By Trevor Hickman
Published by Amberley Publishing, Stroud
ISBN 97-1-4456-1760-2
96 pages, paperback, £14.99
Trevor Hickman’s enthusiasm for the history of Leicestershire and Rutland is well known locally and so
any new title from this author always attracts attention. This nicely-produced volume from Amberley
Publishing’s ‘Through Time’ series is in the same vein as many other such books which contain
reproductions of historic photographs, sometimes, as here, combined with recent views (in this case,
mostly from 2006), but one of the attractions of this series is the use of full colour throughout, which
enables us to appreciate the carefully-applied tints often to be found on old postcards. Also,
improved printing techniques here generally bring a sharpness to the historic views which has
sometimes been lacking in books like these and better reflects the skills of the original
photographers: but of these unfortunately, as so often, we are told nothing even though in many
cases their names are recorded on the postcards.
The title of the book, even with its sub-title enumerating some of the villages concerned, doesn’t
really reflect its geographical range since in fact it extends all the way to Ryhall and the Castertons –
not villages that one would normally associate with Uppingham which after all lies near the southern
extremity of the county. This means that in the case of many villages we are only treated to one or
two photographs where perhaps we might have expected more, and often the more recent views are
those of public houses: in fact, a better sub-title might have been ‘Rutland pubs I have known’!
The format of books like these means that the extent of information that can be contained in the
captions is limited. This makes them hard to write accurately and concisely, and precludes the
possibility of giving references to sources unless there is a more extensive general introduction; thus
several line drawings from the Rutland volumes of Victoria County History remain unacknowledged.
Sometimes a single caption is used for two photographs, which doesn’t always work well since the
heading may not sufficiently reflect the content of each of them. However, the captions do contain
much information about dates and individuals (incumbents, publicans, stationmasters, shopkeepers),
although where dates are attributed to individual views these may be on the basis more of the
postmark than the actual photograph. Occasionally, where the present tense is used, there can be
traps for the unwary reader: on p30, for instance, Normanton Hall was [1900] the home of the Earl of
Ancaster, and on p95 Uppingham School’s Boer War memorial hall had then [1916] been renamed the
Concert Hall and Gymnasium – now it is the Uppingham Theatre.
More careful editing would have averted a few typos and some errors, such as the mis-spelling of
Martinsthorpe on p20 or the reference to Little Casterton on p5 when Great Casterton is meant, and
might perhaps have resulted in a different or less repetitive selection of views. One does wonder why
there are two nearly identical recent views of the Kingfisher Inn, Preston, or so many views of
Uppingham Market Place, given that many more varied early photographs of the various villages do
survive. In one instance, on p91, the wrong photograph has been used: the lower view in fact shows
the old schoolboys’ studies in the school quadrangle and not Constables on Leicester Road. Fewer
images of the school’s boarding houses would have sufficed, even if those of Meadhurst bring a wry
smile to this reviewer’s face since he spent (mis-spent?) many terms in the study and dormitory block
shown.
Despite such reservations, this volume is a useful addition to the Rutland bookshelves because it does
contain some particularly interesting photographs. Of these one might mention just two which merit
further investigation. On p45, there is a view of the Glaston Coffee Tavern in 1905, with a motorcar
outside bearing a Rutland (FP) number plate – if this could be read on the original, its owner could be
traced in the vehicle registration archives in the Record Office for Leicestershire, Leicester &
Rutland. On p41, there is an intriguing view of Barrowden with a LNWR train on the viaduct over the
Welland – surely not ‘a goods train ... travelling along’ the railway since it is clearly posed with the
driver, fireman and others facing the camera, and with another man standing on top of an unfinished
structure, perhaps a water tank, on the right; the viaduct all looks very new – what does this
photograph commemorate? One would rather like to know.
Tim Clough
Note: A companion volume in the same format - Oakham & the Villages Through Time, also by Trevor
Hickman (ISBN 97-81-4456-1687-2) - was published by Amberley in August 2013
Uppingham & the Villages Through Time