Mr Stott's Diary, Halifax 1914-1919

[Rob HAmilton]

William Stott of Elland, Yorkshire kept a diary for most of his life which included the First World War. The Halifax Great War Heritage Society have published the war years in 2 volumes. William was the owner of a small textile business and not a soldier or politician. He was writing his diaries for his own amusement and not for posterity and in them you find the views of the ordinary middle class man in the street. In this respect they are unique as he told us what he thought at the time without regard to the views of anybody else and without his thoughts being influenced by what people said later on. Consequently you get the true voice of what a man of his class and position in society really thought about events. He was also a talented artist and illustrated the diaries with cartoons and caricatures which greatly add to the richness of the content.

Both volumes are available on Amazon

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mr-Stotts-Diary-Halifax-1914-1916/dp/108073628X/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Mr+Stott’s+Diaries&qid=1613665425&quartzVehicle=2590-560&replacementKeywords=stott’s+diaries&sr=8-1

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mr-Stotts-Diary-Halifax-1917-1919/dp/B08P21S19W/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=Mr+Stott’s+Diaries&qid=1613665425&quartzVehicle=2590-560&replacementKeywords=stott’s+diaries&sr=8-2
 

Although I have to admit that, as the editor of the diaries, I’m a little bit biased but they are a good read. 
 

Rob Hamilton 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[IanA]

You've convinced me. Just ordered.

[Rob HAmilton]

Thanks Ian, all proceeds go to our society and help keep us running. Please let me know what you think of the books. 
 

Rob

[Resurgam13]

Hello Rob,

 

Is there any other outlet (try to avoid Amazon wherever possible)?

 

Kind regards,

Geoffrey

[Rob HAmilton]

Hi Geoffrey

 

You can buy copies of the books direct from me. £10 each + £2 p&p. You can either pay through PayPal or by bank transfer. Please let me know which you prefer and we can sort out the details. 
 

Amazon aren’t everybody’s cup of tea but we couldn’t find a publisher so we used their self publishing service. 
 

Regards

Rob

[ilkley remembers]

 Have just ordered it...always interested in the history of the town having lived there in the 1980s. Enjoyed Dave Millichope's book about Halifax in the Great War

[Rob HAmilton]

Hi There

 

Thanks for ordering the book, it's much appreciated. Please let us know if you enjoy it.

 

Regards

Rob

[IanA]

My two copies have just arrived so I am hardly in a position to provide a comprehensive review but I can tell that, from the very first page, this is going to be a most enjoyable read. Having been married to a Huddersfield lass for nearly 50 years, I am familiar with the area and have the benefit of being able to place various locations mentioned. I admit that I am a bit of a sucker for diaries - from battalion ones to Rev James Woodforde to Mr Pooter to (whisper it) Adrian Mole but, with its whimsical illustrations and down to earth commentary on society, it's hard to see why this one shouldn't appeal to a wide audience. 'Well done to the Halifax Great War Heritage Society' says I.

 

[Rob HAmilton]

Hi Ian

 

Thanks for the positive review. Like you say the observations of the author  together with his cartoons and caricatures make an interesting read even if you aren’t familiar with the area. 
 

Regards

Rob

[IanA]

Having read the books, I thought it worth bumping this to the top again. I used them as 'bedtime' reading material and they are perfect for such a task - easy to put down and pick up again, amusing, and devoid of any necessity to line up your battalions, divisions, brigades and corps in the right order. The unaffected musings of a not terribly well-off mill owner, he's occupied with the difficulty of maintaining his workforce, keeping his son from being called up, sadly marking the demise of old friends, excited about his son's latest motor bike and sidecar, and swallowing the wildly optimistic newspaper reports of the war hook, line and sinker. As has been said, the many small sketches add another layer of colour to the diary. Most reasonably priced, solidly made and a credit to local effort which is deserving of support.

 

Ian

 

[Rob HAmilton]

Hi Ian

 

Thanks once again for that very positive review. The diaries give a unique window into life on the home front and in the opinion of Peter Liddle, the well regarded WW1 historian, they are of national importance. All proceeds go to the Halifax Great War Heritage Society, allowing us to continue our research into the effect of the war on our local community. Here is an example of a page from the 1914 diary.