@oxhistcentre
We are part of Oxfordshire County Council - we're the archive and local studies for the county, including photographic collections Website - http://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/oxfordshirehistory Catalogue - https://heritagesearch.oxfordshire.gov.uk/
We are hiring! 🎉
We are seeking to appoint to our History Service Manager role on a permanent basis following an upcoming retirement. For further details, please see the following link:
careers.oxfordshire.gov.uk/jobs/job/His...
Closing date: Monday 23rd March
Interview date: Friday 1st May
This fascinating (and free!) exhibition commemorating the men from South Oxford who died in WW2 will be at the Westgate Library, Oxford from 12-30th March
It builds on last year’s popular exhibition '24 Men of Grandpont and Cold Harbour 1939-45' by including new research on the men from New Hinksey
Robert Boyle's portrait
The plaque commemorating the residence of Robert Boyle at University College, Oxford
This is Robert Boyle (1627-1691), an Anglo-Irish chemist and one of the historical figures highlighted this year as part of LGBT+ History Month which is celebrating LGBT+ people in Science and Innovation. He lived and worked in Oxford for 13 years and was a founder of modern chemistry
#LGBTplusHM
The marriage certificate of John Price and Hannah Fowler
A zoomed in section of the marriage certificate which shows the names of the 68 witnesses
On this day in February 1793, a John Price and Hannah Fowler were married in a Quaker ceremony in Chipping Norton. The marriage certificate contains a whopping 68 signatures of persons witnessing the marriage!
Team group portrait of Oxford University Ice Hockey Club taken at Oxford Ice Skating Rink
Today the 2026 Winter Olympics begins! ⛷️🏂
This team portrait of Oxford University Ice Hockey Club was taken at Oxford Ice Skating Rink, Botley Road c. 1930-1934. The ice rink opened in November 1930, but the building later became a cinema, war evacuee hostel and a Frank Cooper Ltd marmalade factory
New boxes piled high in the search room during our box delivery
Plans laid out in the conservation studio
Our search room desks taken over with various collections projects
Our 2026 stocktake is already a week in. Wonder what we're up to?
So far we’ve had a box delivery, taken over the search room with various projects, completed Incident Plan and Collections Handling refresher training, tidied the strongrooms, re-boxed Estate collections and had many meetings! Phew!
Private Scanes of Witney being hugged around the leg by 'Winnie' the black bear cub
It's #NationalHugDay
This photo in the 9th Feb 1916 Oxford Journal Illustrated shows Private Scanes of Witney with the Canadian Force's pet bear 'Winnie'. She was named after her owner's hometown, Winnipeg and later lived at London Zoo where she became the inspiration for AA Milne’s Winnie-the-Pooh
Poster for the exhibition providing details, including that it is held in the 'Old Cloakroom' at the Museum of Oxford and entrance is free. The exhibition runs until 21st March 2026.
Display cabinet at the exhibition including a copy of the Royal Charter of the 'Warneford Lunatic Asylum' dated 28th April 1849
An engraving of the 'Radcliffe Asylum' as it was known when it was opened in 1826 on Headington Hill
A special exhibition has launched this week at the Museum of Oxford as part of a programme of events to commemorate 200 years of Warneford Hospital. This free exhibition explores how mental health care has evolved in Oxfordshire over two centuries. Find the project's website here: warneford200.co.uk
Love this! Quite the multifunctional item.
Skaters on Pool Meadow, Chipping Norton 100 years ago in January 1926.
Originally a medieval pond built to supply Chipping Norton castle with fresh fish, Pool Meadow later became a swimming pool and ice rink from the Victorian era until the late 1940s.
That broom... snow sweeping or ice hockey?!
ANNUAL STOCKTAKING CLOSURE
Oxfordshire History Centre will close to visitors at 4.30pm on Thursday 22nd January and will re-open at 9.30am on Tuesday 10th February.
Our remote enquiry service will continue as usual during this fortnight.
