Historic Coventry

History and record of updates to Historic Coventry

from 2015 - 2021


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  2021
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December
21st Vastly increased the viewing area for the Coventry map scans and Goad Fire Insurance plans
14th Updated new photo on the Fire Station, Hales Street Now and Then page
14th New Now & Then of the Hales Street to Corporation Street
13th New Now & Then of the Opera House, Hales Street
9th  Scans of programmes added to some shows in the Theatre archive
8th  Theatre archive split into years to speed up page loading
5th  Updated all photos on the Hales Street Now and Then page
5th  Updated photos on the Bishop Street Post Office Now and Then page
5th  Updated new photo on the Bishop Street, looking north Now and Then page
5th  Updated photos on the Great Butcher Row Now and Then page
2nd  More recent map and minor updates to article The First Tudor Feast, by Richard Ball

November
25th Automation of embedded image width on the Forum

October
12th Keyboard shortcuts Ctrl+I & Ctrl+B added to the Forum

September
30th Logged in members can now search within member's posts or topics on the Forum
21st 53 extra postcard images added to Rob's Pics image collection
16th Another article by Damien Kimberley: A Brief History of Saint Osburg's, in pictures
9th  Another photo and more information about St. Michael's choir c1906

August
13th 27 postcard images added to Rob's Pics image collection

July
13th Another Edwin Brown painting kindly shared for display in the Victorian Animal Artist article
3rd  Bold & Italic features now available on Forum messages and links can also be easily created

May
27th Further information about the children at the Munitions Cottages
24th The memories of the Birch family in war-time, by Wendy Lloyd
7th  New article: A short history of Coventry's Theatres and Cinemas, by Bill Birch

April
26th 10 more images of Ford's and Bond's Hospitals added to Rob's Pics image collection
1st  Another Damien Kimberley article: Henry Cave, and the 'Lady' Autocar of 1899

March
31st More photographs and information about the Guildhall ceiling thanks to David McGrory
30th New photo and information about the people at the Munitions Cottages
20th Information about Christopher Kemp Wells' super work restoring the Guildhall ceiling after the war

February
28th More images, including 49 Dr. Troughton's Sketches, added to Rob's Pics
24th 51 more images added to Rob's Pics
20th 35 more images added to Rob's Pics
18th Improvement for searches on Rob's pics - words can now be excluded
17th A few more images added to Rob's Pics
3rd  1927 Hippodrome poster added to the Old Hippodrome Now and Then page

January
31st Searches on Rob's pics more responsive and can be ordered by image number
24th Improvement to Rob's pics - searches can now be made on image numbers
24th Forum POC Library replaced by link to Coventry Digital
21st Additional information added to the Hippodrome / Coventry Theatre Now and Then page
20th Garfield Road finally added to the 1937 & 1951 street maps
11th Better linking to the List of bombing victims
6th  More images added to Rob's Pics

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^ 2021 ^
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  2020
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December
24th New project begun, to list all acts who appeared at The Hippodrome / Coventry Theatre
21st 1887 Ordnance Survey of Stoke and Binley added to Coventry map scans
10th Improvements made to the viewing interface on the List of bombing victims
7th  Documents now viewable on the List of bombing victims
6th  More names added to the List of bombing victims

November
26th More names added to the List of bombing victims
21st Year of demolition for Bishop gate located
20th New article Coventry, the Silk Trade and the Horsfall family, by Ian West
16th List of bombing victims added to the Blitz section
5th  J. B. Shelton's book "A Night in Little Park Street" added in PDF format

October
15th Ten more images added to Rob's Pics image collection on the forum
12th List of Coventry's Honorary Freemen added to the history section
11th  Memories of the Colony Cottages near to Munitions Cottages

April
26th Geraldine Williams has recognised a member of the Home Guard in Julie Stevenson's collection of unknown portraits
25th Another ex-pupil remembers Courthouse Green School
3rd  A Night in Little Park Street, by J. B. Shelton, added to Forum members' articles

March
30th Many more old photos added to "Rob's pics" on the Forum
8th  Launched Coventry's Pub History as a replacement for the discontinued Real Ale Rambles website

January
26th 1897 Parish map of Stoke added to Coventry map scans
24th A super anecdote from Ian Gentles added to the Horse drawn outing mystery page
17th Another super article by Damien Kimberley: Let's talk about Rex - The Story of Rex and Rex-Acme

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^ 2020 ^
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  2019
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December
20th Nicer background for street maps
18th 1656 'ground plot' added to Coventry map scans
5th  Three 1860s stereo-view cards of St. Michael's church added to the forum

November
19th Graham Whitehead's memories: A Childhood in Stoke added
18th Small improvements to registration and messaging on the Forum
13th New article on the forum - Draper's Hall: A Building through Time, by Paramjit Sehmi
12th Map added to the Coventry Cross page showing its original location

