It's the cruel winter of 1813 and, in Manchester, the River Irwell has frozen from bank to bank. A school teacher named Lavinia Robinson has gone missing. Will she be found?

If you were one of the 260+ brilliant people who supported me by coming on my Angel Meadow history walking tour this year, thank you. I have some big plans for next year. #Manchester #history #genealogy #genhour #walkingtours

Delighted to share this new blog on teaching People’s Health Industrial using the fabulous work of @manchesterhistory.uk and the story of Angel Meadow. I’ve loved working on this. Thanks Dean for your incredible book. #historyteacher open.substack.com/pub/petejack...

Exciting news! Our new website is now live! fshousehistory.com

I've taken a little risk of putting myself out there to make a short film about cooking one of the dinner's my Nan used to make for me. She died in 1998. If you like #food #nostalgia and #familyhistory, or just want to watch someone chopping carrots, the full film is on the link in the comments.

My story today - The killer of little mule spinners - is the story of how the work of young cotton mill hands called piercers was giving them a rare form of cancer. #Genealogy #familyhistory #ancestry #genhour #history #lancashire

I've given my professional genealogy site a new look to better reflect my work in the mill towns of Greater Manchester and Lancashire: cottontownsancestry.com Do drop me a line using the site links if you need a researcher. #genhour #genealogy #familyhistory #ancestry #manchester #lancashire

In 1900, doctors were confused about why hundreds of people were taking ill in Manchester, UK. They only later discovered there was arsenic in the city’s beer supply. Most of the victims were women, who were only able to afford the cheapest, tainted beer. This is their story.

Roman road discovered in Manchester - one of the most significant archaeological discovers in the city for two decades #history #archaeology #romanbritain #Manchester www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Manchester Italian Association’s Madonna del Rosario procession has been taking place each summer since 1890. Here’s the Madonna on her way back to Little Italy in Ancoats this afternoon. #MadonnadelRosario #Ancoats #LittleItaly #Manchester #Italy

Are the bones of Thomas Paine, the father of the American Revolution, in your attic? For 200 years, claims have swirled that Paine's bones were buried in Manchester after being stolen from New York. Discover the theories, clues and intrigues... #july4th #4thofjuly #usa #independenceday #fouthofjuly

Chuffed to say I’m my little newsletter about the history of Manchester is back in the top 20 rising history newsletters over on Substack. #history #substack #writing

Friedrich Engels described Victorian Manchester as ‘Hell upon Earth’. Here’s why I think it’s time to reframe that period of the city’s history by focusing on the people who lived it. #Manchester #FriedrichEngels #history #genealogy #familyhistory

Thanks @gurbirsingh.bsky.socials It was nice to meet up again and I enjoyed chatting all things Engels and Manchester

Thanks for your time yesterday @manchesterhistory.uk Recording available here astrotalkuk.org/manchestersc....

Today on Manchester Science, the story of a young German writer with radical ideas - Friedrich Engels and his 1845 book, The Condition of the Working Class, with urban historian, journalist, and author Dr Dean Kerby. Live at 13:00 allfm.org

Looking forward to talking all things Friedrich Engels and Manchester with @gurbirsingh on AllFM this afternoon. Do tune in.

It’s 1844 and a well-dressed man is walking through the streets of Manchester. His ears are tuned in to the music of the world’s first industrial city: The flying shuttles thumping across the cotton looms like a heartbeat. The click-clack of the clogs on the cobbles. (Read more)

Here's the third part of my series on my search for Friedrich Engels in Manchester. It's 1844 and a well-dressed man is walking through the streets of the world's first industrial city. The cotton looms are thumping like a heartbeat. #Manchester #history #FriedrichEngels

Here’s second part of my new series of offbeat walks around the fringes of Manchester. Chapel Street in Salford awaits the march of the developers.

You might enjoy this davehaslam.substack.com/p/friedrich-...

This is really interesting particularly about when what was essentially was a piece of performance art then becomes part of the fabric of a city.

Here’s the second part of my series of stories about Friedrich Engels and Manchester, looking at the statue of Engels in Tony Wilson Place. #Manchester #Engels

‘Don’t steal my cats please’ #Manchester #graffiti #cats

How my family history research led me to an encounter with Friedrich Engels in the backstreets of Victorian Manchester. Read part 1 of Finding Mr Engels ⬇️ #genealogy #familyhistory #genhour #ancestry #genealogy #history #friedrichengels #manchester

Looking forward to giving a masterclass on tracing Victorian criminal ancestors based on my research into Manchester slums next week for the brilliant Family Tree Magazine #scuttlers #Victorian #familyhistory #genealogy #ancestry

Had the greatest night doing a talk on Friedrich Engels, Manchester and my family history for just under 300 people who came to see me for @manlitphil.bsky.social, pictured here as people were still arriving. 📸Thanks for the photos Gurbir Singh. #Manchester #history #FriedrichEngels #AngelMeadow