It's National Balloon Ascension Day
This balloon flight in 1984 from Christ Church Meadow marked the 200th anniversary of James Sadler's balloon ascent on 4th October 1784, a pastry chef in Oxford who became the second person in England to do a balloon ascent.
Let's hope his doughs rose well too.
Happy New Year followers!
Snowy St Luke’s this morning. We are open to visitors today but please take care when travelling.
An elf collecting document request slips
Elves in the strongrooms
Elves using the rolling stacks
An elf searching for a book in the strongroom
On #ArchiveAdventCalendar we're up to #ArchiveElves – and we’ve had a couple of seasonal assistants ‘helping’ us with document productions from the strongrooms this month..!
As part of Cowley Christmas Festival, 5 mini #Christmas trees are travelling around community spaces in Oxford's #Cowley. Here is Cowley Library delivering our one yesterday, and tomorrow it will move onto #Oxford City Farm. St James Church's carol service on Sunday will be their final destination!
Christmas and New Year Closure Dates! 🎄🎁
The History Centre will close at 4.30pm on Wednesday 24 December. We will re-open at 9.30am on Saturday 3 January.
Instead of the usual snowy scenes and robins on #ChristmasCards, how about a cat dressed as a postman? Or beach scenes and donkey rides? And why not a cat framed by a lucky horseshoe?...
...some of our more unusual examples c. late 19th - early 20th century kept by the Herring family of Blackthorn
This year it’s our 90th birthday 🎂 and to celebrate we have recreated the exhibition put together for our Golden Jubilee in 1985, but this time it's online! Filled with collection highlights plus additions that reflect our last 40 years #EYAAnniversaries www.oxfordshirehistory.org.uk/public/exhib...
An image of the adjustable height computer table in the Searchroom.
An image of the wheelchair accessible public areas at Oxfordshire History Centre including reception, the café and disabled toilets.
It's already day 7 of #ExploreYourArchive!
The public areas of our building, including the Searchroom are fully wheelchair accessible and an adjustable height computer table is available. We also ask visitors to tell us if they have any additional special requirements #EYAInclusion
Brown paper packages tied up with strings, these are a few of our favourite things #BoxesAndBows
It’s time for #ArchiveAdventCalendar and we have been practising our Christmas gift wrapping with naughty red tape and nice acid-free tape @arascot.bsky.social
For #EYAMedieval we bring you an illuminated Church manuscript that was re-used c.16th century to bind Whitchurch parish’s ‘Poor Accounts’. After the Reformation, such manuscripts were sometimes given more 'everyday' purposes. Not quite the preservation we'd have suggested but better than the bin...
Using a tacking iron to repair a map
Cleaning glass negatives prior to digitisation
The first theme in this year’s Explore Your Archive campaign is #EYAConservation. Conservators are vital in helping to look after collections, including preserving and repairing material so that it remains accessible. And we’re delighted to have welcomed a new Conservator to our staff this week!
We will be closed to visitors between 9:30am and 1pm on Wednesday 10th December due to a group visit. Searchroom visitor seats for the afternoon (1pm-4:30pm) can be booked online as usual at oxhist.eventbrite.com
Screenshot of a 1900 ordnance survey map (left hand-side) next to a 1977 ordnance survey map (right hand-side) both showing the same area on the west side of Oxford including the station, Oxford Castle and Worcester College
Ever wondered what your favourite spot in Oxfordshire looked like back in the day? Our online mapping platform allows you to zoom in on a specific area of the county on a historic map and then compare it side by side with a more recent map. Try it out here: heritagesearch.oxfordshire.gov.uk/mapping
Hello to all our new followers 😊 Check out our catalogue, Heritage Search, which contains over a million records and brings together archives, publications, maps, photos and A-V material, as well as historic environment records and Oxfordshire Museum's collections! heritagesearch.oxfordshire.gov.uk
Hello all, the Oxfordshire History Centre is now on Bluesky!
