{"title":"Books by Colin Wilkinson","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"9781398109933","title":"Darlington: A Potted History","description":"Darlington’s history is popularly seen as the story of Quakers and railways but there is much more to the town’s past than this. From its beginnings as a Saxon settlement, it became the southern stronghold of the land of the Prince Bishops, a market town, had its own Great Fire long before London, provided inns for travellers along the Great North Road, became an industrial centre and faced the twenty-first century with a diversified economy as the old heavy industries closed. Along the way, as the town grew rapidly in the nineteenth century, it was a group of Quaker Darlington businessmen who masterminded the beginnings of Britain’s railway system in the town.This book will look back over the centuries to uncover the fascinating history of the town. Stories of the town’s rebels, reformers, activists, benefactors, heroes and campaigners, England’s first black professional football player, as well as the lives of the ordinary folk, bring the history to life, together with illustrations to show where reminders of the town’s past can still be found.Illustrated throughout, this accessible historical portrait of the transformation that Darlington has undergone through the ages will be of great interest to residents, visitors and all those with links to the town.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56298312171893,"sku":"9781398109933","price":15.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781398109933_5fe48828-4979-4bc1-a976-1af2dcdca2fb.jpg?v=1786018594"},{"product_id":"9781398107465","title":"Whitby: A Potted History","description":"Whitby has a fascinating history, changing roles over the centuries from a religious centre to one of the country’s most important ports and later a resort. The king of Northumbria founded the monastery on the headland in the seventh century and installed St Hilda as the first abbess. Although it was abandoned following attacks by Danish raiders who later settled in the area, the abbey was re-established by the Normans. Following Henry VIII’s Dissolution of the Monasteries, the harbour and new industries were developed in Whitby, including alum mining, shipbuilding and transporting coal. Captain James Cook’s ships Endeavour and Resolution were originally Whitby colliers. Shipowners, merchants and shipbuilders settled in Whitby and built grand houses, alongside the more humble dwellings of those who worked in the port or local industries.The town was also known for its whaling fleet and the production of jet jewellery. From the eighteenth century the town began to be developed as a resort, with more visitors arriving in the nineteenth century when the railway was built, and today is a popular tourist destination. Through successive centuries the author looks at what has shaped Whitby’s history. Illustrated throughout, this accessible historical portrait of the transformation that Whitby has undergone through the ages will be of great interest to residents, visitors and all those with links to the town.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56298394714485,"sku":"9781398107465","price":15.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781398107465_9aa46f78-1a10-4309-b080-9cd4cd214ec2.jpg?v=1786018504"},{"product_id":"9781398120181","title":"Churches of County Durham","description":"\u003cp\u003ePennine hills, unspoilt moorland, dramatic dales, picturesque villages, market towns and a magnificent coastline are all part of the scenery of County Durham. The history is equally rich, from early farming settlement, conquests, rebellion and mining to industrial development, and always present through these times have been the churches. The earliest churches in the county date from the Anglo-Saxon era and the Norman Prince Bishops of Durham instituted a new building programme, including several churches dedicated to the local saint, Cuthbert. Later events all left their mark on the county’s churches, from the Reformation and Civil War to the rise of dissenting groups such as Quakers and Methodists. Industrial development and the growth of densely populated urban areas required a new church building programme by the Victorians and in the last century the story of County Durham’s churches has continued.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn Churches of County Durham, author Colin Wilkinson explores a cross-section of historical churches throughout the county, both the well known and those waiting to be discovered by a wider audience. This fascinating picture of an important part of the history of the county over the centuries will be of interest to all those who live in or are visiting this splendid area of England.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56298434036085,"sku":"9781398120181","price":15.