Bradford Heritage Festival
- Martin Wills
- Jul 24
- 2 min read
To celebrate the publication of our Historical Map of Bradford: Wool Capital of World we held two activities at the Bradford Heritage Festival, organised by Bradford Heritage Connection. On 11 July we organised a walking tour featuring the historic sites of pubs and inns in the city centre and also a talk about the research and publication of the map at the Mechanics Institute.
The walking tour was researched and guided by University of York, MA Public History student, Amy Pattison, and featured various sites of interest and stories from the pubs and inns. The tour gave an excellent insight into Bradford in the late 19th century and even featured reports about the temperance movement in the city.
Following this we held a stall and talk at the Mechanics Institute. Our Development Manager, Martin Wills, spoke about the development of the map and how we pull together mapping projects. The talk also featured stories of Bradford's history and how the city developed and grew during the 19th century.
Around 60 people attended the events, which brought more attention to our Bradford map. The maps shows the fascinating history of the city centre, and two of the nine conservation areas in Bradford, Manningham and Little Germany. It uncovers stories that surprised even its authors in creating a new and more detailed narrative of Bradford’s complex development and architectural history. The map is built on extensive research, drawing information from many archaeological and historical resources, brought together to show the historical development of the city.
You can purchase a copy of the Bradford map from our online shop. To hear more about our future projects or if you are interested in creating an historical map of your town or city, please contact Martin Wills at development@historictownstrust.uk. To donate to our work please click here to be taken to our donations page. Every donation – no matter how big or small – is greatly appreciated.