Tim Hitchcock
@timhitchcock.bsky.social
Historian of 18th century London; Professor Emeritus of Digital History at the University of Sussex. Just coughing in the ink to the end of time.
Really pleased to see that Helen Esfandiary's excellent talk last week to @long18thsem.bsky.social is now available on the @ihrlibrary.bsky.social website: www.history.ac.uk/news-events/...
‘Such a silly fellow I fear his making some mistake’: The convergence of medical and maternal approaches to domestic childcare in Georgian England
British History in the Long 18th Century Seminar Session
www.history.ac.uk
November 24, 2025 at 10:27 AM
Really pleased to see that Helen Esfandiary's excellent talk last week to @long18thsem.bsky.social is now available on the @ihrlibrary.bsky.social website: www.history.ac.uk/news-events/...
Reposted by Tim Hitchcock
Long ago on the hell site I made long list of historically interesting things to use in dnd ttrpgs and I'll start dragging them over here starting with
2000 years-old sapphire ring presumably belonged to Roman emperor Caligula, depicting his fourth wife Caesonia.
2000 years-old sapphire ring presumably belonged to Roman emperor Caligula, depicting his fourth wife Caesonia.
November 13, 2025 at 3:51 AM
Long ago on the hell site I made long list of historically interesting things to use in dnd ttrpgs and I'll start dragging them over here starting with
2000 years-old sapphire ring presumably belonged to Roman emperor Caligula, depicting his fourth wife Caesonia.
2000 years-old sapphire ring presumably belonged to Roman emperor Caligula, depicting his fourth wife Caesonia.
Reposted by Tim Hitchcock
Part 218 of 200 in historically interesting things to inspire your ttrpg dnd
Ceramic hedgehog dated to the Neolithic period found at the Hamin archaeological site near Shebotu Town in Inner Mongolia, China
Ceramic hedgehog dated to the Neolithic period found at the Hamin archaeological site near Shebotu Town in Inner Mongolia, China
November 22, 2025 at 3:14 AM
Part 218 of 200 in historically interesting things to inspire your ttrpg dnd
Ceramic hedgehog dated to the Neolithic period found at the Hamin archaeological site near Shebotu Town in Inner Mongolia, China
Ceramic hedgehog dated to the Neolithic period found at the Hamin archaeological site near Shebotu Town in Inner Mongolia, China
Reposted by Tim Hitchcock
Status update: fiber cut between data centers - trucks are rolling. Services are slow but functional, except for the Wayback Machine, which is still offline.
The Wayback Machine, openlibrary.org, and some other archive.org functions are offline because some network gear has failed.
We apologize and are working on it. More as it happens.
We apologize and are working on it. More as it happens.
November 20, 2025 at 8:11 PM
Status update: fiber cut between data centers - trucks are rolling. Services are slow but functional, except for the Wayback Machine, which is still offline.
Helen Esfandiary giving a great paper on elite maternal authority over the care of children in the context of the professional medical market place in the 18th c. @long18thsem.bsky.social @ihrlibrary.bsky.social
November 19, 2025 at 6:17 PM
Helen Esfandiary giving a great paper on elite maternal authority over the care of children in the context of the professional medical market place in the 18th c. @long18thsem.bsky.social @ihrlibrary.bsky.social
Reposted by Tim Hitchcock
Just a reminder that if you're attending our seminar in person rather than online this evening, we're in the Institute of Education rather than at the IHR (which is closed for Founders' Day). All welcome! #Skystorians
‘Such a silly fellow I fear his making some mistake’: The convergence of medical and maternal approaches to domestic childcare in Georgian England
www.history.ac.uk
November 19, 2025 at 8:12 AM
Just a reminder that if you're attending our seminar in person rather than online this evening, we're in the Institute of Education rather than at the IHR (which is closed for Founders' Day). All welcome! #Skystorians
Reposted by Tim Hitchcock
I’ve written a piece on the curious lack of media and political interest in the issues faced by our national @britishlibrary.bsky.social. This is strange given we live in a world where ideas, knowledge and research are a long-term source of innovation and insight
www.cityam.com/the-british-...
www.cityam.com/the-british-...
The British library is in crisis: why does nobody care?
The widespread indifference to the British Library's crippling cyberattack demonstrates a perilous failure to value the knowledge infrastructure vital for national prosperity
www.cityam.com
November 18, 2025 at 6:27 AM
I’ve written a piece on the curious lack of media and political interest in the issues faced by our national @britishlibrary.bsky.social. This is strange given we live in a world where ideas, knowledge and research are a long-term source of innovation and insight
www.cityam.com/the-british-...
www.cityam.com/the-british-...
Reposted by Tim Hitchcock
Research Fellow x2 (109856-1125)
University of Warwick - #History - #skystorians 🗃️ www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DPK288/r...
University of Warwick - #History - #skystorians 🗃️ www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DPK288/r...
