Abbotts’ Baths
January 26, 2025
Abbotts’ Baths (or Well) were a key factor in the step-change in the fortunes and growth of Leamington Priors. The man they were named for was William Abbotts who ran The Dog Inn (sometimes the Black Dog) on the south side of High Street from 1776 to 1793. This inn was to the east of
Our Films about the History of Royal Leamington Spa
December 26, 2024
Since 2020 we have produced five films about the history of Leamington Spa spanning in excess of two centuries. We are grateful to our members and others who were closely involved with the creation, development, research and writing of these films; their names appear in each film. We are also especially grateful to Mark Ellis,
Art Box, Clarendon Avenue
November 18, 2024
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
University Town
November 17, 2024
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
Burlington Motor Company of Leamington Spa
September 9, 2024
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
Birth of a Spa Town
June 20, 2024
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.
Anyone for Tennis?
February 26, 2024
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
Camouflage Directorate in Leamington Spa, 1939 to 1945
December 30, 2023
At the beginning of the Second World War the government had a great deal to think about. One important decision to be made was about the need to prevent damage and destruction by the enemy of vital factories producing materials for defending the country and waging war and other civilian assets such as power stations.
Fred Mulley
December 15, 2023
Frederick William Mulley, Baron Mulley of Sheffield Park 1918-1995 Fred Mulley was a prominent post-war Labour politician, life-long Trade Union member, Barrister and Economist. He was born in Leamington at the end of the Great War to a family whose maternal ancestors were all involved in farming. Fred’s grandfather Boiles was a waggoner on farms
