Browse Items (13 total)

This helmet belonged to an Air Raid Precaution Warden for Sale. The first consignment of specialist ARP fire-fighting equipment was received in Sale as early as September 1938.

The Pyramid Cinema on Washway Road in Sale opened its doors in February 1934. It was designed by architects Drury and Gomersall in an Egyptian style which was then mirrored in the cinema’s Christie organ. The first resident organist was Reginald…

Metropolitan-Vickers Electrical Co. Ltd or ‘Metrovicks’ was an electrical engineering company situated in Trafford Park. The business started life as British Westinghouse in 1899 but took on the name Metropolitan-Vickers in 1919 after some changes in…

The stamp was manufactured by Shaw & Sons Ltd, London. It would have been used by council workers to emboss the words ‘ALTRINCHAM CORPORATION’ onto papers, marking them as official council documents.

A goffering iron, often known as an Italian or Tally iron, was used for frilled cuffs and ruffles. The tube was heated by inserting a hot metal poker-like rod. The frilled cuffs and collars would then be curled around the cylinder, smoothing them…

The Linotype machine had revolutionised the way that newspapers printed, creating a ‘line-o-type’ by moulding hot metal. The Linotype Company opened its factory to produce the machines at the end of the nineteenth century, when the Broadheath…

This match box dates from around 1830 and was donated with paper matches inside. Note the phoenix design on the front with the lettering 'M.B Co'. On the back of the box there is a rough rectangle for striking the matches on and the lettering ‘A.S…

The Scold’s Bridle was a form of punishment reserved only for women, and was designed to stop those who were deemed verbally unruly. The flat piece of metal or the ‘gag’ went into the woman’s mouth and the bridle was fastened at the back. From the…

Skirt lifters were used by Victorian ladies to stop their skirts from dragging in the dirt, or to allow for extra movement during physical activities, such as cycling or tennis. Although they were already in existence, skirt lifters became…

These spectacles are thought to date from the eighteenth century. In October 1709 The Tatler reported ‘About five years ago it was the Fashion to be short sighted’ but ‘that Mode of Infirmity is out, and the age has recover’d its sight: but the Blind…