Press Release

“A Little Book of Laxey”

Incidents, Accidents & Hot Topics in the Victorian Era!

Shipwrecks, daring rescues, medical emergencies, furious driving – the dramatic highlights, you may think, of a new action movie. But they’re actually the meaty bones of a fascinating new book which sheds a whole new light on nineteenth century Laxey, as detailed in contemporary newspaper reports.

‘A Little Book of Laxey – A Miscellany of Incidents, Accidents and Hot Topics from Manx Newspapers 1793-1899’ has been compiled by local writer Sue King from many hundreds of Laxey-focussed newspaper articles held in the digitised archives of the Manx National Heritage iMuseum.  Living in Laxey, Sue has long been fascinated by the human background to its industrial history and, while researching another subject in the iMuseum, found herself drawn to numerous references that painted this ‘quiet’ little mining village in a whole new light. Before long she began to realise that, as well as making a great read, these long-forgotten stories held a wealth of historical interest across a huge range of subjects. The result, compiled in chronological order, is a revealing look at what our Victorian forefathers REALLY got up to, how they viewed themselves and the rest of the world, and how they dealt with the challenges they faced.

Sue says “The iMuseum - behind the main Douglas museum - is an amazing resource for local history. The free research facilities offered to the general public allow you to find an incredible amount of information about Manx people, places and events at the click of a button. I simply typed in the words ‘Laxey and Lonan’ and within seconds was presented with thousands of articles. After months of trawling I’d still only worked my way through to 1899 so decided that might be a good place to stop!”

Sue says she has tried to maintain a fair balance in the book’s subject matter – which ranges from drunken brawls to tea-drinking temperance rallies, and covers everything from births to marriages and deaths (albeit the most newsworthy ones!). She says she did hesitate over some of the more tragic and what some readers may consider offensive stories but felt they all deserved to be included as they highlight the attitudes and practices of a very different era. Throughout the book, any archaic terms, place names or curious words that may puzzle the reader are explained in short postscripts.

‘A Little Book of Laxey’ is out now, priced at just £6.99 and is available direct from sueking@manx.net (phone 07624 474231), Presence of Mann at the Laxey Woollen Mills, and the Laxey Post Office.

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For further information email:  sueking@manx.net   or phone: 07624 474231