The Rear-Admiral who came to town. Contribution by David G.P. Morse Vice Chair and Archivist Leamington History Group Being involved with the Group’s website means that you get asked interesting questions and in some cases very interesting ones. One question that caused me to rush to the National Newspaper Archives was regarding one Rear-Admiral Sir … Read more
The Art Box in Clarendon Avenue, near the ‘top’ of the Parade, is an historic Model K6 telephone kiosk which has been repurposed by the Friends of Christchurch Gardens to display images. We are grateful that the Friends have invited us to mount a show. Our members Allan Jennings and Mick Jeffs have prepared a … Read more
On 6th November we were pleased to launch our new video, ‘Leamington Spa, University Town’. It tells of the impact of the University of Warwick and its students and staff on the town over sixty years. It addresses the positive and negative consequences of the influx of staff and students, their residences and their behaviour … Read more
A brief history of Burlington Motor Company of Leamington Spa written by its founder Haydn Davies I have always had an interest in home-built cars and in the mid/late 1970s there was an upsurge in companies building kits for such things and, the more I looked at the available kits, the more I thought “I … Read more
A short film telling the story of Leamington’s transformation from a small village to a thriving spa town in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, the origins of Leamington’s spa industry, the creation of the Pump Rooms and the demise of the original baths in Old Town.
Composer, Conductor, Pianist, Organist and Music Critic (aka The Man Who Buried Rupert Brooke) We are pleased to announce that a Blue Plaque remembering William Browne was unveiled in June 2024 at 23 Lillington Road. Images are at the end of this article. Born in Leamington in 1888 to distinguished Anglo-Irish parents, William was educated … Read more
Leamington College has long produced a well-known list of scientists, doctors, academic scholars, inventors and national-level sportsmen, but there are still one or two unsung heroes. Alongside luminaries such as Lytton Strachey, cricketer and biographer of Queen Victoria, Sir Bernard Spilsbury, Sir Frank Whittle, Dennis Enright, poet and academic, Keith Savage, England Rugby Union player, … Read more
“Sceptre and crown Must tumble down, And in the dust be equal made With the poor crooked scythe and spade.” Thus wrote dramatist James Shirley in 1658, reiterating a motif in popular discourse that death renders all lives, irrespective of status, wealth or achievement, equal.[1] But how far is death the great equaliser? Historians, whose … Read more
Now Royal Leamington Spa is well known for where Tennis was started and developed on the lawns of the Manor House Hotel, but how about this for a bit of history that few people appreciate took place. If you were to enter the Jephson Gardens through the main side gates on Newbold Terrace, and turn … Read more
Great News – Leamington History Group are now in a position to start arranging for the Archive, containing over 5000 Photos, documents and maps, to be attached to this web site to enable anyone to access this fabulous collection which is growing monthly. Not only will the Archive cover all aspects of Leamington life but … Read more
Leamington Mayor Cllr Alan Boad recently held a reception to thank the Leamington History Group volunteers who guided walks around the town last year. A new programme of guided walks is planned for 2024.
Contact the Secretary, Margaret Rushton: secretary@leamingtonhistory.co.uk
June 9, 2026
Nelly (later known as Eleanor Velasco) Thornton was born in Stockwell, London, on 15th April 1880 to Frederick and Sarah Ann Thornton, who was also known as ‘Nellie’. They had...
May 26, 2026
This is Mark’s own brief personal and professional story about how he became interested in the history of Leamington Spa and producing films about the town’s full, varied and fascinating...
May 6, 2026
Acknowledgements to Contributors Writers of Articles Stella BolithoNigel BriggsPeter CoullsBarry FranklinMichael JeffsAllan JenningsMichael PearsonDr Sylvia PinchesMargaret RushtonSidney SysonRichard TaulbutDr John Wilmot Substantial Contributors to Articles. Kay Bugg; Alan Griffin; Dr...