In 2021 a number of copies of ‘The Rayoneer’ were donated to our collections at North East Wales Archives. These were the staff magazines for the Courtaulds factories across the UK. This collection is made up of 226 issues from 1931 to 1958.

Courtaulds was a UK based manufacturer of fabric, clothing, artificial fibres, and chemicals. It was established in 1794 and went on to be the world's leading man-made fibre production company. At its height, Courtaulds employed over 10,000 people at four sites in North East Wales. There were three factories in Flint: Aber Works, Deeside Mills and Castle Works; alongside Greenfield in Holywell. It was the main employer in Flint and the second largest in Flintshire.

Join us for this next instalment of Acid Free where we find out more about the collection and the content of The Rayoneer. We’ll also hear from former employees of Courtaulds to learn more about their experience of working at the factories in Flintshire.

Thank you to archivist Liz Newman and Suzanne, our student researcher, for their contributions to this episode. A big thank you also to Sandra, Cheryl and Colin for sharing their experiences of working for Courtaulds.

If you’d like to see copies of The Rayoneer in person, visit our website to find details of how to make an appointment: www.newa.wales

Music: 'Life in Silico' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. www.scottbuckley.com.au

Join Bethan Hughes and Hedd ap Emlyn as they discuss the background of the recently acquired Welsh Bibles Collection at North East Wales Archives.

In this episode of Acid Free, Bethan and Hedd investigate the origins of the collection, the different ways various bibles came to be collected and the significance of the collection for North East Wales.

This episode is conducted in Welsh; however, you can read the full transcript in English here

Music: The Long Way Home by Scott Buckley – released under CC-BY 4.0. www.scottbuckley.com.au

Join us as we delve into the lives of Victorian criminals, discussing photographs used by the police, types of punishment and prisons in the late nineteenth century.

This episode of Acid Free focusses on two unassuming leather bound volumes in our collections known as the “Mug Shot Books” featuring photographs of convicted criminals alongside physical descriptions and details of their crimes. The majority of criminals featured were convicted in Ruthin, although a proportion were convicted elsewhere. They were put together by Superintendent J. Bradshaw and the police would have used them to identify felons with connections to North Wales.

Our guest for this podcast is Richard Ireland.

Richard Ireland taught in the Law Department at Aberystwyth University for 40 years before retiring, specialising in the history of crime and punishment. He has written many articles and a number of books on the subject, including Land of White Gloves? A History of Crime and Punishment in Wales. He has also made several appearances on radio and television, including a piece for BBC 1's The One Show on criminal photography, filmed in Ruthin Gaol.

Richard is interviewed by our Community Engagement Officer, Katie.

Music: No.3 Morning Folk Song - Esther Abrami