By Tim Lambert Dedicated to Jonathan David Collins In the Middle Ages and the 16th century, if they could not work, disabled people relied on relatives and neighbours. There were also almshouses, but only a small number of disabled people lived in them. Often, they became beggars. In 1530, a law in England allowed disabled… Continue reading A History of Disability
Category: Articles
A History of Sierra Leone
By Tim Lambert Early Sierra Leone The indigenous people of Sierra Leone lived by farming, and they made pottery and iron tools. However, the written history of Sierra Leone dates back to the arrival of the Portuguese in the 15th century. A Portuguese explorer, Pedro de Sintra, named the country Serra Leoa, meaning lion’s teeth,… Continue reading A History of Sierra Leone
A History of Road Safety
By Tim Lambert Today, road safety is much better than it was 100 years ago. Early cars were dangerous, and road accidents were common. However, road safety gradually improved during the 20th century. In Britain, the first speed limit was introduced in 1895. It was 2 miles per hour. In 1896, Walter Arnold became the… Continue reading A History of Road Safety
A History of Men’s Underwear
By Tim Lambert Men’s underwear has a very long history. Both Roman men and women wore a loincloth or shorts called a subligaculum. During the Middle Ages, men wore linen shorts called braies. The Industrial Revolution made the mass manufacture of underwear possible. The word pants is derived from a character in an Italian comedy… Continue reading A History of Men’s Underwear
A History of Donkeys
By Tim Lambert It’s believed that donkeys were domesticated in East Africa approximately 4,000 BC. They quickly spread to Egypt and Iraq. Donkeys were very useful beasts of burden. They were used to pull carts. They were also ridden. Donkeys are mentioned several times in the Bible. Jesus rode a donkey when he entered Jerusalem. … Continue reading A History of Donkeys
A History of Cats
By Tim Lambert Early Cats Cats were first domesticated about 8,000 BC, when humans in the Middle East started farming. They stored grain, which naturally attracted rodents. Cats began hanging around the grain stores to hunt. Humans appreciated cats hunting rodents and gave them food and shelter. Cats were useful animals. Cats were highly esteemed… Continue reading A History of Cats
A History of The Seaside
By Tim Lambert The Seaside in the 19th Century At the end of the 18th century, wealthy people began to spend time at the seaside. They believed that bathing in seawater was good for your health. Seaside resorts like Brighton, Worthing, Margate, and Eastbourne boomed. A man named Richard Hotham deliberately created a new seaside… Continue reading A History of The Seaside
A History of Morecambe
By Tim Lambert Early Morecambe Morecambe is a seaside town in Lancashire. For hundreds of years, it was a little village called Poulton-le-Sands. Its name comes from the words pol meaning pool, and tun, meaning hamlet or settlement. By the end of the century, the suffix Le-Sands was added. Nearby were the little villages of… Continue reading A History of Morecambe
A History of Glass
By Tim Lambert Glass is sometimes made by lightning. If it strikes sand, it forms glass globules called fulgurites. There is also volcanic glass. If lava cools rapidly, it may form a dark, volcanic glass called obsidian. Early humans used it to make sharp cutting tools. It’s not certain where people first started making glass… Continue reading A History of Glass
A Brief History of Iraq
By Tim Lambert Ancient Iraq Sumer was the world’s first civilization. It arose about 3,500 BC in what is now Iraq, in the land between the Tigris and the Euphrates. Several city-states grew up, each one ruling an area of the surrounding countryside. About 3,300 BC, the Sumerians invented writing on clay tablets. However, the… Continue reading A Brief History of Iraq