Researching the history of public buildings
These are among the easiest buildings to research, since the documentation should be held in one archive - that of the relevant local or national body - though administrative changes may have produced division between archives in some cases. Also see general sources of maps and images.
National
England and Wales
Records of buildings owned now or earlier by the Crown and national government are generally in The National Archives. The NA divides its vast collection into classes, each with a prefix indicating the source e.g. ADM = Admiralty, CRES= Crown Estate and predecessors, DEFE = Ministry of Defence, ED = Education. The catalogue is online. To supplement it there are finding aids for each class in the search rooms, many of which are published in the official Lists and Indexes series, or its continuation by the List and Index Society. For example the records of the Ministry of Public Buildings and Works 1609-1956 (WORK) are listed in List and Index Society volumes 59, 65 and 79. The online catalogue will be more up to date than any printed source, but sometimes gives less detail. Clicking on the Full Details tab for any result may provide more information on the content, and any printed calendar of the document series should be listed.
Some architectural drawings for the Ministry of Defence are held in the MOD Art Collection.
Some grand post offices were erected in major cities by the Ministry of Public Buildings and Works. The records for post offices are divided between the National Archives (WORK) and the post office archive. The National Achives has made available online guides to sources for Lunatic Asylums, Prisons, Official Residences and Pre-fabricated Buildings.
There are also some references to public works, including fortifications, in Parliamentary Papers, now partly catalogued online. The Defence of Britain Project aims to record all 20th-century military structures. For medieval fortifications by the Crown see castles. For hospitals see charity buildings. For schools see educational buildings.
Ireland
From 1831 the Office of Public Works (Ireland) was responsible for public
buildings in Ireland and its papers are in the National Archives of Ireland. Some earlier
material on Irish public buildings may be in the National Archives, London.
However the Irish Architectural Archive holds
many architect's plans and drawing, including some for public buildings, such
as the design for King's Inns, Dublin, shown here.
Scotland
The National Archives of Scotland holds the records of Scottish government from medieval times. Since the government was responsible for many types of buildings throughout Scotland, the administrative records deposited in the NAS may contain building information in various classes, such as education (ED), health provision or prisons. The ED series contains information on museums, galleries and libraries, while ED31 is a series of files on school buildings and further education colleges.The records of the Masters of Works (MW) yield details of work on royal buildings and palaces prior to 1707. Many of these records are published in Accounts of the Master of Works, 1529-1649 (2 vols, (1957, 1982). The files of the Ministry of Works (MW) and Environment Department (DD) provide information on public buildings, roads and bridges. There is an online catalogue.
County
County JPs were responsible for the upkeep of shire halls, gaols, asylums, and houses of correction for the county and any bridges not maintained by another body. See quarter sessions and other records in the relevant county record office. County councils were established by the Local Government Act of 1888. Their records are also in the relevant county record office and include those for county-run schools.
City and town
City archives have records of
guildhalls, town halls, market halls, bridges,
baths, fountains, libraries,
schools, town walls and other buildings owned now or
originally by the corporation or other urban authority. J. West, Town
Records (1983) gives the location of many such archives in England and
Wales. Corporation, borough or burgh accounts become increasingly common after
the time of Elizabeth and can give details of spending on buildings. From the
18th century detailed building accounts by architects, surveyors, masons and
other workmen may survive, while local authority decisions to commission
building work may appear in council minutes. Some material from borough
archives has been calendared in print - see bibliographies: texts and
calendars. From the 19th century local newspapers can be an
important source for local public buildings. Council or public meetings on the
topic may be reported at great length. See also local archives and towns.
Studies and gazetteers
- Brodie, A., Croom, J. and O Davies, J., English Prisons (English Heritage 2002): survey of existing and former prisons.
- Chalkin, C., English Counties and Public Building 1650-1830 (1998).
- Coad, J., The Royal Dockyards, 1690-1850: Architecture and Engineering Works of the Sailing Navy (1989).
- Cunningham, C., Victorian and Edwardian Town Halls (1981). Includes a gazetteer for the British Isles.
- Foot, W., The Anti-Invasion Landscapes of England, 1940 (2006). Presents the results of a two-year project funded by English Heritage on defence works of 1940/41. Includes maps plotting locations. The original reports for the project can be downloaded from the Archaeological Data Service.
- Gordon, I. and Inglis, S., Great Lengths: The historic indoor swimming pools of Britain (Played in Britain Series) (English Heritage 2009).
- Graham, Clare, Ordering Law: The architectural and social history
of the English law court to 1914 (2003). Includes a gazetteer for
England.
- Howard, John, The State of the Prison in England and Wales (1777).
- McParland, E.,Public Architecture in Ireland 1680-1760 (2001).
- Marston, E., Prison: Five hundred years of life behind bars (2007).
- Morris, N. and Rothman, D.J., The Oxford History of the Prison (1995).
- Pevsner, N., A History of Building Types (1976). Concentrates on public buildings.
- Public Libraries Database: the online database of Irish public library buildings. Includes image galleries.
- Rossbret UK Institutions: online gazetteer of UK workhouses and voluntary or subscription hospitals, with some asylums, orphanages, almshouses and prisons. Background information on the poor law and history of medicine.
- Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland, Tolbooths and Townhouses: A Record of Tolbooths and Townhouses in Scotland (1997).
- Smith, J., Liquid Assets (Played in Britain Series) (2005). Traces the development of Britain's lidos.
- Tittler, R., Architecture and Power: The town hall and the English urban community c.1500-1640 (1991).
- And see bridges, market halls, schools and townwalls.