The Ring family of Bristol,clay tobacco pipe manufacturers

Abstract

The Ring family ran two of the most important pipemaking businesses in 19th-century Bristol. This account is in three parts: Part 1 is a survey of the documentary evidence for the two companies. Ring & Cookworthy were in operation from 1802 until 1819, R. F. Ring & Co. worked under various managements from c. 1812 until c. 1884. Part 2 provides data on the export of Ring-made pipes, collected from the Bristol Presentment Books. Pipes were sent mainly to America, but also to Ireland, Spain, the Caribbean and elsewhere. Part 3 illustrates waste from their kilns found in dumps in various parts of Bristol. These groups are all dated to c. 1850.     

Thirty-First Annual Meeting,Bristol, 1874

Abstract

A new survey of Grey Abbey has identified hitherto unsuspected areas of restoration, especially around the sedilia and west front. Measurement of the surviving walls and study of the collection of architectural fragments has enabled outline reconstruction drawings of the church and monastic buildings to be made. Survey of the loose stonework identified substantial elements of the chapter-house, day room and cloister arcades. Comparison with material at Christ Church Cathedral Dublin shows that the chapter-house vault ribs at Grey were identical in profile to some thought to have originated in the aisles of the cathedral, a building strongly influenced stylistically by sources in the West Country of England.     

The 1948 Belcher Affair and Lynskey Tribunal

Although the Belcher affair was one of the biggest cases ofpolitical corruption in twentieth-century Britain, the scandaland resultant judicial inquiry have received little attentionin political histories of the 1940s due to their lack of electoralimpact. This outcome was not apparent to contemporary politicalcommentators. The allegations were serious and elements of theConservative Party were willing to use them to smear the Labourgovernment. The government successfully defused the scandalby appointing a judicial inquiry to investigate the allegations.They hoped this would dispel rumours of widespread corruption.However, it had the unintended effect of scotching public debate.The allegations became sub judice, hindering the activitiesof the scandalmongers. Tedious press coverage of the tribunalhearings bored many voters, who interpreted the scandal in linewith their existing beliefs.     

The excavation of two docks at Narrow Quay,Bristol, 1978-9.

Abstract

Part of the structure of Aldworth’s Dock (in use during the 17th century) and probably the 16th-century St. Clement’s Dock were identified by excavation. The feature interpreted as St. Clement’s Dock produced an important collection of late 16th-century pottery. [NCR: ST/586726]     

The Bristol channel Coastlands : Early cultural contacts

The relevance to Political Geography, and the nature of the recent electoral emergence of Welsh and Scottish nationalism are examined. Contrasts in geographical conditions associated with the performances of the Welsh and Scottish parties are found to be related to their ideological and cultural characters. The Scottish National Party appears primarily a vehicle for protest, whereas Plaid Cymru is more an expression of a threatened culture.     

Youth, Racism, and Place in the Tony Martin Affair

This paper provides an analysis of media discourse surrounding the arrest, trial, and conviction of Norfolk farmer Tony Martin for the murder of 16-year old Fred Barras, a Traveller from Newark, Nottinghamshire. The paper argues that discourses about Travellers (re)constructed in the media during the Martin affair showed evidence of both older, stereotypical representations of Travellers and newer ways of locating them in relation to contemporary societal anxieties about "dangerous youth", the "underclass", and "social exclusion". The coverage was often emblematic of political discourses in Britain, which too often emphasise the moral failings of the "excluded" without any significant discussion of the sources of inequalities.     

The Excavation of a Medieval Bastion at St. Nicholas's Almshouses,King Street,Bristol

SUMMARY

The paper describes the discovery of the lower portion of a bastion of the late 13th century, its construction and destruction. This monument remains to a height of 8 ft. and has three arrow-slits and standins remaining. The bastion was at one time part of the Marsh Wall defences of Bristol. A small but interesting group of pottery including south-western French types is associated with its construction. The method of construction of the Almshouses, which were built above the bastion, required the deposition of considerable domestic rubbish including a large quantity of pottery types, many of which were previously only loosely datable. The opening of the Almshouses in 1656 provides a firm dating for this large and varied collection.     

Bristol Deaf Memories: archives,nostalgia and the loss of community space in the deaf community in Bristol

The deaf community in the UK has undergone major changes in recent years, which has uprooted it from its traditional foundations, the deaf club and deaf residential school. This article examines the effect of the closure of the deaf club in Bristol, a city in the South West of England, which resulted in the loss of an important community place and spaces for deaf people in the city. We discuss, with a strong focus on methodology, a community event celebrating Bristol’s deaf heritage organised by the research team which utilised archive materials, including archived actuality footage. This article draws on interview data elicited from participants in that event to explore the meanings connected to space and place in both past and present by the deaf community in Bristol. Concepts of the rhizome and the smooth and striated spaces of Deleuze and Guattari were found to be useful models with which to engage with the contemporary struggles of the deaf community for community recognition and organisation. We also suggest an online mapping application which enables the practice of rhizomatic cartography could be a way forward in preserving the deaf heritage and history of the city.