Staffordshire Tithe Maps Conservation Project

This map shows the kind of damage that was treated by conservators in order to make it available for use.

We are pleased to announce that the Staffordshire Tithe Maps conservation project was completed at the end of January 2004. During the previous 12 months, our archive conservators completed the mammoth task of repairing 383 tithe maps for parishes throughout Staffordshire. 119 maps at the Staffordshire Record Office and 264 at the Lichfield Record Office received conservation treatment. As a result of the project all Staffordshire tithe maps are now fully accessible to the public with none any longer 'unfit for production'.

This was an intensive project, which required considerable organisation and commitment and we congratulate our conservation staff on the outcomes. The project posed a number of challenges for the conservators, requiring a variety of skilled techniques to repair both paper and parchment. Many of the maps were badly damaged as a result of their original format and because of how they had been stored before being deposited with the Archive Service. Some maps were also very large and so had to be repaired on an illuminated wallboard, involving much painstaking work.

We decided to carry out this project because of the significance and high level of public use of tithe maps. They are one of the most useful historical sources for local, economic, family and landscape history, providing detailed mapping of the county in the years between 1837-1850. Local tithe maps are part of a nation - wide series of records and so also contribute to a national atlas of social structure, agricultural activity and land use.

The project was funded by a grant of £11,000 from the National Manuscripts Conservation Trust, matched by funding from Staffordshire County Council and from the Archive Service itself. This enabled us to employ a conservation technician for 12 months to assist with some of the simpler conservation work and also to purchase the necessary specialist equipment and materials.

Last Modified: 12/07/2006 14:37:58
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