Cheshire Archives visit

As part of the training in research skills funded by our Heritage Lottery Fund bid we visited the Cheshire Archives and Local Studies Centre in Duke Street, Chester.

The centre is based around a converted mill building [1850] which contains much of the archive material for the old county of Cheshire.  The archive rooms are physically secure and have sophisticated fire protection systems installed.  Additional materials are stored in the Winsford Salt Mines.
The morning two hour session included a presentation from an archivist who had tried to assemble as much material relating to Winterley Pool and Mill as possible.  We were shown the main indexing resources enabling relevant research material to be retrieved - much of which can be done in advance of a visit via home internet access.
Of particular interest were two bundles of parchment documents relating to leases and land transfers of the Winterley Pool and Mill.  The documents were available in the "Cheshire Archives" as the Mill had been owned by the Delves Broughton Estate for a short period of time and they had passed their estate documentation to Cheshire Records.
The afternoon session provided the opportunity for "hands on" access to the materials in the main reading room.  Hands should be clean but not still damp from washing, gloves are not recommended as these can remove the ink from parchment.
Understanding the old legal documents from around 1675 involved the ability to read the typeface of old handwritten legal documents and then understand some of the legal terms involved.  The key document was an Indenture from 1675 which recorded the transfer of a water powered corn mill, but we still need to fully understand how the land was pieced together from other title deeds covering the previous 100 years, together with any clues as to the date the mill and pool were built.
Return visits will be required to establish when the Winterley Mill and Pool were built.

Travel for the study group to Chester was via train from Crewe, with a walk via the Roman Walls, passing under the Clock that marks Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee.