Current Projects

An Historical Map of Cambridge

University and County Town

Town & City Historical Map no.16

Publication: Late 2023

ISBN: 978-1-8380719-5-0

Cambridge is well known as a university town, and is also the county town of Cambridgeshire. Its roots are essentially Roman, with a settlement on the hill later occupied by Cambridge Castle. The town received a charter in the early 12th century and its first students in what became Cambridge University arrived from Oxford in the early 13th. In 1284, the earliest of its colleges, Peterhouse, was founded, and the university and its constituent colleges began to dominate the built form of the city. Still a small place in the 18th century, the coming of the railways in the 19th began its transformation into a large and prosperous place. It became a city in 1951.

The map will cover the historic core of the city, from Grange Road in the west to the new suburb of Petersfield and the station in the east, the castle site in the north to the Botanic Garden in the south.

The map will be researched and produced by a team led by Tony Kirby. It will be published in Spring 2023, and has been made possible by the generosity of an anonymous donor.

An Historical Map of Bath

Medeival, Stuart and Georgian City

Town & City Historical Map no.17

Publication: Late 2023

ISBN: 978-1-8380719-6-7

Bath is perhaps the epitome of a Georgian town, and Bath's remarkable terraces and other buildings form a UNESCO World Heritage site. But its foundations are prehistoric and it was a remarkable Roman town and health resort, Aquae Sulis. It also has a medieval history and indeed began to become a resort again in the seventeenth century - a time in its history little mapped before now.

Working in conjunction with the History of Bath Research Group, we are creating a historical map of Bath which shows that, as well as its Roman and Georgian past, Bath has a fascinating story to tell outside of these well-known periods.

An Historical Map of Ripon

Town & City Historical Map no.18

Publication: Late 2023

ISBN: 978-1-8380719-7-4

The Historic Towns Trust is entering a partnership with Ripon Together to create an historical map of Ripon. Ripon is a major and historic settlement in Yorkshire, home of a former minster church whose crypt dates from the 7th century which became a cathedral in 1836, and a regional centre of long standing. It became a medieval centre for cloth-making, associated with the nearby Cistercian foundation of Fountains Abbey. In the First World War it housed an enormous, temporary military camp, several times larger than the town itself.

Ripon market place

An Historical Map of Perth

Town & City Historical Map no.19 (t.b.c.)

Publication: late 2023

ISBN:

The Historic Towns Trust is delighted to be working with a group of historians in Perth, including a core group from the Perthshire Society of Natural Science, to develop a project to produce a historical map of one of Scotland's most important historical settlements.

Close to the city of Perth is Scone Abbey, historically home of the Stone of Scone (the 'Stone of Destiny'), on which kings of Scotland were traditionally crowned. This enhanced the early importance of the city, and Perth became known as a 'capital' of Scotland due to the frequent residence there of the royal court. Royal burgh status was given to the city by King William the Lion in the early 12th century. The city became one of the richest burghs in the country, engaging in trade with France, the Low Countries, and the Baltic and importing goods such as Spanish silk and French wine. It is situated on the River Tay, not far from its estuary.