 PE training on Cannock Chase during the Great War
Funding Secured to Digitise the Jake Whitehouse Photographic Collection
The Museum Service is delighted to have been awarded £7,400
through the Heritage Lottery Fund’s ‘World War I Then and Now’ Fund to digitise
the photograph collection of Jake Whitehouse (1926-2017). Jake was a
military and local historian who pioneered the research into the history of the
Great War Training Camps on Cannock Chase. The collection contains over
1,400 images and will be a superb resource for anyone interested in the history
of Cannock Chase and its surrounds. Working with volunteers from Berkswich
History Society, the Friends of Cannock Chase and the Landor Society, we will
be carrying out research into the collection which will be made available to
the public through a bespoke website later this year. The project will
also include working with a local school to test and improve the website’s
features, and will finish with a series of celebration events.
 Image of a 19th century blood transfusion (D1349-11)
You might know artist J.M.W.
Turner for his dramatic land and seascapes, but did you know he might also have
illustrated medical catalogues? This intriguing sketch of a 19th
century blood transfusion is believed to be Turner’s handiwork, and is
reproduced in a copy of the 1901 ‘Maws’ Medical Catalogue’ held at
Staffordshire Record Office. The image shows a contraption sold by Maws’ in
1830 designed to enable users to undertake major blood transfusions in the
upper class home! The Heath Robinson-like device fastens to an overturned
dining chair (of the finest design, naturally), whilst a hollow pipe is clamped
to the unfortunate recipient’s arm (a delicate lady of faltering health,
obviously) and a valve inserted into a suitable vein. At the top of this pipe
sits a funnel into which the gallant blood donor (a dashing gentleman, of
course) opens a vein and bleeds profusely. The blood is thus directly
transfused from donor to recipient all from the comfort of a chaise longue or day
bed. Minor concerns about matching blood type and the risk of fatal infection
don’t really seem to matter in this case!
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Out on the Road
The Museum Collections are gearing up to go out on the road again in June and July. Our 'Puppets on Parade' exhibition will be visiting the Museum of Cannock Chase from 23 June until 12 August. The Museum is a great place to catch up with this family friendly display of puppets.
July sees the launch of our new touring exhibition 'Through the Eyes of a Child' which opens at Brampton Museum and Art Gallery on 21 July. The exhibition explores different aspects of childhood and how it has changed over time. It features items on loan from the Museum of Childhood (part of the Victoria and Albert Museum) alongside the Staffordshire Museum Collection.
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Criminal Quilts Available for Pre-Order
Ruth Singer's book on women, crime and textiles, 'Criminal Quilts, Textiles Inspired by the Stories of Women Photographed in Stafford Prison 1877-1916' previewed in the last newsletter, is now open for pre-orders. The book will contain considerable information about the women and their lives as well as contextual information about prison conditions and personal case studies.
The book will also be a beautifully-illustrated catalogue for the textile exhibition which will be touring around the Midlands from August 2018. If you pre-order the book before 20th July you will get a free postcard and the chance to have your name included in the book as a Supporter. You can pre-order now for a discount and get a copy for £10 plus P&P. Find out more
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