LANCASTER: A HISTORY and CELEBRATION
by Robert Swain

Produced by The Frances Frith Collection
exclusively for OTTAKAR'S
Published 2004, hardback, 120pp, price £14.99

Reviewed by Michael Nunn

"Lancaster has a long and rich history. That history is mainly about people …'

Thus begins the book's narrative, and that perspective is surely the right one for a day and age in which history, thankfully, is no longer regarded as a mere catalogue of dates, rulers, empires or governments. So, unlike some other history or ‘heritage' books, you know where you stand with this one.

The journey through history opens with a stunning Aerofilims shot of Lancaster in 1963, embracing the while of the City centre from just south of White Cross in the foreground to the gas holder near the Quay to the west, Scale Hall Lane to Skerton Weir in the north, and St Peter's Cathedral in the east. The detail is very clear and sharp, as it is in most of the photographs, given their vintage.

On the next page is something else I had not seen before: a ‘Historic Timeline for Lancaster' from the arrival of Agricola and the Romans in cAD70 down to the 1984 fire in the City's market. The ‘line' is divided neatly into national events below the line, and key happenings in Lancaster above.

This helps put local events into a national and international context, such as the building of the gatehouse of the Castle in 1400, just 15 years before King Henry V's victory at Agincourt. Skerton Bridge, this tells us, was built the year before the French Revolution, and Lancaster University opened before men walked on the moon.

And so on to the five chapters, which cover briefly the history of Lancaster, from Roman Camp to witchcraft trial town, international port and hive of Victorian industry to the present. This is no specialist, footnoted history, but is pitched at the lay but curious reader. Swain's prose is clear and fluent, and there are some fascinating ‘Did you know?' boxes scattered throughout the book, which adds to the interest.

For me, the most immediate appeal of this handsome book is in the superb photographs. There are many of course drawn from the early days of photography, many of which I have not seen before. But these are not only images; old maps from Speed (1610) onwards are reproduced along with Georgian theatre playbills, contemporary photographs, and the front cover of the programme for the 2003 Maritime Festival.

The narrative concludes with a brief survey of how the City looks today, what happens here and what its people do. It is quite clear that Robert Swain has a passionate interest in his adoptive home town (he was born just over the River Wyre, but has lived here for more than fifty years), and the illustrations complement the history very well.

In short, the ‘celebration' comes across very clearly indeed. So if you love your City, and have some book tokens or Christmas money to spend, this is for you.

Copyright © 2 January 2005 Michael Nunn