Power in the Land, the Ramsdens and Their Huddersfield Estate, 1542-1920: Essays to Commemorate the Centenary of the Purchase of the Estate by Huddersfield Corporation in 1920

Abstract

told that the concept of the Mechanics Institute was born here, thanks to the Birkbeck family who moved in as yeomen in 1698 and then did well. It gained one of its own in 1831. London’s Birkbeck College owes its start in 1823 to the same family, with their very northern name, and their belief in self-improvement for all. The final two sections are essentially made up of paragraphs about interesting people and notable buildings, which leads to some repetition, but on the whole it does add miniature rounded case studies which flesh out the processes of communal development already outlined. It also brings out variety, in particular, as with the cluster of eleven families sharing the unusual surname ‘Ralph’ in 1851. None were ‘high-born’. And none became rich, but they covered a spectrum from a master carpenter through other tradesmen to mill workers, farm labourers and paupers. Also, although the majority of people never had the chance to achieve much, the classic rags to riches story of John Delaney, who was born in Stalybridge of Irish extraction in 1846, and came to Settle to work in a mill, shows that it really was occasionally possible to make something of oneself. Via the Co-op, he got into shop-keeping, and via quarry work he earned a degree in geology from Manchester University. He ultimately made a fortune from limestone, which brought him a big house and a role as a J.P. All in all, I can only hope this book enjoys impressive sales, and inspires others to try something similar for other communities.