🏘️ your 200 ago. No , no , just and where your now . Every and in has a in old , and . who these are called , and YOU one. By the end of this you will know how to , and to a of how your has . The you use are the use every day.
🗺️ The — — has been 1791. Their are one of the most a has, because you can the and see into .
A is any at the of the you are — a in 1900, a ( of the ) from 1881, or a map (a map made in the –). A is or made , like a about your . because they are : they the thing in the way. , you ask: Who made this? Why? Could it be or ? This is called .
🃏 Learn these key local history terms before we go further. Tap each card to reveal the definition. 📚
Tap each card to see the answer.
in — they are to or . For , if your in the –, it was because of the (the when and ). If of ( of ) were , a they were with who had from the . If a war in your , it to the War (1914–1918) or War (1939–1945). these is what a of into .
| Source type | What it shows | Example question it can answer |
|---|---|---|
| Historic OS map | Street layouts, fields, railways, buildings at a specific date | When did this area change from farmland to housing? |
| Census record | Who lived there, their ages, jobs and birthplaces | Where did people come from and what did they do for work? |
| Old photograph | How buildings, streets and people looked at one moment | What has been demolished or changed since this photo was taken? |
| Trade directory | Lists of local businesses and their owners | What industries thrived in this town 100 years ago? |
| Parish register | Births, marriages and deaths in the local church | How large was the population and how did life expectancy change? |
| Local newspaper archive | Events, adverts and opinions from the time | How did local people react to a new factory or railway line? |
🗂️ Sort these pieces of evidence into PRIMARY sources (created at the time) or SECONDARY sources (created later by looking back). 🗂️
A photograph taken of the High Street in 1905
An 1881 census showing who lived at 14 Mill Lane
A school history project written in 2019 about Victorian streets
A letter written by a factory worker in 1862
A museum leaflet explaining the town's Roman past
A tithe map drawn in 1841 showing local farmland
💡 When two of the from , use a called map . that on BOTH (a , a , a ) to . Then at that has around those . This you by how much the has .
a your into a of . A does things: it what the was like at in , it WHY ( to , or ), and it to each . For : 'By 1851 the 340 in the , but by 1881 this had to over 1,200. This with the of the in 1863, which new and .' how the ( , ) the .
⚠️ out for in the ! If you a for a , or a only one , you do not know the . say 'the ...' or ' on this ...' than things as . makes your MORE , not .
🧩 Put these steps of a local history investigation into the correct order, from start to finish. 🔢
- Write a chronological narrative using evidence to support every claim.
- Connect local changes to national events studied in KS2 history.
- Identify patterns and changes across the sources, noting dates carefully.
- Evaluate each source — consider who made it, when, and whether it might be incomplete or biased.
- Gather a range of primary sources: maps, census records, photographs and documents.
- Choose a question to investigate, e.g. 'How did our town change between 1850 and 1950?'
your is the — and — . A does things: the , what were used and why they were , the in with in, and a that the . You as a , a , a or a . you , your should be to the AND see the it. : a is only as as the that it. 🏆
✍️ Complete these sentences about local history investigation. Choose the correct word for each gap. ✏️
A is at the of the being . When , you should to your . A is an of the . in the to make your more .
Quiz time! 📝
Our Town Through Time — Knowledge Check 🏘️
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