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781398120181_bc64cd4a-7143-4eb3-a568-ac06c725c9a0.jpg?v=1786018182"},{"product_id":"9781445699288","title":"Whitby in 50 Buildings","description":"Crowds of visitors flock to Whitby to explore the ancient abbey, walk the narrow streets, pass Captain Cook’s home and see the replica of his ship Endeavour, but the history of Whitby is much richer, as revealed in this tour of its significant, interesting and unusual buildings. After the Dissolution of the Monasteries the Cholmley family took over much of the abbey’s lands, building a grand home and developing the port and local industries. Whitby became one of the busiest ports in the land and magnificent Georgian buildings testify to the wealth brought into the town, not least through whale hunting. Other grand buildings of this time were constructed on wealth from the elsewhere, including slave plantations in the Caribbean. The town has also preserved the more modest homes of sailors and fishermen, including charitable housing, and the continuing connection with the sea is also represented by lighthouses, the foghorn station and lifeboat stations. More recently Whitby has become a holiday destination, with Victorian and more recent hotels, cinemas and a lido built for the use of visitors and local inhabitants.Whitby in 50 Buildings explores the history of this fascinating Yorkshire coastal resort through a selection of its most interesting buildings and structures, showing the changes that have taken place over the years. The book will appeal to all those who live in Whitby or who know it well.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56299823858037,"sku":"9781445699288","price":15.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781445699288_bb7c6966-4f5a-46c7-99ad-84b6512b226a.jpg?v=1786020729"},{"product_id":"9781398127708","title":"Stockton-on-Tees: A Potted History","description":"\u003cp\u003eStockton-on-Tees was a small port and market town in the north-east of England for much of its history. Shipbuilding and other industries gradually established themselves over the years, but it was with the Industrial Revolution that the town received a massive boost. The opening of the pioneering Stockton \u0026amp; Darlington Railway enabled coal to be transported to the port. Industries developed around the discovery of iron ore locally, as well as engineering and potteries, and the population expanded rapidly. The town was transformed by large areas of Victorian dwellings, absorbing neighbouring settlements. By the turn of the twentieth century the town was supported by a thriving market, theatres, pubs, schools, libraries, fairs, parks and churches. The depression of the interwar years and the closure of shipyards saw many lose their jobs, but the period also saw the start of the chemical industry at Billingham, which grew into a vast complex. Although today Stockton has lost much of its traditional industry, sites have been turned into business parks, attracting service industries and a university campus. The story of the town tells of heroes, inventors, business leaders, rioters as well as the lives of ordinary folk.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIllustrated throughout, this accessible historical portrait of the transformation that Stockton-on-Tees has undergone through the ages will be of great interest to residents, visitors and all those with links to the town.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56420576067957,"sku":"9781398127708","price":15.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781398127708_2e51e636-11f1-437e-86d1-628ca5dc8d2a.jpg?v=1786018421"},{"product_id":"stockton-on-tees-in-50-buildings","title":"Stockton-on-Tees in 50 Buildings","description":"The history of Stockton-on-Tees can be traced from a Saxon settlement, through defences built by Norman invaders, development during the Middle Ages brought by the Prince Bishops of Durham, the growth of ports and shipbuilding yards, the pioneering railway and the emergence of an engineering industry, to the twentieth century and beyond with modern buildings highlighting the changing role of the town. Stockton-on-Tees in 50 Buildings explores the history of this town in County Durham through a selection of its most interesting buildings and structures, showing the changes that have taken place over the years, ranging from the High Street and the impressive Town House, a Georgian theatre hidden away in an old yard and the restored Art Deco Globe, to a warehouse by the River Tees, a reminder of the town’s importance as a port, the world’s first railway tavern, the salt works turned into an RSPB centre, the house used to intercept German wireless signals in the First World War the ancestral home of George Washington’s family in the borough of Stockton, and many more fascinating buildings and structures. This book will appeal to all those who live in Stockton-on-Tees or who have an interest in the area.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57503751602549,"sku":"9781398127722","price":15.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781398127722.jpg?v=1786867463"}],"url":"https:\/\/backstory.london\/collections\/author-colin-wilkinson.oembed","provider":"Backstory","version":"1.0","type":"link"}