The original Ordnance Survey maps were not located on a nation-wide National Grid, but as a series of maps each based on an individual county. They are often referred to as the county series or six-inch maps of c1847. Each grid was divided into 16 and numbered in the same way. The National Grid survey references contain letters and numbers. The Archive holds a large, artificial collection of diaries, journals and letterbooks, donated by Edward Hall, a dealer and collector of books.
People write the diaries from a variety or social backgrounds, who lived all across the country.
An index of authors' names and a comprehensive catalogue are available for use in the searchroom. Subject and place name indices are currently under development. Mr Lowe was a shopkeeper of Ashton and Leigh in the seventeenth century. His diary is a unique resource and provides an interesting account of life in Ashton. The main bulk of school records however, date from the late nineteenth century.