Raistrick, Arthur

Arthur Raistrick was born in Saltaire (Yorkshire West Riding) in 1896. He went to Bradford Grammar School, then was apprenticed as an electrical engineer. He was imprisoned as a Conscientious Objector during the First World War, following which he joined the Society of Friends (Quakers). He gained an M.Sc. in Civil Engineering and M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Geology (applied to mining) at Leeds University. In 1929 he was appointed Lecturer, and later Reader, in Applied Geology at Armstrong College (later part of the University of Durham). In 1930 he married Sarah Elizabeth Chapman, a lecturer at Leeds Training College. In addition to his work in Durham, Raistrick wrote and lectured on many aspects of the history of the landscape and industrial archaeology, particularly that of the Yorkshire Dales. He studied the archaeological and geological evidence in the field, colouring and annotating Ordnance Survey maps to illustrate his findings, and also producing plans and site drawings. Research on the history of Quakers in industry brought him to Abraham Darby's foundry at Coalbrookdale, where his work led to the establishment of the Ironbridge Gorge Museum. Elizabeth Raistrick's writings were on the history of education and domestic life in the Dales : as well as three books she wrote a number of articles for The Dalesman .