September
25th Photographs of the City Wall around at Bond's Hospital added
24th Coventry on this day... added to this Historic Coventry site (previously only on the Forum)
23rd Rob's Pics image collection on the forum overhauled to make searching more efficient (Only signed in members can access these)

August
22nd Update on the Coventry Cross

April
12th Another fine article by Damien Kimberley: The Dragoon Cycle Company of Coventry

March
18th Additional memories of Jerry Bird added

January
31st Next episode of Peter Ellis' memories: From boyhood to young adult

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^ 2019 ^
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  2018
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December
29th Medals, buttons and badges added to the Albert Edward Wright, police and military man page
20th New mystery page full of photos of Albert Edward Wright, police and military man to identify
8th  New member's article on the forum - The First Parish Book of St. John the Baptist, transcribed by W. A. Bottrill
3rd  Improvement to the Forum mail system - "Tick to receive copy" is now available on replying to mail

November
9th  And yet more family memories of the Munitions Cottages
4th  More family memories of the Munitions Cottages
2nd  The 1930s-40s Hillfields Memories of Jerry Bird added

October
13th Part two added for Peter Ellis' Boyhood Memories

September
19th The Boyhood Memories of Peter Ellis added
4th  Forum library images can now be easily inserted directly into posts

August
21st Improvement to Forum image administration
15th Uploaded Forum images can now be ordered alphabetically or by date to make posting easier

July
11th 1911 street plan added to Coventry map scans
9th  New history article The Weaver's Riot of 1831, by Sarah Thornton

June
28th A new three part article by Terence Richards: The Saint Joseph the Worker parish

May
21st Compatible audio player installed for playing the BBC Radio 4 interview
15th New music player for compatibility with various browsers
1st  A pre-1340 town plan added to Coventry map scans

April
29th The modern street-map can now be optionally hidden on the City Wall in modern Coventry map
5th  Members can now set their forum profiles to receive personal messages to inbox only with no email, if desired
1st  Latest street map for 2018 replaces the 2009 map

February
13th Forum images now auto-resize if browser width is reduced
6th  Old money quiz added to the Forum Fun page

January
28th Bug fixed whereby copying a forum post would break the 'previous - next' navigation order

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^ 2018 ^
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  2017
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December
17th Members can now see who has 'liked' a forum post by hovering over the number
1st  1807 street plan added to Coventry map scans

November
20th Coventry on this day... page now automatically totals and displays days with no event

October
27th Sources (where known) can now be displayed on the Coventry on this day... page

September
21st Members can now edit, delete or rename pictures uploaded for the Forum jigsaw puzzles
7th  Historic Coventry front page Coat of Arms now fades in and out
18th Forum jigsaw puzzles given various levels of difficulty - choice of smaller and/or rotated pieces

June
14th New 'viewer' for Coventry map scans and Goad Fire Insurance plans - now with Google-style zooming and panning
12th Goad Fire Insurance plans of Coventry added
10th Improvements to the navigation of Coventry street maps
4th  Update to show the pedestrianised Broadgate
2nd  Old map scans now automatically resizes the maps to just under full-screen
1st  Improvements to the ordering and display of the Search page results

May
31st Coventry mayors list now automatically displays how many times a person has been the mayor
29th A more detailed street plan of 1939 added to Old map scans
26th Old map scans page now remembers selected size
23rd Members' forum profiles now show 'likes' table for their own posts
22nd Map update to the piece of City Wall around Pool Meadow
22nd Month links added and blank days highlighted in the On this day list
19th Coventry on this day... list added to the forum
9th  J. B. Shelton's Austin's Monthly magazine articles transferred to run from the database
8th  Forum index can now be filtered for Coventry-only topics
7th  Further update and photo on City Wall around Pool Meadow
7th  Updated some photos for the City Wall, St. Johns, Old Grammar School and Whitefriars
6th  The Guest book transferred to run from the database
3rd  Most of the Historic Coventry website converted to run from a database

April
21st Forum members can now 'like' a post by clicking the 'thumb up' symbol next to it
19th Memories pages now running from the database
15th Barry Page has now added his full memoirs online

March
29th Diane Ord has recognised herself in the Wallace Road photo
11th Another article by Damien Kimberley: Motor Panels (Coventry) Ltd
11th Gary Daffron has come up with a lot more names of those at the Wallace Pub on VE day
5th  Spinney Lane belatedly added to 1749, 1807 & 1851 interactive street maps
5th  1869 added interactive street maps to show mid-19th century growth
3rd  Further adjustment of the City Wall map to show how where the Pool Meadow section of wall crossed the river, the later bridge became the basis of Priory Street
3rd  The memories Brian Porter, A Coventry Kid, written by his wife

February
26th Forum jigsaw puzzles added for the enjoyment of members
5th  City Wall around Pool Meadow page updated with the latest excavation
5th  City Wall map and Coventry year maps adjusted for more accuracy in the Pool Meadow area after city wall remains have been unearthed

January 2017
14th 1910 Baedeker plan of Coventry added to Old Map Scans
13th The Broadgate section enhanced by two more lovely scenes supplied by Trevor Pring

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^ 2017 ^
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  2016
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December 2016
23rd 1851 City of Coventry map added to Old Map Scans
4th  Non-Coventry category amalgamated into the mainstream forum

November 2016
24th William West's 1830 directory, compiled by John McSparron, added to the Forum members' articles index

October 2016
31st Fixed bug on forum that gave incorrect 'previous' topic when navigating back through a multi-page thread

September 2016
29th More detail and larger photos of the tapestry and north window on the Guildhall page
27th Another article by Damien Kimberley: The Arno Motor Company of Coventry 1908-1916
15th Alan Haywood has recognised some relatives in two VE day party photos in Frazer Road, Keresley

August 2016
14th Additional information for the Not Forgotten article by Simon Shaw
10th New article The Lion Bicycle Company of Coventry & Wolverhampton 1877-1882 by Damien Kimberley

July 2016
16th Godiva Harriers 'mystery' page updated with a link to compare with another photo in the forum gallery

June 2016
26th British Sport crossword added

April 2016
20th Forum update to allow easy linking to gallery images in forum posts
19th Added Rob's Pics collection of images for signed in forum members to use

March 2016
21st Guy Gibson's account of flying over Coventry during the Blitz added

February 2016
6th  Guest Book closed to further entries due to the success of the discussion forum
5th  Prints sub-domain no longer in use, so removed

January 2016
19th Another of John Lane's memories - this time a plane crash over Exhall
14th Innocence - John Lane's memories of a new boy at Edgwick primary school

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^ 2016 ^
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  2015
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December 2015
27th Updated photo showing Cheeky being presented to the rightful owner
6th  New feature - favourite topics can now be added on the forum

November 2015
24th Links to archive videos added to the Blitz section
19th A local BBC Radio photo mystery to solve - Find Cheeky!

October 2015
20th Major update to the Not Forgotten article by Simon Shaw
18th Updated pairing for the Blue Coat School now and then
18th Updated pairing for the Golden Cross now and then
10th Another memory added to the Bishop Street now and then page
2nd  New pairing for the Priory Row now and then

September 2015
28th New Council house 'Now and Then' on Steve's website
28th Updated Bishop Street / Old Grammar School 'Now and Then' photo on Steve's website
28th New pairing for the Council House now and then
27th Updated Jordan Well & Earl Street now and then (and corrected position)
27th Updated Art School in Ford Street now and then (and corrected position)
27th Updated Pool Meadow engraving 'now and then'
20th Updated Spon Street now and then

August 2015
31st Patrick Casey shares a postcard showing St. Michael's Church in the late 19th century
21st Update and improved map in Simon Shaw's Not Forgotten article
21st Updated aerial view on street maps

July 2015
6th  New short story by John Troughton added to the Book index
6th  Book index added to Local Authors

June 2015
1st  Inserting external images or links now automatically updates and previews the post on the forum
1st  Pop-up window provided to make adding external images easier on the forum

May 2015
26th Centred, Bold & Italic text can now be applied to forum posts
12th New 'now and then' of Burton's in Broadgate

April 2015
20th Printability of Historic Coventry webpages improved
12th Amendment to the Sherbourne Viaduct engraved 'now and then'

March 2015
31st New forum 'member article' The Earlsdon Company, by Simon Shaw
17th New Search for people category added to the forum
17th Improvements to forum admin to make category changing quicker
7th  Another of Edwin Brown's paintings kindly submitted for display in the Victorian Animal Artist article

February 2015
26th John Richardson has sent in a photo of the Broad Street School Rugby team of 1962/63 for the photo mystery section
24th Christine Heap has identified herself in a VE day party at Hardy Road
22nd Another ex-pupil remembers Courthouse Green School
16th Samuel Bradford's 1749 Plan of the City of Coventry added to Old Map Scans
15th Keyboard left & right arrows can now be used to navigate previous & next pages on the forum. Also, 'F' = first page, 'L' = last page, and 'R' = most recent post
15th Keyboard left & right arrows plus 'Home' & 'End' can now be used to navigate images in the forum gallery
12th The forum's automatic backup system sped up

January 2015
6th  "Sharpen" and "Flip" facilities added to the forum image editing suite
4th  Additional 'Title search' facility added to help forum members to place posts into the correct topic

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^ 2015 ^
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Updates from 2022 to present
Updates from 2015 to 2021
Updates from 2012 to 2014
Updates from 2009 to 2011
Updates from 2006 to 2008
Updates from 2002 to 2005
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