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As part of #HistDay20 some colleagues and I have pulled together some content to talk a bit about our work and research interests. I work @UkNatArchives where I am the Family & Local History Engagement Lead in our Collections Expertise & Engagement dept. 1/12 @UkNatArcRes
My time is split approx. 50:50 between research and public duty, which for me, is the best of both worlds. I work on academic projects, usually as a records expert or specialist, and also in our enquiry service and reading rooms, answering all manner of queries and questions 2/12
There are lots of series of records I could enthuse about within @UkNatArchives' collections. I work in the Modern Domestic team, and my expertise lies largely in C20th history. Previously I ran the FWW100 programme, so am reasonably knowledgeable about our FWW records. 3/12
I'm currently setting up a project on our FWW nursing series WO 399 [ http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C15000] so watch this space for more #histnursing information about that. I have also done quite a lot of work on the collections we hold from the DfE and its predecessor bodies. 4/12
My PhD is on school records too. You can read more about that here: https://www.essex.ac.uk/people/carls66401/jessamy-carlson I've also got a paper coming up about my research at this event if anyone is *really* interested: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/international-centre-research-group-tickets-122941359917?aff=erelexpmlt 5/12
I've been interested in family history (or #genealogy) for almost as long as I can remember. I did my first proper research project when I was ten, volunteered at the local record office from fourteen, and qualified as an archivist in 2006. I find it all fascinating! 6/12
I'm always interested to hear about what people have found while researching their family. And I am interested in what the broader social history of an area can allow you to find out about the lives your ancestor lived. I've done quite a lot of research on Liverpool... 7/12
(although I'm not myself from Liverpool) and as such, discovered one of my favourite documents at @UkNatArchives which is this one, PP 1/9/1 http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C6302456 which is a commendation to Queen Victoria, sent in 1887 8/12
It's a huge document: it comprises an illuminated manuscript, housed within a Morocco leather bound, velvet lined box, which is wrapped in protective fabric, and housed in another box. It's a weighty document! 9/12
Then, once you've unwrapped it all, you still need to open the document! And that in turn reveals this beauty! I'm really interested in what this document tells you about this city at this moment in time. The materiality is fascinating. And it's so detailed and colourful. 10/12
This must have taken hours of work. It is exquisitely drawn and painted. I find it most interesting that what the city officials who commissioned this chose to represent their city. The buildings in the illustrations include the library, the town hall, and the Three Graces 11/12
There are hundreds of similar commendations in this series, though I'd argue that the Liverpool edition is the blingiest of them all. There are some absolutely beautiful examples, and it's always a thrill to examine them. I'd be hard pressed to find a series I like better! 12/12
