Leicestershire
Status: Active, 5 volumes published
Research and writing are now underway, to add more Leicestershire parish histories to the VCH.
Leicestershire has a fascinating and diverse history. Did you know, for example:
That Leicestershire contains 65% of the country's igneous rock, which has been quarried since Roman times and is still much in demand for road building?
That the first monastery to be established in England after the Reformation is in Leicestershire?
That one of the country's first railways opened in Leicestershire, and included a tunnel over one mile long?
Much of Leicestershire's history has yet to be researched and told. Only two topographical volumes have been published in the Leicestershire VCH series, one on the borough of Leicester and one covering Market Harborough and the south-east of the county. There remain around 300 town and village histories that have yet to be researched and written, including most of the county's market towns and numerous villages for which nothing has been published since John Nichols wrote his history of the county some 200 years ago.
Initial support from Leicestershire County Council, the University of Leicester, Harvey Ingram LLP and the Michael Bishop Foundation has enabled some free training and support to be delivered to 40 keen volunteers who are helping to research and write the histories of 27 parishes, but we have no permanent source of funding and the support of individuals, corporate donors and charitable trusts is URGENTLY required if this work is to continue.
Help us turn our aim to publish further parish histories on this site and in 'big red books' into reality. Leicestershire needs and DESERVES a modern county history. A donation to Leicestershire Victoria County History Trust (charity no. 1128575) will help us to provide further training and support to our volunteers to enable research and writing to continue. It will also help us to add further transcripts of documents to the Work in Progress section of this site, which will benefit familiy historians and others with an interest in Leicestershire people and communities. The training and skills we provide to our volunteers, free of charge, will also enable them to provide valuable skilled help with other heritage projects in the future.
For further details or to make a donation, please contact The Secretary, Leicestershire Victoria County History Trust, Marc Fitch Historical Institute, 5 Salisbury Road, Leicester, LE1 7QR; telephone 0116 252 2762; email jad17@le.ac.uk, or complete and return the form on the 'Support' section of this website.
