Writing‘Evesham Through

Time’Friends of Evesham Parish Church & Bell Tower

6th June 2016

Stan Brotherton

Background to the book

• At the end of August 2015 the VEHS was approached via its website by Amberley Publishing to ask if they knew anyone who would be interested in producing a new book – on Evesham – for their best-selling full-colour series ‘Through Time’.• VEHS website – www.valeofeveshamhistory.org –

includes a page on ‘Evesham Then & Now’.• Contract drawn up (submission date 31st January 2016)

and two members of VEHS started initial work.• I picked up the project in late December following

concerns (by those two members) that the project might not be complete by the contract date.

Structure of the book

• The book contains 180 images – 90 old and 90 new equivalent ones – with a few words on each pair.• The book is structured as a meandering walk

through the town – starting at the Bell Tower and ending at St Andrews – with a series of detours and backtracks.• I tried to ensure that highlights from the history of

the town were included – foundation, dissolution, Battle of Evesham, Civil War, modern expansion.

Practicalities

1. Started with the (draft) structure.2. Scanned a lot of old images (far more than was needed). Publishers

required at least 300dpi for old images. Helped that I’ve been storing materials for the VEHS and that I have a good scanner.

3. Printed out selected old images I thought would make an interesting (representative?) display. Laminated these so could take them out in the rain.

4. During odd days and breaks in other work, travelled around town (laminates in a folder) taking photographs roughly equivalent to those selected old images:

1. Lifts with Wendy Wagstaff;2. Borrowed dad’s car;3. Own car (when I finally bought a “new” car); and4. Walks up town.

5. Then lots of editing, fixing photos, updating structure, doing research, adding text (foreword, intro, blurb, etc.).

• So, if you walked around Evesham following the pictures in the book, in sequence, where would you be going…..

Mea cupla: Images for Hampton Mill and for the New Bridge are actually the wrong way round!

Selection of images

• The most interesting images are, I think, those taken from the top of the Bell Tower – they truly show how much the town has changed• These images taken from the scaffolding around the

Bell Tower (all other images taken from ground level).

View from Bell Tower to South

Modern view (mostly unchanged) New houses

View from Bell Tower to southwest

Modern view

Lots of houses

Not now a barnbut houses

New build andolder new build

View from Bell Tower to northwest

Modern view (lots of new houses) Again lots of houses

Pedestrianised zone (no cars)

View from Bell Tower to northeast

Modern viewLots and lots of new houses

Another way of seeing how Evesham has changed… growing population

Year Population Year Population1104-30 c.300 1871 4,877

1200 c.1,000 1881 5,1121538 1,275 1891 5,836

1562-63 1,382 1901 7,1011640 c.2,000 1911 8,3081660 1,555 1921 8,6881776 1,845 1931 8,7991777 1,828 1935 10,6051794 2,379 1938 10,9101801 2,837 1941 No census1811 3,068 1951 12,0621821 3,472 1961 12,0011831 3,976 1971 13,8471841 4,245 1991 17,7441851 4,605 2001 22,1791861 4,680 2011 23,576

Figures from 1935 onwards include Great & Little Hampton

And another way… Evesham 1952

Compare to Evesham 2002

Sometimes an interesting old picture but a dull new equivalent…

Nailor’s Row in Bengeworth is now a carpark off Upper Leys….

Some with no equivalent in old photographs…

Do you know where these are?

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3

1. Back of Bluebird Stores2. Backs near Dresden House3. Genesis Lane

Some with too much traffic…

Some with too much scaffolding…

… with obvious exception of Bell Tower!

Sometimes sunlight too bright (and shadows too strong)…

Sometimes too artistic…

An early January morning in Abbey Park

Other images just plain unusable…

Thomas the Tank Engine pencil drawing on ends of new stonework for Bell Tower

Select details in some pictures…

My dad’s car in front of AlmswoodMy car on Broadway Road

Cover design

First draft Second (final) draft

Standard layout and formatting by the Publisher using selected images provided.

The old image is part of a large panoramic oil painting (c.1795)

The image contains some interesting details…

Small house in the cloister area

All Saints viewed from east

Huge trees in the churchyard.

No sacristy (c.1875) or choir vestry (1897)

Chancel (c.1875) is now more narrow.

Odd roof line near the tower

Is that a leper squint (or hagioscope) in the corner

What about Evesham Abbey?

• I did not include any impressions of the abbey because there are no reliable images…• … and I could not find the artist of the best image

(so could not get his permission)…

Evesham Abbey (c.1883)

The Abbey had a steeple.

Per The English Historical Review, vol. LXXIX (October 1964), No.CCCXIII, page 776; the marginalia of the ‘Evesham Bible’ includes the following from John of Alcester (c.1540):

“The stepull and the towr were xi schore yards in lenth the tower iiijxx and ten and the spyr viixx.”

Can you see what’s wrong?

Evesham Abbey (Ian Gibson, 2012)

Weathervanes first appeared on the Bell Tower in 1717: before then there was a flagpole (with a flag of an anchor; the patronal emblem of Clement Lichfield).

Evesham Abbey (c.2000)

Charnel house chapel dedicated to St Michael.

Chantry to St Katherine built c.1523 (demolished c.1737)

Linking the abbey and St Lawrence “a very great and curious walk” (Habingdon, c.1640)

Book launch at VEHS AGM• Book was published by Amberley

on 15th April 2016.• Considering the use of VEHS

archives, and review by VEHS members, it seemed only appropriate to officially launch the book at the VEHS AGM on 28th April 2016.• Opportunity to also promote (or

at least mention) other books published by the VEHS, including:• George & Toni Demidowicz’s book

on the Bell tower• My own book on a lost bell of

Evesham Abbey

Q&AThank you!