Hazelgrove and Bramhall: Images of England

The area covered by this book is that of the villages of Hazel Grove and Bramhall, which once formed the Hazel Grove and Bramhall Urban District Council, and are now part of Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council. While Bramhall retains its original name, the name Hazel Grove was given to the village of Bullock Smithy - ''an illiterate and disreputable place'' - in the early nineteenth century in an effort to improve its reputation. Times have changed and this fascinating collection of photographs covers a wide range of topics from farms to festivities, from turnpikes to trade and from the decorous to the downright ''disgraceful''. Highways and byways, churches and education and the people at work and play are also featured. Many of the photographs have never before been published, having been gleaned from the private collections and albums of local people. Some had already been recorded by the author, a well known local historian, but others were only unearthed as the book was being compiled. The result if an evocative, informative, visual recollection that will appeal to all, young and old.