The Saltaire Journals publish newly researched articles which relate to Saltaire and its history. Each Journal consists of a single topic by an author or group of authors.
The Journals are published as new research is written up, and are available to download on a world-wide basis to non-commercial parties such as local historians, and research and educational bodies, from this website. Any copyrights attached to an article are made known in its issuing. A limited number of copies are printed centrally, for deposition in libraries, archives and other outlets.

Production of the Saltaire Journals is by an informal group of enthusiasts. Publication is by Nemine Juvante (Saltaire) Publications, a not-for profit partnership dedicated to the publishing of works relating to the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Saltaire. The facility is free to contributors and readers alike.

The Saltaire Journals are Acrobat files. They vary in length, but may take some time to download.

OUR MISSION
To document the history of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Saltaire, by providing a means for historians to publish findings on that history, and on topics which relate to that history.

HOW TO CONTRIBUTE
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CONTACT

Email Dave Shaw, Editor and Publisher of The Saltaire Journals.
saltairejournal@saltairevillage.info

Volume 1, Number 1 Published 1 November 2007

Traces of Salt in London
By Barlo and Shaw

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The legacy of Sir Titus Salt has been long lasting. His achievements in Bradford and Saltaire are well known in both Yorkshire and the wider world. Several accounts of his life and works exist, most notably those of Holroyd, Balgarnie and Reynolds. His most famous legacy – Saltaire – is now a UNESCO-designated World Heritage Site. Most accounts focus, understandably, on his activities in the West Riding, where his life was largely spent, and where his ambitious industrial township was successfully established in the 1850s. Without detracting from that regional focus, this paper explores some of the many links that Salt and his family had with London.

The Saltaire Conversazione
By Roger Clarke

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This paper developed from discussions with local residents of Saltaire who repeatedly spoke of the importance of the annual Conversazione in the village, but were unable to provide more than a sketchy description of the event. Local press reports about it are concerned with the facts of each event but do not question its origins and the pattern of its development over the years. This paper reviews the origins of the event in the village, and why it became so successful. It discusses some of the social and economic factors which determined its declines and revivals, and its ultimate demise. An appendix provides notes of Conversaziones held. The whole is a commentary on social history, and the event chronicles changes in fashion, science, technology, etiquette, eating habits, recreation and humour.

The History of the Saltaire Almshouses
By Roger Clarke

The story of the Saltaire almshouses illustrates the conflict between the idealism of benevolent paternalism and the reality of managing differing human needs. The main players are the men who exercised control in the Mill – Sir Titus Salt (founder), Mr Titus Salt Jr (his son) and Mr (later Sir) James Roberts (Mill owner in the early years of the 20th C).

It also highlights contextual differences. Titus Salt’s Bradford was chaotic and unplanned, due to the laissez-faire attitude of a government unwilling to address the problems of rapid urban development. As a result, Salt imposed his own structure and standards on Saltaire. By 1900, the legislative context was very different, and responsibility for public services lay with Shipley Urban District Council (UDC).

The Whitlams?... Who Are They?
By David King

It is well known that Caroline Whitlam of Grimsby married Titus Salt at Grimsby Parish Church on 21st August, 1830. When Titus Salt received his baronetcy she became Lady Salt (see Illustration 1). The couple had 11 children and Caroline outlived Sir Titus by over 16 years, residing in London in her later life. She died in 1893 at St Leonard’s on Sea, aged 81.

Much has been written about the background and early life of Sir Titus and his later life with Caroline. However, very little has been published previously about Caroline’s life before her marriage, or about her own family , the Whitlams. So just what has been recorded?

The Second Lord of Saltaire
The family history of Sir James Roberts BART. JP. LLD.
By David King

James Roberts, who sprang from very humble roots, rose to become an extremely wealthy Yorkshire wool baron, eventually owning and running the mill and village of Saltaire, as well as possessing a castle in Scotland, a mansion near Hastings and a Baronetcy.

If one regards Sir Titus Salt, the founder of Saltaire, as being the First Lord of Saltaire, it could be argued that Sir James Roberts was the second. Of course, neither of them actually held this title: Sir Titus was created Baronet Salt of Saltaire in 1869 and Sir James became Baronet Roberts of Milner Field in 1909. The award of a baronetcy confers with it the title of Sir and not Lord. However, if one uses the term Lord in a general sense, meaning ‘master of’, or ‘ruler of’ rather than indicating a title awarded by the monarch, the description of James Roberts as the Second Lord of Saltaire might be considered to be a fitting one.