Keynote slides: Practical Politics and Place in the 19th century
new towns reading list
right to stand on the pavement
New Lives New Landscapes Revisited: Rural Modernity in Britain
select bibliography on new social movements, urban commons, and anti-globalisation protest
rhododendrons
BBC Radio 4 Analysis, ‘what’s the point of street protest?’
East London primary sources
The Cuckoo Cage at Womad 2022
MERL OSS lantern slide exhibition now online

microgeographies of Cropper Street/Osborne Street, Collyhurst (2)

 

Last week I met the lovely organisers of the Once Upon a Time history group at the Manchester Communication Academy, Collyhurst.

Talking to them about my quest to find more about the residents and spaces of Cropper Street/Osborne Street, they reminded me of the importance of micro-geographies: the social and sectarian boundaries that are invisible from all maps and most written records of places. So as historians and historical geographers, we need to drill down to the micro: the difference between one street and the next, the persistence of ‘parish xenophobia’ as Keith Snell perhaps somewhat pejoratively put it, the subtle gradations in social class that only residents recognised and acted upon.

Here are the front covers of a couple of their magazines. They talked vividly about the significance of that red rug on the bannisters of the ground floor flat. I won’t share the personal story here, but it reminds us again to be acutely aware of such signs, and listen to the people who remember what they mean.

once upon a time mag

 

once upon a time mag

If you have memories to share about Osborne Street, Collyhurst, do get in touch with me – k.navickas@herts.ac.uk, or through the Once Upon a Time Group: https://www.communitymca.co.uk/becomingamember

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