Studley Through Time, edited by Alistair Brewin, pub: Brewin Books, £8.95.
THEY say a picture says a thousand words and if that’s the case this is a volume very much worth treasuring.
Packed full of photographs gleaned from no end of sources it’s a must for anyone interested not just in Studley but in recent British history and the way we were.
It’s like a transporter back in time, to the days when roads were dirt roads, not tarmac, when the chimney stacks of the Victoria Brickworks (down Brickyard Lane, of course) dominated the skyline, where the giant Needle Industries’ Central Works, now the Co-op site, stretched up ‘Fleece Hill’ – before it burned down in 1977.
There’s a fascinating shot taken in 1915 of needlemakers outside what was then William Hall & Co, with a First World War recruitment poster on the back wall.
Turn the clock back one year and there’s a photograph of 18 Studley men, all dressed in what could be their Sunday best, ready to march off to war.
Below them is a picture of a marching band and crowds seeing them on their way dated September 7, 1914 and to the right, a more sombre gathering at the unveiling of the village war memorial in 1921.
On a lighter note there are photographs of coronation parties, street parties, carnival floats and more, with shots of the lighting of the beacon at the Queen’s 90th birthday celebrations and a shot of the Studley in Bloom team bringing the book right up to date.
In short, this book, printed in softback on glossy paper, is a treasure trove and one to keep and refer back to time and time again.
It’s available direct from Brewin Books at 56 Alcester Road or from Waterstones, WH Smiths or via Amazon.
