Harwell is a village in Oxfordshire, probably best know for giving its name to the airfield which became the Atomic Energy Research Establishment at Harwell, now the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, and where I spent most of my career. It was, amongst other things, a pioneer in computing, the Harwell Dekatron Computer dating back… Continue reading The Vicar of Harwell
Author: john
Good Economics for Hard Times
“Good Economics for Hard Times: A Radical Rethinking of the Way to Fight Global Poverty” is an economics book aimed at the general reader by two MIT professors of economics who specialise in the economics of poverty, social and political equality, migration and globalization. Economics is important to be as one of the mechanisms to… Continue reading Good Economics for Hard Times
A better kitchen bin
Like many people, we have a kitchen waste bin, with a plastic cannister inside a metal outer. We use a plastic bin liner to keep the waste neatly contained. When the time comes to empty the bin, sometimes the liner is hard to remove because the liner forms a seal round the inner circumference of… Continue reading A better kitchen bin
About William Webster
My Great-Great Grandfather was William Webster (1823-1889). His daugher, Ada Webster (1861-1944) married my Great Grandfather, John Robert Box (1849-1826) in 1884 at Highgate Rise Church. Confusingly his father was also William Webster (1796-1888), and I think his Grandfather may have been also been a William Webster. Here I try to untangle the more recent… Continue reading About William Webster
Fitzhenry Family
My Great Grandmother, Jane Fitzhenry, married my Great Grandfather, Joseph Lines on 30th June 1877 the parish church of St Andrew in Holburn. Her father was Michael Fitzhenry, recorded in census and some other records as being born in Bristol in 1809. There is however no record of his birth, or who his parents were,… Continue reading Fitzhenry Family
The Other Lines Brothers
Most of my family history posts are based on items of information I have inherited, which is not found elsewhere, but sometimes it is handy to have a place to describe significant people who do not have a post of their own. My Grandfather, George Edward Lines had three brothers, who also went on to… Continue reading The Other Lines Brothers
William Williams Box , Solicitor – unexpectedly interesting
The family William Williams Box was born on 15th July 1851, the son of William Braund Box and Rosina Williams (whose story is told in Whatever Happened to the Williams Sisters). He had an elder brother, John Robert Box (1849-1926 – my Great Grandfather), and sister, Christina Elizabeth Box (1848-1875). His younger siblings were Frederick… Continue reading William Williams Box , Solicitor – unexpectedly interesting
Minnie Sarah Stevens – from Dole to Röckel
Minnie Sarah Stevens was my Great Great Aunt, sister of my Great Grandfather, Charles Arragon Stevens and Lillian Jane Stevens, whose marriage into the Rebbeck family I have described in another post. Parents and early life She was born in Bristol on 17th July 1863, daughter of William Stevens and Sarah Elizabeth Locock. I am… Continue reading Minnie Sarah Stevens – from Dole to Röckel
Mr Acid Rain and our Interconnected World
My father, Roger Lines, was a research forester, working for the Forestry Commission. When, in the early 1970’s, I did my Statistics O-Grade I was fortunate to be able to help with some real research at the, then fairly newly established, Forestry Commission Northern Research Station. I was chopping young Sitka Spruce trees, grown under… Continue reading Mr Acid Rain and our Interconnected World
New Year 1919 in Sarajevo
Margaret Ada Box started the year 1919 far from home (Croydon), in a hospital in Sarajevo, where she was a Red Cross Nurse with the Scottish Women’s Hospitals. Although the First World War was over, sickness and disease – particularly the Spanish Flu, meant there was a great need for medical attention. The Armistice had… Continue reading New Year 1919 in Sarajevo