By Beth McGough, Marketing Manager
Historic buildings and structures have a story to tell researchers. A house can uncover details about a family’s lifestyle and details of their private life. Were the children’s rooms near their parent’s room? Did the husband and wife share a room? How did servants move about the house?
Structures can be renovated, or neglected and abandoned, then restored. Renovations can indicate changes such as growing wealth and status or shifting functions of rooms. Neglect could indicate a loss of fortune or lack of interest in a property.
The story of a building is the story of its inhabitants and the community surrounding it. Asking the right questions can uncover the story for researchers.
Additional questions researchers can ask about historic buildings and structures:
- What was the major purpose of the building or structure?
- What materials were used to create the structure?
- What materials were used inside the structure?
- What is the current condition of the structure?
- What role did or does the building play in the community?
The Country Life Archive
Now available! The Country Life Archive provides historians of architecture, landscape, class and society, art and art history, and rural life with a rich record of 20th-century UK society, art and architecture.
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