners are;

Bradford – Alhambra

Calderdale – Crossleys Carpets

Kirklees – Fisher Family Letters

Leeds – Tetleys

Wakefield – Nostell Priory Winn Family records

A display showcasing the winner of each district is available to view in our offices for the Month of March. If you would like to view original records from any of the winners, please contact the relevant office to make an appointment

For full details on all the winners West Yorkshire Archives Treasures

Parish Registers on Ancestry

500 years of baptisms, marriages and burials are now available on Ancestry.co.uk. The parish registers from hundreds of Church of England parishes across West Yorkshire are now available to search online. These records are often the only way to track an ancestor prior to civil registration and also contain a wealth of information about the people of West Yorkshire from artists to engineers, authors to brewers, soldiers to politicians and the wars, unrest, disease and disaster that affected their lives. Free access is available from all our offices and many local libraries or follow the link above to log on from home! Any questions please contact us

Accreditation Scheme for Community Groups

We have recently launched our Accreditation Scheme for Community Heritage Groups. It is hoped that this will provide a framework within which the groups can achieve excellence, raising standards in all core activities of such groups whilst actively promoting sustainability of both practice and collections.

See the Accreditation Scheme page for more details!

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