I’m
a fan of using an old map to find out why things are as they are. Why are there
two roads running parallel? Why is there a linear ditch there? Why is there a
big gap in that row of housing? Look at an old map and you might find out. I once traced a whole railway branch line
using old maps – which made me look upon my environment with a new
understanding. ‘Tracing the Birley
Branch’ was published in the Great Central Railway Society journal, sometime in
the mid-late 1990s.
So
when I wrote my book ‘Outside Gets Inside’, which is about a 1940s body being
found in a 1980s garden, of course I had to bring the maps in. When the police
try and find out why the body is there, the person that they turn to is the
local historian. Here’s an extract:
Priestley
took his leave of Margaret as she left for work. He spent ten minutes watching the work and
helping to position the barriers. He saw the pair of eyes peer from behind the
curtain in the bedroom next door, and he was determined that they would see
nothing. The local historian arrived shortly after. Dressed in varying shades of tan, he strode
into the garden with a grey box file under his arm. Priestley shook the historian’s hand and led
him over to the garden bench, which had been left in a skewed position beneath
the living room window.
“Mr
Stanley, glad you could come and help.”
“Only
too pleased. Now then.” He began to
rummage in the box file and pulled out a copy of a 1940s Ordnance Survey
map. He unfolded it out across his lap
and slid it along so that it partially rested on Priestley’s leg.
“You
wanted to know about this site in the late 1940s. This is a map dating from 1948, and this
cross here is where we are now.” Mr
Stanley’s finger rested on a pencil cross. “I superimposed a modern map of the
same scale on top and was able to pinpoint this house. I am confident that x
marks the spot accurately.”
“So
what stood on this site then? Was it
waste ground?”
“That’s
correct.” Mr Stanley took a pencil out
of the box file and began to lightly sketch an L shaped box on the map. “This is the position of the actual Miles and
Malleson factory. We are now sat in the position of an office block, which was
demolished by the Luftwaffe attack of 1941.
It would have been impossible for a burial to take place while the
offices were in position and they were constructed in 1894. No casualties were recorded as a result of
the bombing of the office block. This
building was unoccupied at night and the raid took place at ten pm.”
“Good. Well, that tallies.” Priestley stretched out his legs. “The
position of the body suggests that it wasn’t deliberately buried there. That
the body was dumped or fell into position.”
“Now. I have some interesting recollections for you
of this place after the war ended. I was a boy then, and I used to play on old
bombsites. I remember this one
and….” He rummaged through his box again
“I have a photograph and newspaper article to corroborate some of what I can
tell you.” He passed the picture, which
was copied from a grainy old newspaper. Two columns were written underneath it,
headlined
‘Local
children urged away from Miles and Malleson site’
You
can read ‘Outside Gets Inside’ by purchasing this novella as a download or
printed book from Amazon here:
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