Just a handful of tickets left before we sell out 300 seats for my talk this week for Manchester Lit and Phil about Friedrich Engels, the Condition of the Working Class and how the book intersects with my own family history in Manchester. #genealogy #manchester #familyhistory #friedrichengels

The New York Times asked a genealogist to look at Pope Leo’s ancestry. #familyhistory #genealogy

🔴 This weekend's story from the Manchester History Club is about the Manchester Mulan, Sarah Roberts Taylor, who for 21 years lived a double life as a cavalryman and was wounded in the Napoleonic Wars. Read and subscribe ⬇️ #Manchester #militaryhistory #napoleonicwars

I discovered some rare interior photos of the pub with the oldest licence in Great Britain and what I found was quite a surprise - a Guy Fawkes room, a secret tunnel, a hangman’s door, a cupboard that was never opened… and a torture kit.

If you’re stuck for something to listen to while you’re cooking dinner today, here’s a podcast episode I did on Friedrich Engels and Manchester ⬇️

Had a look in Roald Dahl’s writing hut at his museum in Great Missenden. Among the unusual items Roald kept on his desk was the ball from his hip bone after it was removed in an operation. What’s the most unusual thing on your writing desk? #RoaldDahl #writinghut #authors #book

Not usually one for trends, but here you go and you can always join the real me for a real-life history walking tour adventure through the the streets of Manchester. Visit www.manchesterhistory.uk to buy tour tickets and join the club #actionfigures #actionfiguretrend #manchester

The sun is out for today’s history walking tour. It’s a fresh new T-shirt kind of day. 😎 Tickets for this summer’s tour dates via www.manchesterhistory.uk #Manchester #history #walkingtours

Chuffed to say my newsletter about the history of my home town has been named among the top 20 rising history newsletters on Substack. Please do subscribe if you want to help me to continue writing it. #Manchester #history #genealogy #writing

At Wardsend we have our own connection with Buffalo Bill and one performer in particular. Even to this day we still get asked if Paul Eagle Star is buried in our cemetery. wardsendcemetery.wordpress.com/paul-eagle-s...

In 1888, a Wild West show led by Buffalo Bill rolled into Salford. The legend has it that members of the Sioux tribe disappeared into the city’s streets and never returned home. But what really happened? Read the true story of Black Elk, Charging Thunder and Five Moons. #Manchester #Salford #history

Oh the irony of Victorian graffiti being written over by modern day graffiti. A momentary connection between the hands of two people separated by more than a century. I wonder if they noticed the chisselled handwriting when they tagged the wall. #history #graffiti #manchester #victorian

All set for the first day of my 2025 history walking tour season. Today’s tour is fully booked but do check out the ‘come on a tour’ link at www.manchesterhistory.uk if you want to come on a guided walk through the streets of Victorian Manchester this spring. 🎟️🚶🏻‍♂️ #localhistory #genealogy #tours

Enjoyed chatting to BBC Radio Manchester about the hidden history of Angel Meadow where I do genealogy research and walking tours for the descendants of the Victorian families who built the city. #localhistory #manchester #oneplacestudies #history #genealogy #ancestry

Looking forward to giving a talk on Monday about Victorian slums for the Manchester Geographical Society, which was founded in 1884. #oneplacestudies #localhistory #genealogy #manchester #angelmeadow

Just been watching a great talk by @manchesterhistory.uk (for the Family Tree Study Club) on tracing Irish emigrants back to their townlands, using land records, name distribution and the FAN Club method. My research mostly goes the other way, so it's helpful to see it from a different perspective.

Great talk, and a really useful demonstration of how the FAN Club method can work for tracing places of origin (including the people who got there before your ancestors arrived). Am off to look at the Matheson book of surnames!

Looking forward to giving this talk today for Family Tree magazine on tracing your Irish ancestor’s townland. Join us at 1pm www.family-tree.co.uk/how-to-guide... #familyhistory #genealogy #ancestry #genhour #familytree

I did an interview for @manlitphil.bsky.social about researching my #familyhistory as a teenager with my dad - and how our discoveries inspired me to write a PhD thesis on the place our ancestors lived. Read about my research journey: #Manchester #localhistory #genealogy #genhour #oneplacestudies

There’s a lovely discussion thread in the comments on this story on what we used for eat for tea in the North back in the day - tripe, ribs, sweetbreads, hash. I’d forgotten about the spare ribs my mum used to cook and can almost smell them cooking on the hob again now. #nostalgia #food #northern

In Manchester, the midday meal is called dinner and the evening meal is tea. Is it the same in your town? Here’s a story about why we call it dinner - and my Nan’s recipe for tatter ash. What did you eat for your dinner? #Manchester #nostalgia #food #genhour #ancestry #familyhistory #genealogy

Only a handful of tickets left...

I'll be in the @agragenealogy.bsky.social experts corner at the online Family History Show tomorrow offering advice about Victorian ancestors, tracing WW1 soldiers and mapping ancestral homes. Do drop by if you want to ask anything. #Manchester #familyhistory #genealogy #ancestry #ww1 #genhour