Revolutionary Players

June 2005:

Joseph Priestley brought to life in new book

Joseph Priestley

The life of Joseph Priestley (1733 – 1804), one of Birmingham’s most famous adopted sons, has been celebrated in a new book. ‘Joseph Priestley and Birmingham’ outlines Priestley’s achievements in science, education, politics and theology.

The book has been collated by the University of Birmingham’s Centre for Lifelong Learning and is published by local firm Brewin Books. The publication highlights Priestley’s life and times, including his role as a scientist, promoter of education, radical non-conformist and anti-slavery campaigner. Other articles focus on the Priestley Riots and his life and death in Northumberland, Pennsylvania. A poem by Dr Roi Kwabena, “Enlightenment and Dissent” was written especially to commemorate the bicentenary of the death of Joseph Priestley in February 2004.

The book has been edited by Dr Malcolm Dick, lecturer at the University of Birmingham’s Centre for Lifelong Learning. He explains Priestley’s relevance today: “Birmingham is a city of diversity; intellectually alive, politically and religiously radical and open to the experiences and influences of other cultures. These characteristics were also present in eighteenth-century Birmingham, and this project emphasises Priestley’s contribution to social as well as scientific life”.

The book is part of a broader “Joseph Priestley and Birmingham” project that aims to celebrate his life and work during 2005 with an exhibition, town trail, DVD of a Priestley scientific experiment and community events. The project was created by Birmingham & District Local History Association and is supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund.

Resources about Priestley and the history of the West Midlands during the Industrial Revolution are available on the Revolutionary Players website (www.revolutionaryplayers.org.uk). A number of articles about Priestley’s life and times can be found in the Theme section of the site.

Book details: Malcolm Dick (ed.), Joseph Priestley and Birmingham (Studley, Brewin Books, 2005); ISBN 1 85858 269 5. The book retails at £11.95 and is illustrated with colour and black-and-white images.

Website Design

Work on the website design has now been completed and Atticmedia has worked with Revolutionary Players to produce a series of excellent templates for the project. These enable users to access images, primary sources and contextual material about the West Midlands during the Industrial Revolution. Atticmedia have also assisted project staff with the creation of the project's first interactive learning journey on Anti-slavery in the West Midlands. Other learning journeys will follow.

Resources

Some recent additions include:

beautiful coloured engravings from Thomas Harral's, Picturesque Views of the Severn, published in 1824 (Shropshire Records and Research);

witty and informative letters written by Erasmus Darwin to Boulton and Watt in the late 18th century (Birmingham City Archives);

striking prints illustrating the Black Country in the Dudley area from a collection produced in 1878 in Sixteen Etchings Illustrative of Scenes in the Coal and Iron District of South Staffordshire by Richard S Chattock (Birmingham Central Library);

high-quality and informative paintings illustrating the work of several 18th and early 19th century artists including Angelica Kauffmann and Joseph Wright from the collections at Wolverhampton Art Gallery;

examples from Bewdley Museum's extensive archive of photographs representing industrial activity in the Wyre Forest area of Worcestershire. Bewdley Museum is one of the most important small museums in the country, providing an insight into the complexities of a woodland economy before the 20th century.

We are grateful for the support of numerous curators, archivists and librarians across the region who have helped to take the project forward.

Organisational Developments

Since 1 April 2002, the Revolutionary Players Project has been adopted by Birmingham Museums & Art Gallery. Previously the project was managed within The Libraries Partnership-West Midlands. TLP-WM was absorbed within the new MLA-West Midlands from 1 April. Malcolm Dick and Kate Iles would like to thank all TLP-WM staff for their support during a lengthy process of reorganisation. BM&AG has become the centre of the new West Midlands hub for museums and this role will provide a means of sustaining the project within an institutional and regional context.

January 2003:

Work has begun on the first phase of the project with the creation of resources about the Lunar Society, a group of 18th Century industrialists, innovators, scientists, writers and philosophers who lived and worked in the West Midlands. The Lunar Society had interests spanning medicine, art and design, ceramics, engineering, chemistry, religion and education. Material has been digitised relating to Lunar Society members Joseph Priestley, Erasmus Darwin, Thomas Day and William Withering from Birmingham Central Library and Birmingham City Archives. Resources from Darwin House in Lichfield and Soho House in Birmingham are currently in the process of being digitised as is material from Bewdley Museum relating to early trade and industry. The London based design company, Atticmedia, has been appointed to work with the project staff over the next six months creating the website. Work is currently in progress developing the website design and the first Learning Journey focusing on Anti-slavery. The website will provide an introduction to the Lunar Society, their contribution to the Industrial Revolution and their interests and innovations.


