Countryside Books imprint: 48 books

The older buildings which nestle within the streets of Britain's cities, towns and villages are sometimes obvious, but often quite unnoticed. Yet, they give their communities a reassuring permanence and form an emotional link with the past. From the humble black and white Tudor cottage with...

Victorian railway stations reflected the importance of this revolutionary mode of transport for Britain. The great iron roads transformed both rural and urban landscapes, and fundamentally changed the pattern of social and commercial life for all sections of the population. The stations...

England has many magnificent castles from the medieval period that have survived siege and the stresses of time. They are awesome reminders of the country’s turbulent history and most of them are open to the public. Few though, are complete, and it can be hard to visualize the scale of the original...

The Ghosthunter’s Guide to England takes the reader on a haunted journey round the counties of England. It explains where ghosts have been seen and the human stories that lie behind their inability to rest in peace.England has been described as the most haunted place on earth. The enormous number...

At the outbreak of the Second World War in September 1939, such was the build-up of men and materials in the RAF that Lincolnshire was already known as ‘Bomber Country’. Its four main airfields—Hemswell, Scampton, Waddington and Cottesmore—were home to eight squadrons of Bomber Command under...

The weather has always dominated our daily lives and it remains our favourite topic of conversation. We all want to know what the weather will be for the week ahead in order to plan our days. But how reliable are the forecasts?Stan Yorke has written a short guide that explains in simple language the...

Blubberhouses, Stanstead Mountfitchet and Melbury Bubb ! English place—names can be curious and amusing. They can also tell us about our past. England’s towns,villages farms, and even fields, have names whose beginnings stretch back over 2,000 years. In this well—researched book Charles Whynne-Hammond...

The English canal network becomes increasingly popular and widely used each year. The aim of this book is to explain how everything works—from locks and lifts, to tunnels and towpaths. Stan Yorke, a life-long narrowboat enthusiast, explains in an easy-to-understand manner the story of the canals....

In this book, Stan Yorke explains the history of the steam engine and the enormous variety of uses to which it was put. There are over 50 photographs, plus detailed diagrams. Steam engines with their hissing pistons, revolving wheels and smell of oil and coal smoke have an irresistible attraction...

For those engaged in family research, there is nothing more frustrating than an early photograph, without any label to identify the subject or the date. But there are always visual clues, and the strongest of these come from what our ancestors are wearing. They dressed up for the camera and their...

The English Industrial Revolution was a triumph of ingenuity and invention. New sources of power, better manufacturing methods and expanding transport systems brought fantastic changes affecting every walk of life. Man and machine worked side by side to produce iron, coal and cotton cloth on a scale...

The formation of the Pathfinder Force in August 1942 produced a steady but certain change in the fortunes of Bomber Command. During the early years of the war, aerial photographs showed that less than one third of the aircraft were successfully placing their bombs with accuracy. There was a basic...

Waterwheels provided our sole source of power, apart from animals and our own sweat, as far back as 200 BC. Windmills arrived in the 12th Century and then both reigned supreme until the appearance of the steam engine during the 18th Century. This vast timespan made them key elements of our history....

In May 1942, five months after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the first airplanes and crews of the newly formed Eighth U.S. Army Air Force arrived in Britain. Over the next two years their numbers swelled to a massive and powerful force of bombers and fighters described by one USAAF General as ‘the...