This fascinating book looks at how local history developed from the antiquarian county studies of the sixteenth century through the growth of 'professional' history in the nineteenth century, to the recent past. Concentrating on the past sixty years, it looks at the opening of archive offices, the invigorating influence of family history, the impact of adult education and other forms of lifelong learning. The author considers the debates generated by academics, including the divergence of views over local and regional issues, and the importance of standards set by the Victoria County History (VCH). Also discussed is the fragmentation of the subject. The antiquarian tradition included various subject areas that are now separate disciplines, among them industrial archaeology, name studies, family, landscape and urban history. This is an authoritative account of how local history has come to be one of the most popular and productive intellectual pastimes in our modern society. Written by a practitioner who has spent more than twenty years teaching local history to undergraduates and M.A. students, as well as lecturing to local history societies, John Beckett is currently Director of the VCH. A remarkable book that will be of great interest to students and scholars of local history as well as amateur and professional genealogists.

Drawn from decades of experience, this is a concise and highly practical guide to writing history. Aimed at all kinds of people who write history academic historians, public historians, professional historians, family historians and students of all levels the book includes a wide range of examples from many genres and styles.

In this small but thoughtful volume, a respected theologian and churchman opens up a theological approach to history.

Writing Local History Today guides local historians through the process of researching, writing, and publishing their work. Mason & Calder present step-by-step advice to guide aspiring authors to a successful publication and focus not only on how to write well but also how to market and sell their work. Highlights include: Discussion of how to identify an audience for your writing project Tips for effective research and planning Sample documents, such as contracts and requests for proposals Discussion of how to use social media to leverage your publication Discussion of the benefits and drawbacks to self-publishing An essay by Gregory Britton, the editorial director of John Hopkins University Press, about financial pitfalls in publishing This guide is useful for first-time authors who need help with this sometimes daunting process, or for previously published historians who need a quick reference or timely tip.

Local history in Britain can trace its origins back to the sixteenth century and before, but it was given inspiration and a new sense of direction in the 1950s and 60s by the work of W.G. Hoskins. This book marks the fiftieth anniversary of the publication of his Local history in England which was designed to help people researching the history of their own villages and towns. It is the result of a collaboration between academic historians in the Centre for English Local History at the University of Leicester, which Hoskins founded, and the British Association for Local History, an organisation that brings together the thousands of people who are not professional academics but who practise local history. Taking the work of Hoskins as a starting point, the contributors show how local history is being researched and written today. Fifteen historians write about a variety of local history subjects which are significant in their own right but which also point to current trends in the subject. They show how local historians use their sources systematically, from the non-verbal evidence of buildings to various types of electronic resources. All periods between the middle ages and the early twenty-first century are explored, as are many different parts of the country from Skye to the Kent coast. There are examples of local historians working on ethnic minorities, gender and the working class. Those who study localities use a variety of approaches, including those of social, economic, religious, legal, intellectual and cultural history, all of which are employed here. They are aware of the roots of their subject and examine the history of local history itself. Together, the editors and authors raise the various dilemmas which stimulate debates among local historians about the nature of the subject, its present health and the directions it will take in the next half century.

"This volume," says James Coriden in his introduction, "... allows the reader to reach an accurate understanding of the authentic nature and function of parishes within the Catholic tradition." It describes the origins of parishes and their historical evolution, offers a theology of parish as a local church, links parishes to the church's social teaching and provides a comprehensive overview of their function in Roman Catholic law and their relationship to American civil law." "In clear, nontechnical language, the volume outlines the canonical status of Catholics as parishioners - as well as their rights, duties and forms of assembly and the relationship of parishes to other ecclesial and civil bodies. Ministerial students, clerical and lay ministers, members of parish councils and laypersons generally will find this book an indispensable handbook for living and working within parish communities. Christians of other denominations will make fruitful connections between their own congregational life and Roman Catholic experience."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved