I describe myself as a Victorianist and independent researcher with a Phd. My work investigates the civilising mission and social control within urban space in the industrial north of England UK.
Before 1888, Keighley in West Yorkshire had no public park and was becoming increasing distanced ... more Before 1888, Keighley in West Yorkshire had no public park and was becoming increasing distanced from its rural past by the sudden growth in the worsted industry and machine making, but by 1893 the residents of the town were fortunate to have no less than three public parks ...
Abstract
Social historians have examined the role of religion in northern manufacturing areas du... more Abstract
Social historians have examined the role of religion in northern manufacturing areas during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, explaining its decline and its cultural and social effect. As a contribution to that existing research, this regional case study investigates the Sunday school in West Yorkshire’s textile region of the Aire Valley, from 1850-1914. It examines the impact and influence of the Sunday school on society as it changed and adjusted to industrial conditions. The aim of this study is to discover how Sunday schools, within the Aire Valley, used power and knowledge to govern and civilise their scholars. Through focusing on the functions of Sunday schools, as well as their relationship to employer and employee, and by applying a Foucauldian framework, the thesis explores themes of respectability, morality and self-governance. It assesses the work of Sunday schools and the ways in which they carried out their civilising mission to ensure that children were fit for both the divine world, and the earth-bound one. The largest and more influential protestant denominations are included, though some, like the Methodists, had a greater presence than others. In addition minority religions like the Spiritualist Lyceum, or Spiritualist Sunday School, have also been included to provide a broader coverage of faiths across the Aire Valley’s religious landscape. This thesis traces the function of the Sunday school in the Aire Valley, a region of immense industrial and social change before and during the period under review. In so doing, it will investigate the institutional spaces and cultural practices related to the Sunday school, including the classroom, Sunday-school literature, recreation, and urban space, and reveal the ways that Sunday schools negotiated change to continue their civilising mission after the introduction of national reform in 1870. Indeed, this civilising mission extended beyond the classroom, into the workspace, onto the streets and even into the home. As a close-knit region, with a shared social, economic and cultural identity, the Aire Valley has been under-explored by academic historians and, therefore, offers scope for further research into social and cultural consequences of industrialisation and urbanisation. This region-wide focus has enabled an analysis of both textile villages and towns, including their suburbs, to be undertaken, which has meant that it has been possible to evaluate both rural and urban Sunday schools. This includes the mill town of Keighley, which, whilst on a smaller scale, epitomised the conditions faced by many large northern cities, such as Bradford and Leeds. It also includes the mill village of Saltaire, a planned settlement built by the benefactor Titus Salt. It also includes small towns like neighbouring Shipley and Bingley, and a number of textile villages, which remain relatively under-researched compared to Keighley and Saltaire.
The nineteenth-century urban cemetery was not only a place for depositing and visiting the dead, ... more The nineteenth-century urban cemetery was not only a place for depositing and visiting the dead, burial grounds were also spaces in which people could meet, exercise and promenade. Before parks and graveyards, cemeteries provided much needed quiet places, most particularly those close to industrial towns. As quiet areas away from the hustle and bustle of urban life, cemeteries worked to provide a space for meditative reflection, whilst bringing the person closer to God and their own mortality. One of the main concerns for many urban ruling classes, in this era, was how to mark out their power, status and difference. They did this through the spectacle of grand memorialisation such as family tombs, or mausoleums, which seems to have been not only a show of respectability, but also a show of morality and urban competition. Wealthy display was a claim on authority.
Before 1888, Keighley in West Yorkshire had no public park and was becoming increasing distanced ... more Before 1888, Keighley in West Yorkshire had no public park and was becoming increasing distanced from its rural past by the sudden growth in the worsted industry and machine making, but by 1893 the residents of the town were fortunate to have no less than three public parks ...
Abstract
Social historians have examined the role of religion in northern manufacturing areas du... more Abstract
Social historians have examined the role of religion in northern manufacturing areas during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, explaining its decline and its cultural and social effect. As a contribution to that existing research, this regional case study investigates the Sunday school in West Yorkshire’s textile region of the Aire Valley, from 1850-1914. It examines the impact and influence of the Sunday school on society as it changed and adjusted to industrial conditions. The aim of this study is to discover how Sunday schools, within the Aire Valley, used power and knowledge to govern and civilise their scholars. Through focusing on the functions of Sunday schools, as well as their relationship to employer and employee, and by applying a Foucauldian framework, the thesis explores themes of respectability, morality and self-governance. It assesses the work of Sunday schools and the ways in which they carried out their civilising mission to ensure that children were fit for both the divine world, and the earth-bound one. The largest and more influential protestant denominations are included, though some, like the Methodists, had a greater presence than others. In addition minority religions like the Spiritualist Lyceum, or Spiritualist Sunday School, have also been included to provide a broader coverage of faiths across the Aire Valley’s religious landscape. This thesis traces the function of the Sunday school in the Aire Valley, a region of immense industrial and social change before and during the period under review. In so doing, it will investigate the institutional spaces and cultural practices related to the Sunday school, including the classroom, Sunday-school literature, recreation, and urban space, and reveal the ways that Sunday schools negotiated change to continue their civilising mission after the introduction of national reform in 1870. Indeed, this civilising mission extended beyond the classroom, into the workspace, onto the streets and even into the home. As a close-knit region, with a shared social, economic and cultural identity, the Aire Valley has been under-explored by academic historians and, therefore, offers scope for further research into social and cultural consequences of industrialisation and urbanisation. This region-wide focus has enabled an analysis of both textile villages and towns, including their suburbs, to be undertaken, which has meant that it has been possible to evaluate both rural and urban Sunday schools. This includes the mill town of Keighley, which, whilst on a smaller scale, epitomised the conditions faced by many large northern cities, such as Bradford and Leeds. It also includes the mill village of Saltaire, a planned settlement built by the benefactor Titus Salt. It also includes small towns like neighbouring Shipley and Bingley, and a number of textile villages, which remain relatively under-researched compared to Keighley and Saltaire.
The nineteenth-century urban cemetery was not only a place for depositing and visiting the dead, ... more The nineteenth-century urban cemetery was not only a place for depositing and visiting the dead, burial grounds were also spaces in which people could meet, exercise and promenade. Before parks and graveyards, cemeteries provided much needed quiet places, most particularly those close to industrial towns. As quiet areas away from the hustle and bustle of urban life, cemeteries worked to provide a space for meditative reflection, whilst bringing the person closer to God and their own mortality. One of the main concerns for many urban ruling classes, in this era, was how to mark out their power, status and difference. They did this through the spectacle of grand memorialisation such as family tombs, or mausoleums, which seems to have been not only a show of respectability, but also a show of morality and urban competition. Wealthy display was a claim on authority.
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Papers by Lynn Macgill
Thesis Chapters by Lynn Macgill
Social historians have examined the role of religion in northern manufacturing areas during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, explaining its decline and its cultural and social effect. As a contribution to that existing research, this regional case study investigates the Sunday school in West Yorkshire’s textile region of the Aire Valley, from 1850-1914. It examines the impact and influence of the Sunday school on society as it changed and adjusted to industrial conditions. The aim of this study is to discover how Sunday schools, within the Aire Valley, used power and knowledge to govern and civilise their scholars. Through focusing on the functions of Sunday schools, as well as their relationship to employer and employee, and by applying a Foucauldian framework, the thesis explores themes of respectability, morality and self-governance. It assesses the work of Sunday schools and the ways in which they carried out their civilising mission to ensure that children were fit for both the divine world, and the earth-bound one. The largest and more influential protestant denominations are included, though some, like the Methodists, had a greater presence than others. In addition minority religions like the Spiritualist Lyceum, or Spiritualist Sunday School, have also been included to provide a broader coverage of faiths across the Aire Valley’s religious landscape.
This thesis traces the function of the Sunday school in the Aire Valley, a region of immense industrial and social change before and during the period under review. In so doing, it will investigate the institutional spaces and cultural practices related to the Sunday school, including the classroom, Sunday-school literature, recreation, and urban space, and reveal the ways that Sunday schools negotiated change to continue their civilising mission after the introduction of national reform in 1870. Indeed, this civilising mission extended beyond the classroom, into the workspace, onto the streets and even into the home.
As a close-knit region, with a shared social, economic and cultural identity, the Aire Valley has been under-explored by academic historians and, therefore, offers scope for further research into social and cultural consequences of industrialisation and urbanisation. This region-wide focus has enabled an analysis of both textile villages and towns, including their suburbs, to be undertaken, which has meant that it has been possible to evaluate both rural and urban Sunday schools. This includes the mill town of Keighley, which, whilst on a smaller scale, epitomised the conditions faced by many large northern cities, such as Bradford and Leeds. It also includes the mill village of Saltaire, a planned settlement built by the benefactor Titus Salt. It also includes small towns like neighbouring Shipley and Bingley, and a number of textile villages, which remain relatively under-researched compared to Keighley and Saltaire.
Books by Lynn Macgill
One of the main concerns for many urban ruling classes, in this era, was how to mark out their power, status and difference. They did this through the spectacle of grand memorialisation such as family tombs, or mausoleums, which seems to have been not only a show of respectability, but also a show of morality and urban competition. Wealthy display was a claim on authority.
Social historians have examined the role of religion in northern manufacturing areas during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, explaining its decline and its cultural and social effect. As a contribution to that existing research, this regional case study investigates the Sunday school in West Yorkshire’s textile region of the Aire Valley, from 1850-1914. It examines the impact and influence of the Sunday school on society as it changed and adjusted to industrial conditions. The aim of this study is to discover how Sunday schools, within the Aire Valley, used power and knowledge to govern and civilise their scholars. Through focusing on the functions of Sunday schools, as well as their relationship to employer and employee, and by applying a Foucauldian framework, the thesis explores themes of respectability, morality and self-governance. It assesses the work of Sunday schools and the ways in which they carried out their civilising mission to ensure that children were fit for both the divine world, and the earth-bound one. The largest and more influential protestant denominations are included, though some, like the Methodists, had a greater presence than others. In addition minority religions like the Spiritualist Lyceum, or Spiritualist Sunday School, have also been included to provide a broader coverage of faiths across the Aire Valley’s religious landscape.
This thesis traces the function of the Sunday school in the Aire Valley, a region of immense industrial and social change before and during the period under review. In so doing, it will investigate the institutional spaces and cultural practices related to the Sunday school, including the classroom, Sunday-school literature, recreation, and urban space, and reveal the ways that Sunday schools negotiated change to continue their civilising mission after the introduction of national reform in 1870. Indeed, this civilising mission extended beyond the classroom, into the workspace, onto the streets and even into the home.
As a close-knit region, with a shared social, economic and cultural identity, the Aire Valley has been under-explored by academic historians and, therefore, offers scope for further research into social and cultural consequences of industrialisation and urbanisation. This region-wide focus has enabled an analysis of both textile villages and towns, including their suburbs, to be undertaken, which has meant that it has been possible to evaluate both rural and urban Sunday schools. This includes the mill town of Keighley, which, whilst on a smaller scale, epitomised the conditions faced by many large northern cities, such as Bradford and Leeds. It also includes the mill village of Saltaire, a planned settlement built by the benefactor Titus Salt. It also includes small towns like neighbouring Shipley and Bingley, and a number of textile villages, which remain relatively under-researched compared to Keighley and Saltaire.
One of the main concerns for many urban ruling classes, in this era, was how to mark out their power, status and difference. They did this through the spectacle of grand memorialisation such as family tombs, or mausoleums, which seems to have been not only a show of respectability, but also a show of morality and urban competition. Wealthy display was a claim on authority.