Staffordshire Past Track

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The Staffordshire Past Track website features over 50,000 resources relating to the history of Staffordshire. www.staffspasttrack.org.uk

On Staffordshire Past Track you can explore photographs, images, film clips, maps and audio clips using a range of easy to use search tools. You can also visit a range of on-line exhibitons on aspects of Staffordshire's history. Managed by Staffordshire County Council's Archives & Heritage Service.

31/07/2026

Anglo-Zulu War Memorial, Lichfield Cathedral (picture 2014)

Detail of the wrought iron screen commemorating the men of the 80th (South Staffordshire) Regiment who fell in the Sekukuni and Zulu Campaigns in South Africa, 1878-1879.

The memorial comprises five inscribed metal plaques in the form of imitation Zulu shields, set against railings resembling Zulu weaponry. Four of the plaques list men of the 80th who fell in action in Zululand, whilst the fifth plaque records the names of those who died through other causes (especially disease) during the campaign in South Africa.

28/07/2026

Yoga Class, 1960's

Stafford College, Stafford

24/07/2026

Bottle feeding lambs

Dunston, 28th of April 1947

21/07/2026

Brown Leather Football Boots, c.1890–1920

Football has been played in Britain for centuries, with the first recorded football boots dating back to 1526, when King Henry VIII ordered a pair for his wardrobe.

By the nineteenth century, the sport's popularity had soared, but many players still wore heavy work boots with steel toe caps. These were ill-suited to the game, offering little grip and making running and kicking difficult.

In response, the first purpose-made football boots appeared in the late 1800s. Made from thick leather, they rose to the ankle and featured studs for improved traction on the pitch.

These boots date from the early 20th century and show how football footwear was beginning to evolve. While still resembling Victorian designs, they were lighter and offered greater flexibility around the ankle, paving the way for the modern football boot.

17/07/2026

Phil Bright of Stafford powers through the mud at Hawkstone Park, Shropshire, 1960's

14/07/2026

Whittington Barracks, 1909

A postcard view of the Clock Tower (on the left) and Officers' Mess building at Whittington Barracks, near Lichfield, then home of both the North & South Staffordshire Regiments.

The building housed a joint Officers' Mess for the North and South depots, the Militia Officers' Mess and the Officers' Quarters. Unfortunately the building fell into disrepair and was demolished in 1984, although the clock was saved.

10/07/2026

11 year old Daphne Dyde of 23, The Village, Walton-on-the-Hill taking her month-old tabby kitten for a ride in a pram. Allegedly the cat enjoyed the dressing up! In the background are delivery vans belonging to Stanton's bakers and the Staffordshire Newsletter.

Photograph published in the Staffordshire Newsletter on 17 September 1955

07/07/2026

An engraving of Dr Samuel Johnson by Thomas Cook, after a painting by Sir Joshua Reynolds, published on 23 March 1787.

Born on 18 September 1709 in the house that is now the Samuel Johnson Birthplace Museum in Market Place, Lichfield, Johnson is best known for compiling the first comprehensive Dictionary of the English Language.

However, he was far more than just a lexicographer. A true polymath, Johnson was a poet, playwright, essayist, literary critic, biographer and editor, renowned for his intellect, influence and sharp wit.

03/07/2026

Soldiers of the South Staffordshire Regiment arrive at Lichfield Trent Valley Railway Station from Minden, Germany, before deployment to the Canal Zone in Egypt.

Pictured here is Corporal Thompson with his mother and younger sister. The two chevrons on his sleeve denote his rank as a corporal, while the distinctive airborne glider badge of the South Staffordshire Regiment can just be seen on his shoulder.

The glider badge was a unique distinction earned through the Regiment's service with the British airborne forces during the Second World War. It remained part of the Regiment's identity after the amalgamation of the South Staffordshire Regiment and the North Staffordshire Regiment to form the Staffordshire Regiment in 1959. It is still proudly worn today by the Mercian Regiment following its formation in 2007 following an merging of the Stafford's, Cheshire's and Worcesters and Foresters regiments.

6 April 1954

Image courtesy of the Staffordshire Regiment Museum.

30/06/2026

North Staffordshire Railway Workers, Blythe Bridge

In the centre is the guard, George Higginson, with a dog on his lap. He is surrounded by two porters, Frederick Albert Eddowes, who would have been about 15 at the time, is on the left with W.G. Gallimore on the right.

This is one of the few surviving photographs of women porters, who were employed by the North Staffordshire Railway during the first World War. Here Miss Mulliner can be seen on the left with Miss Dolly Moore on the right.

Address

Staffordshire Archives & Heritage
Stafford
ST180WL

Telephone

+441785278379

Website

http://www.staffspasttrack.org.uk/

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