The Development of Gas Supply on North Merseyside

The Development of Gas Supply on North Merseyside, 1815-1949, Stanley A. Harris — 2nd Edition Publication: Liverpool, North Western Gas Board, 1966 Formatting: 8vo, pagination unstated. Condition Report: Very Good. The green cloth boards remain bright and visually pleasing, though they exhibit mild bumping to the corners and light rubbing at the spine extremities. The binding is notably tight, square, and structurally sound. The text block edges show moderate toning and scattered foxing, a standard consequence of the paper stock used during this era, which likely encroaches lightly into the extreme page margins. Despite this external toning, the interior remains neat and legible, making this a highly presentable and robust copy of an exceptionally scarce local history. Catalogue Note: This is the 1966 reprint (effectively the second edition) of Stanley A. Harris’s authoritative industrial history, originally published in 1956. The publication is exceptionally scarce on the open market, with the print run for this edition (as well as the first) understood to be strictly limited to just 200 copies. The volume carries a notable local provenance, originating from the library of W. H. Stephenson. William Henry Stephenson was a prominent Southport author and art collector, best known as a patron of the Camden Town Group painter Walter Richard Sickert. Stephenson’s ownership is a fitting and factually interesting association, given the book's dedicated chapter coverage of the Southport gas undertakings. It stands as a rare and structurally excellent surviving copy of an important piece of regional industrial heritage. A meticulously researched historical survey published by the North Western Gas Board, The Development of Gas Supply on North Merseyside, 1815-1949 traces the fascinating evolution of the region's local gas undertakings. Spanning over a century of industrial growth and civic development, Stanley A. Harris provides a comprehensive account of how towns such as Liverpool, Southport, Prescot, Ormskirk, and Skelmersdale were transformed by the advent of gas lighting and power. This highly specific monograph offers a vital window into the infrastructure that fuelled the industrial heartbeat of Merseyside, capturing the era from the earliest local companies up to the nationalisation of the industry in 1949. …