History of the website.

The website is now over 26 years old. It first appeared in August 1999 as a small website containing a few articles about local history. Since those days it has grown to be one of the largest local history websites in the country. I hope you will continue to enjoy your future visits to the site.
                                                                                                      Bev Parker.


The latest additions to the website over the last year:

January 26: The story of Lee Howl & Company Limited in the industry section in The Annals of Tipton has been extended, as has the section The Twentieth Century. The story of Joseph Sankey & Sons Limited in the Bilston menu in Local Areas has also been extended. Additions have also been made to the story of Atlas Works in the Darlaston industries section in A brief history of Darlaston. Recent Times, also in A brief history of Darlaston has also been extended. Additions have been made to the industries section in Coseley Through The Ages. The following sections in Gazetteer of Lock and Key Makers in the museum have been extended: Josiah Parkes, Enoch Jones & Sons, H & T Vaughan and Beddow & Sturmey Limited. The following sections in Willenhall Through The Ages have also been extended: C and L Hill Limited, Samuel Griffiths, The Industrial Town and Into the 20th Century. Additions have also been made to the following sections in The Story of Walsall: John Russell & Company Limited in the Iron and Steel section in Industry and Into the 19th Century. The story of St. Paul's Church, Wood Green in A History of Wednesbury has been extended.

December 25: The Post-War Years in A Brief History of Darlaston and the following sections in the Gazetteer of Lock and Key Makers in the museum: Josiah Parkes, Albert Marston and Company Limited, Erebus Manufacturing Company Limited, and J. Legge and Company Limited have been extended. Some of the exhibits in the museum printing hall have been updated. They are the story of John Neave and the story of William A. Parkes. The section on Walsall public houses has also been extended as has the section on Wolverhampton and Staffordshire Technical College in Images of Wolverhampton Polytechnic. The cinemas section in The Twentieth Century in The Annals of Tipton has also been extended along with the story of Joseph Wright and Company Limited in the Tipton industries section. Additions have been made to the following sections in The Story of Walsall: Churches and Religion, St. Matthew's Church, Recent Times, The story of Walsall Arboretum, Second half of the nineteenth century, Early Industries, Into the Twentieth Century. The Early Days in the story of Meynell Valves in the Museum Engineering Hall has been extended.

November 25: The history of Contactor Switchgear in the museum electrical engineering hall has been extended. An article about Wolverhampton's Civic Restaurants has been added to the articles menu. The sad story of PC Albert Willits in the section about Jennings undertakers in the exhibition services hall in the exhibition has been greatly extended. A section on the history of Triplex Foundry Limited has been added to the Tipton industries section in The Annals of Tipton and the history of Lee, Howl and Company Limited, in the same section has been extended. Additions have been made to The Growing Town and Public Houses also in The Annals of Tipton. The section on Sunbeam buses in the coaches and buses menu in the museum transport hall has been extended as has the Sunbeam commercial vehicles section in the commercial vehicles section also in the museum transport hall. The post war years section in A Brief History of Darlaston has also been extended. Additions have been made to the section about shops and pubs in old Penn, in articles about Penn, in local areas, in the articles menu.

October 25: The story of Brinsford Lodge has been added to the section about the 1970s in Images of Wolverhampton Polytechnic. Additions have been made to old Worcester Street shops in the shopping arcade in the exhibition of commerce and services. Additions have also been made to the story of Hill Top Foundry in the Industry section of A History of Wednesbury. The following sections in the Gazetteer of Lock and Key Makers in the museum have been extended: Henry Squire & Sons, Yale, Belfry - Henry Harrison & Sons Limited, ERA - J. E. Reynolds & company Limited, W. M. Pinson & Son Limited, Chubbs, Josiah Parkes & Sons Limited. Into the 20th Century in Willenhall Through The Ages has also been extended. Additions have also been made to the section on Ocker Hill Power Station in The Twentieth Century in The Annals of Tipton and also to the history of Kirkpatrick Limited in the industries section of The Story of Walsall. The education section in A Brief History of Darlaston has also been extended as has Iron and Steel Making and the story of St. John's Church, the exterior, in History in the Community.

September 25: Additions have been made to Into the 20th Century and The Close of the Century in A Brief History of Darlaston and to the following sections in the museum transport hall: bicycle makers, cycles, Moseley Cycles, Easthope Limited, Joseph Devey & Company, and Whitmore Cycles. Additions have also been made to the story of George Price and to the story of J. H. Butler in the general metalware and holloware section in the museum metalware hall. The industries section in The Annals of Tipton has been extended, as has the industries section in A History of Wednesbury and the industries section in Dudley in the Past. The history of Joshua Bigwood  & Son Limited in the museum engineering hall has also been extended as has the story of Reade Brothers in the museum other trades hall. Additions have also been made to the following sections in A History of Wednesbury: Public Houses, Tube Making in Other Industries, Some shops and businesses in the early 20th century, The Borough Council and Its Works and Into the 21st Century.

August 25: Additions have been made to part 5 of Views of the Black Country in the Early 21st Century in the old photographs menu and also to the story of the Royal Orphanage. The story of Star bicycles in the cycle section in the museum transport hall has been extended. The story of All Saints Church in the section on religion in history in the community has also been extended, as has the section on Education and the section on the leather industry in Walsall Industries as well as Into The 19th Century and also Recent Times in The Story of Walsall. Additions have also been made to the story of Josiah Parkes in the Gazetteer of Lock and Key Makers in the museum and to Vanguard Cycles in the bicycle section in the transport hall in the museum. The story of Wolverhampton's Municipal Tramways in the transport services hall in the exhibition has also been extended. Additions have also been made to the following sections in A Brief History of Darlaston: Cinemas, Photographs of Darlaston Pubs, Trams, The Post-War Years, the history of the Wellman Smith Owen Engineering Corporation Limited in the industries section.