Havering and history

For the first time ever, Havering's historic archives are now online

Havering Council’s Library service is making history even more accessible to residents with popular archive material now online thanks to Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) and Veolia North Thames Trust grants.
Last year, the Council announced that the Veolia North Thames Trust awarded £20,000 to digitise exhibits that told the colourful story of Rainham's History, for a project titled: 'Rainham: a village near the Thames'. Additionally, the HLF awarded £49,000 for a similar project based on Romford, titled: 'Romford: the birth and death of a Victorian town'.

The Veolia project tells the history of Rainham, as well as the surrounding areas of South Hornchurch and Wennington. It specifically focuses on its agricultural past and relationship with the River Thames.

The funding has allowed the libraries to digitise part of their extensive Local Studies collection. The new online catalogue now features more than 700 historic photographs, maps, illustrations and much more, which residents can see from the comfort of their own home.

The collection includes parish maps from 1812, Rainham rate books from as early as 1840 as well as scrapbooks compiled by the well-known local Historian Frank Lewis during the 1960’s, which contain valuable information about what was happening in the area at the time.

A group of dedicated library volunteers were responsible for the projects and were trained in heritage, research, conservation of materials, and basic cataloguing to carry out the task.

Anne Lehva from Rainham was one of the volunteers for the Veolia project, she said:

“It’s been a hugely worthwhile and wonderful experience. This (online catalogue) is such an amazing resource for learning more about family history and the local area, and I’m looking forward to seeing it being used and appreciated by others.”

‘Romford: the birth and death of a Victorian town’, the HLF project, includes exhibits portraying Romford’s rich history, which relates to the Victorian and Edwardian period and the redevelopment of Romford in the 1960s.

The focus is on the existing image collection, which includes glass plates and lantern slides, photographs; including unique images that capture the old town and early views of the 1960s town emerging. Postcards and prints, including a collection by the local artist Alfred Bennett Bamford, plans such as Edward Gotto’s map of Romford 1853, and manuscript notes of Arthur Cornell illuminate the story of the town and provide rich resources for additional online research.

It also includes images of the last days of the old town, the demolition of pubs and houses, the end of the cattle market and closure of the market through to the construction of the shopping centre and ring road.

The catalogue is being updated every week with new material, and residents are advised to keep checking for new additions.

These and much more are now available to view online via the Havering Libraries website. Users will need to and click on the link on the home page, or the Local Studies and Family History tab.

Those interested in becoming a volunteer, or those who would like to donate to the collection should email libraryservices@havering.gov.uk