Research Fellow x2 (109856-1125) at University of Warwick
An academic position as a Research Fellow x2 (109856-1125) is being advertised on jobs.ac.uk. Click now to find more details and explore additional academic job opportunities.
www.jobs.ac.uk
November 18, 2025 at 6:42 AM
Research Fellow x2 (109856-1125)
University of Warwick - #History - #skystorians 🗃️ www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DPK288/r...
University of Warwick - #History - #skystorians 🗃️ www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DPK288/r...
Reposted by Tim Hitchcock
It's sobering to reflect on how much work and how many people have been involved in creating those datasets. Here's MOLA's *long* write-up of the creation of the LLP map data (and that was in part enhancing data previously laboriously made by Patrick Mannix): www.locatinglondon.org/about/mappin...
Locating London's Past
Map data on historic maps of London
www.locatinglondon.org
November 15, 2025 at 9:04 AM
It's sobering to reflect on how much work and how many people have been involved in creating those datasets. Here's MOLA's *long* write-up of the creation of the LLP map data (and that was in part enhancing data previously laboriously made by Patrick Mannix): www.locatinglondon.org/about/mappin...
Reposted by Tim Hitchcock
I'm a bit chuffed with this tbh: it brings together data from 4 different sources - my/LondonLives inquests, @camunicampop.bsky.social bills of mortality, Locating London's map polygons, and a bit of population data by @timhitchcock.bsky.social . And I learned some new JS and observable plot tricks.
I thought I would mark the occasion by making an interactive dashboard of the London Lives Westminster Coroners Inquests. sharonhoward.github.io/mindseye_of/...
November 15, 2025 at 8:56 AM
I'm a bit chuffed with this tbh: it brings together data from 4 different sources - my/LondonLives inquests, @camunicampop.bsky.social bills of mortality, Locating London's map polygons, and a bit of population data by @timhitchcock.bsky.social . And I learned some new JS and observable plot tricks.
Reposted by Tim Hitchcock
I thought I would mark the occasion by making an interactive dashboard of the London Lives Westminster Coroners Inquests. sharonhoward.github.io/mindseye_of/...
November 14, 2025 at 5:14 PM
I thought I would mark the occasion by making an interactive dashboard of the London Lives Westminster Coroners Inquests. sharonhoward.github.io/mindseye_of/...
Reposted by Tim Hitchcock
November 14, 2025 at 6:07 AM
Reposted by Tim Hitchcock
Isaac Levitan (Russian, 1860-1900)
"Moonlit Night, Highroad," 1897-98
Oil on canvas
32.62 x 34.62 in
The Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow
#art #painting #painters #BlueSkyArt
"Moonlit Night, Highroad," 1897-98
Oil on canvas
32.62 x 34.62 in
The Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow
#art #painting #painters #BlueSkyArt
November 14, 2025 at 4:51 AM
Isaac Levitan (Russian, 1860-1900)
"Moonlit Night, Highroad," 1897-98
Oil on canvas
32.62 x 34.62 in
The Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow
#art #painting #painters #BlueSkyArt
"Moonlit Night, Highroad," 1897-98
Oil on canvas
32.62 x 34.62 in
The Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow
#art #painting #painters #BlueSkyArt
Very much looking forward to Helen Esfandiary's talk next week on medical and maternal approaches to domestic childcare in Georgian England. All welcome either in person or online @long18thsem.bsky.social @ihrlibrary.bsky.social But please register www.history.ac.uk/news-events/...
‘Such a silly fellow I fear his making some mistake’: The convergence of medical and maternal approaches to domestic childcare in Georgian England
www.history.ac.uk
November 13, 2025 at 9:57 AM
Very much looking forward to Helen Esfandiary's talk next week on medical and maternal approaches to domestic childcare in Georgian England. All welcome either in person or online @long18thsem.bsky.social @ihrlibrary.bsky.social But please register www.history.ac.uk/news-events/...
Applications for the Caird Fellowships at Royal Museums Greenwich are now open - www.rmg.co.uk/collections/... It looks like a great opportunity to work on a fantastic collection and collaborate with some brilliant staff.
Fellowships at Royal Museums Greenwich
Apply for funding to support research at Royal Museums Greenwich through our Caird Research Fellowships
www.rmg.co.uk
November 12, 2025 at 11:50 AM
Applications for the Caird Fellowships at Royal Museums Greenwich are now open - www.rmg.co.uk/collections/... It looks like a great opportunity to work on a fantastic collection and collaborate with some brilliant staff.
Reposted by Tim Hitchcock
Stunning portrait of a woman in a plumed blue hat from 1740 by William Hogarth, who was born on this day in 1697. Totally love this one.
November 11, 2025 at 1:14 AM
Stunning portrait of a woman in a plumed blue hat from 1740 by William Hogarth, who was born on this day in 1697. Totally love this one.
