Cheshire Memories: County's history traced in pictures

By Chester Chronicle on Dec 14, 09 09:24 AM in 1800-1899

CHESHIRE County Memories is the title of a new book that has been published as part of The Francis Frith Collection.

It traces the history of Cheshire through the use of photographs and covers areas such as Chester, Wirral, Crewe, Knutsford and Warrington.

Francis Frith was the Victorian founder of the world-famous photographic archive who travelled to places such as the Nile in the 19th century, returning to Britain with striking pictures.

Frith had a real passion for the landscape and his aim was to photograph every town and village in Britain, travelling to them by pony and trap.

The photographs in the book suggest that Firth always had tourism in mind, as there are images of the cathedral and the busy shopping areas of Bridge Street, while some of the images from 1895 show bare-footed children standing beside the Rows which have gone on to make Chester so famous.

However, he also had a fascination with residential and commercial buildings and there are a wide variety of pictures ranging from The Chetwode Arms and St Paul's Church in Crewe in 1950, to Cholmondeley Castle and park in 1898.

The images range from the middle of the 19th century right up to the 21st century, setting the scene to bring history to life.

Author Dorothy Nicolle feels that Cheshire is a county with a strong identity despite the various changes it has undergone in the past century.

She said: "This is still a county where both a strong rural and industrial tradition sit side by side.

"Perhaps it is this mix that gives the landscape its beauty and makes the towns and villages so interesting."

Fascinating facts are scattered throughout the book, including the rare dinosaur footprints that can be seen in North Cheshire and the meaning of The Chester Imp.

Readers can also hone their traditional cooking skills with local recipes such as Chester Pudding and Cheshire Onion Pie.

The salt industry was important to the area and was based in Northwich, Middlewich and Nantwich.

Dorothy also describes how Chester was the most important port in northern England during the Middle Ages, before this title was passed to Liverpool after the silting-up of the River Dee.

Ancient Cheshire has a chapter dedicated to it with a range of topics including The Bridestones and the Roman hypocaust.

As the Wirral was part of Cheshire until 1974 it is also included in the book and there, with images of New Brighton beach from 1900 and the lighthouse from 1892.

Dorothy praises the work of Francis Frith and acknowledges the legacy he has left.
She said: "The massive photographic record he left to us stands as a living monument to a special and remarkable man.

"His photographs depicting our shared past are now bringing pleasure and enlightenment to millions around the world, more than a century after his death."

Dorothy was born in Uganda but has spent much of her life travelling and living in places such as Hong Kong, the Middle East and France.

She attended Leicester University where she attained a degree in British archaeology and history.

Her travel experiences and rogue lifestyle may be the reason that she is now a Blue Badge Guide and also lectures on various aspects of local and general British history throughout the country.

She now lives in Shropshire and has written more than 20 books on local history.
Cheshire County Memories can now be bought for £15 from local bookshops or from www.francisfrith.com.

There are more than 800 local history books on counties and individual towns available from the Francis Frith Collection.