19 Feb 2025
One of the less-publicised remits of the St Albans Times is the preservation of artefacts reflecting the history of local journalism in the district.
Apart from our vast photo archives, kindly donated by the widow of snapper Tony “Greg” Gregory, we’re also in position of various back issues of the Herts Advertiser, including the milestone first issue from 1855, the 70th birthday edition from 1925, the first compact copy printed using a new up-to-date rotary printing press in 1961, and various other issues from over the decades.
But until now we’ve never seen a bespoke bound volume to mark a Mayoral year.
This whopping great book covers the period May 1957 to May 1958, when Cllr Cecil J Preece held the office of Mayor of St Albans.
He also ran St Albans’ very own building society, the St Albans Permanent Benefit Building Society, based at 6 Spencer Street.
Quite why the directors of the Herts Advertiser Printing Co Ltd decided to record the activities of his Mayoral year is lost to the mists of time, as is whether this was an annual tradition.
This particular book was found by St Albans charity Emmaus during a house clearance, and acquired by the St Albans Times following a donation to the charity.
A selection of pages from throughout the year feature here, but we will be returning to its contents for future articles.
