Editorial

Ian Mason & Christopher Marsden

(First published in 1991 in volume 5, pp. 2-3, of the third series of The Bradford Antiquary, the journal of the Bradford Historical and Antiquarian Society.)

The Society will be sorry to see Joe Fieldhouse retire as Editor of The Antiquary, after guiding five issues through the press and introducing the transformation to the present more popular format in 1985. We cannot hope to equal his energy in the meticulous scrutiny of every point of fact style or grammar or the care and taste with which he planned the varied and readable content of each issue. We do, however, have one qualification for taking on the editorship: as members of the Archive Service staff we are in constant contact with local history researchers and are in an excellent position to extract promises of articles for some time in advance.

It is partly because we find ourselves able to plan ahead that we have decided to include in each issue a group of articles on a particular subject: in this issue we have three articles on labour history, an important theme in Bradford's industrial and political past. In future issues we hope to concentrate on leisure, business history and architecture.

Apart from this, and the introduction of a series of old photographs with commentaries, we have made no changes to the existing character of The Antiquary but hope to keep a broad balance of subjects both academic and popular.

We are grateful to our colleague David James who is not officially part of our editorial team but who has contributed much time and helpful advice in the preparation of our first issue.