Reposted by Tim Hitchcock
You hear so much negativity about the NHS, but we had such a wonderful social worker who pulled out all the stops to let my dad go home with proper support. And on the weekend too.
November 8, 2025 at 9:40 PM
You hear so much negativity about the NHS, but we had such a wonderful social worker who pulled out all the stops to let my dad go home with proper support. And on the weekend too.
Reposted by Tim Hitchcock
Claude Francis Barry’s paintings of WW1 are amongst the most accomplished of his works, with his images of searchlights across London being the most evocative - here (1918) he used small concentrated dots of colour to create an atmospheric haze of light.
November 7, 2025 at 9:16 PM
Claude Francis Barry’s paintings of WW1 are amongst the most accomplished of his works, with his images of searchlights across London being the most evocative - here (1918) he used small concentrated dots of colour to create an atmospheric haze of light.
Reposted by Tim Hitchcock
The Worshipful Company of Curriers essay prize on London for early career scholars, in association with The London Journal Trust and the Institute of Historical Research.
The author of the winning submission will receive £1,000, and publication, subject to peer review, in The London Journal.
The author of the winning submission will receive £1,000, and publication, subject to peer review, in The London Journal.
Curriers' Essay Prize | The London Journal
The author of the winning submission will receive £1,000, and publication, subject to peer review, in The London Journal. Other promising entries may also be considered for publication.
www.thelondonjournal.org
November 7, 2025 at 9:50 AM
The Worshipful Company of Curriers essay prize on London for early career scholars, in association with The London Journal Trust and the Institute of Historical Research.
The author of the winning submission will receive £1,000, and publication, subject to peer review, in The London Journal.
The author of the winning submission will receive £1,000, and publication, subject to peer review, in The London Journal.
The crime ridden hell-hole that is London on a Thursday afternoon.
November 6, 2025 at 4:17 PM
The crime ridden hell-hole that is London on a Thursday afternoon.
I wonder if anyone on here can help? Attached is a section from a 1706 volume, with shorthand annotations that look like Brachygraphy to me. The assumption has to be that they represent the biblical passages in the nearby text, but I can't make the shorthand agree with the texts being referenced.
November 6, 2025 at 10:08 AM
I wonder if anyone on here can help? Attached is a section from a 1706 volume, with shorthand annotations that look like Brachygraphy to me. The assumption has to be that they represent the biblical passages in the nearby text, but I can't make the shorthand agree with the texts being referenced.
Reposted by Tim Hitchcock
Apart from all the bells and whistles on the site itself, some users may like to know that the London Lives bibliography has been Zoterified (so it's searchable etc): www.zotero.org/groups/45875...
November 5, 2025 at 3:26 PM
Apart from all the bells and whistles on the site itself, some users may like to know that the London Lives bibliography has been Zoterified (so it's searchable etc): www.zotero.org/groups/45875...
Reposted by Tim Hitchcock
😍😍😍 OMG! *How* beautiful is this user interface. So many wonderful ways to search and navigate archival material! The ability to compile life stories clustering personal "life archives"--simply stunning.
Congrats @timhitchcock.bsky.social and all involved.
Congrats @timhitchcock.bsky.social and all involved.
Really pleased to announce the launch of the all-new, all-dancing, London Lives website - www.londonlives.org It has been thoroughly re-engineered to facilitate more types of search, and redesigned for phones and tablets. The team very much hopes peope like it. 1/
London Lives
www.londonlives.org
November 5, 2025 at 12:48 PM
😍😍😍 OMG! *How* beautiful is this user interface. So many wonderful ways to search and navigate archival material! The ability to compile life stories clustering personal "life archives"--simply stunning.
Congrats @timhitchcock.bsky.social and all involved.
Congrats @timhitchcock.bsky.social and all involved.
Reposted by Tim Hitchcock
Our thanks to the whole team which produced the updated London Lives--Jamie McLaughlin (software engineer), Sharon Howard (data manager), and Mary Clayton (proofreader). And to the funder, the Univ of Sheffield Alumni, who recognised the value of keeping major websites up to date.
November 5, 2025 at 12:48 PM
Our thanks to the whole team which produced the updated London Lives--Jamie McLaughlin (software engineer), Sharon Howard (data manager), and Mary Clayton (proofreader). And to the funder, the Univ of Sheffield Alumni, who recognised the value of keeping major websites up to date.
Reposted by Tim Hitchcock
London Lives has been, ngl, a bit broken for a while. It's not broken any more.
Really pleased to announce the launch of the all-new, all-dancing, London Lives website - www.londonlives.org It has been thoroughly re-engineered to facilitate more types of search, and redesigned for phones and tablets. The team very much hopes peope like it. 1/
London Lives
www.londonlives.org
November 5, 2025 at 12:13 PM
London Lives has been, ngl, a bit broken for a while. It's not broken any more.