Press Release - 23rd December 2002

Christmas Present for city Archives

A unique manuscript notebook has returned to the Black Country almost 300 years after it was written !

The notebook of Edward Short from Bilston dates from the period 1713-1717 and refers to the workings of a Newcomen steam engine situated at Bilston. It has been saved from probable export to the USA and has been purchased by Wolverhampton City Council Archive Service to be added to the City's unique archive collections. Thomas Newcomen built the first practical steam engine in the world, a key invention of the Industrial Revolution. One of the first such engines was sited at Coneygree Coalworks, Tipton, in 1712. Short's book, which includes Newcomen's signature, provides direct evidence that there was a similar engine at Bilston. This places Bilston within the first five places in the world to employ such technology !

Portfolio Holder for Leisure and Communities, Councillor Bob Jones, said : "We are absolutely thrilled that this rare manuscript has been saved and returned to its rightful home here in Wolverhampton. "This is one of the City's treasures and it places Bilston at the heart of the Industrial Revolution - a period in our history that has changed the world", he added.

City Archivist, Peter Evans, explained how the historic notebook was saved : "After lengthy negotiations and with generous support from the Friends of the National Libraries, The Black Country Society, Wolverhampton History and Heritage Society, Tarmac plc and many individuals, we have secured a crucial part of our City's history. "I am delighted that this item of world importance is now safe in the City Archives. It truly is a wonderful Christmas present for Wolverhampton", he added.