		June 2005: Joseph Priestley brought to life in new book The life of Joseph Priestley (1733 – 1804), one of Birmingham’s most famous adopted sons, has been celebrated in a new book. ‘Joseph Priestley and Birmingham’ outlines Priestley’s achievements in science, education, politics and theology. The book has been collated by the University of Birmingham’s Centre for Lifelong Learning and is published by local firm Brewin Books. The publication highlights Priestley’s life and times, including his role as a scientist, promoter of education, radical non-conformist and anti-slavery campaigner. Other articles focus on the Priestley Riots and his life and death in Northumberland, Pennsylvania. A poem by Dr Roi Kwabena, “Enlightenment and Dissent” was written especially to commemorate the bicentenary of the death of Joseph Priestley in February 2004. The book has been edited by Dr Malcolm Dick, lecturer at the University of Birmingham’s Centre for Lifelong Learning. He explains Priestley’s relevance today: “Birmingham is a city of diversity; intellectually alive, politically and religiously radical and open to the experiences and influences of other cultures. These characteristics were also present in eighteenth-century Birmingham, and this project emphasises Priestley’s contribution to social as well as scientific life”. The book is part of a broader “Joseph Priestley and Birmingham” project that aims to celebrate his life and work during 2005 with an exhibition, town trail, DVD of a Priestley scientific experiment and community events. The project was created by Birmingham & District Local History Association and is supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund. Resources about Priestley and the history of the West Midlands during the Industrial Revolution are available on the Revolutionary Players website (www.revolutionaryplayers.org.uk). A number of articles about Priestley’s life and times can be found in the Theme section of the site. Book details: Malcolm Dick (ed.), Joseph Priestley and Birmingham (Studley, Brewin Books, 2005); ISBN 1 85858 269 5. The book retails at £11.95 and is illustrated with colour and black-and-white images. Website Design Work on the website design has now been completed and Atticmedia has worked with Revolutionary Players to produce a series of excellent templates for the project. These enable users to access images, primary sources and contextual material about the West Midlands during the Industrial Revolution. Atticmedia have also assisted project staff with the creation of the project's first interactive learning journey on Anti-slavery in the West Midlands. Other learning journeys will follow. Resources Some recent additions include: beautiful coloured engravings from Thomas Harral's, Picturesque Views of the Severn, published in 1824 (Shropshire Records and Research); witty and informative letters written by Erasmus Darwin to Boulton and Watt in the late 18th century (Birmingham City Archives); striking prints illustrating the Black Country in the Dudley area from a collection produced in 1878 in Sixteen Etchings Illustrative of Scenes in the Coal and Iron District of South Staffordshire by Richard S Chattock (Birmingham Central Library); high-quality and informative paintings illustrating the work of several 18th and early 19th century artists including Angelica Kauffmann and Joseph Wright from the collections at Wolverhampton Art Gallery; examples from Bewdley Museum's extensive archive of photographs representing industrial activity in the Wyre Forest area of Worcestershire. Bewdley Museum is one of the most important small museums in the country, providing an insight into the complexities of a woodland economy before the 20th century. We are grateful for the support of numerous curators, archivists and librarians across the region who have helped to take the project forward. Organisational Developments Since 1 April 2002, the Revolutionary Players Project has been adopted by Birmingham Museums & Art Gallery. Previously the project was managed within The Libraries Partnership-West Midlands. TLP-WM was absorbed within the new MLA-West Midlands from 1 April. Malcolm Dick and Kate Iles would like to thank all TLP-WM staff for their support during a lengthy process of reorganisation. BM&AG has become the centre of the new West Midlands hub for museums and this role will provide a means of sustaining the project within an institutional and regional context. January 2003: Work has begun on the first phase of the project with the creation of resources about the Lunar Society, a group of 18th Century industrialists, innovators, scientists, writers and philosophers who lived and worked in the West Midlands. The Lunar Society had interests spanning medicine, art and design, ceramics, engineering, chemistry, religion and education. Material has been digitised relating to Lunar Society members Joseph Priestley, Erasmus Darwin, Thomas Day and William Withering from Birmingham Central Library and Birmingham City Archives. Resources from Darwin House in Lichfield and Soho House in Birmingham are currently in the process of being digitised as is material from Bewdley Museum relating to early trade and industry. The London based design company, Atticmedia, has been appointed to work with the project staff over the next six months creating the website. Work is currently in progress developing the website design and the first Learning Journey focusing on Anti-slavery. The website will provide an introduction to the Lunar Society, their contribution to the Industrial Revolution and their interests and innovations.