Black Country Living Museum
Centre for West Midlands History, School of History and Cultures, University of Birmingham
Collaborative PhD Studentship
Brickmaking in the Black Country
Applications are invited for a collaborative funded doctoral studentship, tenable from April 2018, located at theBlack Country Living Museum (BCLM) and the Centre for West Midlands History at the University of Birmingham.The award is funded by Arts Council England and supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund as part of the Museum’s expansion project, BCLM: Forging Ahead.
Brickworks were key industrial sites across the Black Country in the nineteenth and twentiethcenturies. Despite the important contributions of the Black Country to the history of industry and manufacturing, there are few studies on brickmaking and primary sources remain under explored. There are no extant historic brickworks left in the Black Country and only one company remains active, the Ketley Bricks Company.
The successful applicant will research Brickmaking in the Black Country, including the history of the industry after 1945. The research will inform the physical recreation of a brickworks at the Museum, the structure and layout of the buildings and details of the brickmaking process. Potential avenues of investigation include the social and working conditions of women, prisoners of war and immigrant labourers. Supervisory members of staff include Jonathan Wilson, Deputy Chief Executive (Collections, Learning and Research), BCLM Head of Collections, BCLM and Dr Malcolm Dick, Director of the Centre for West Midlands History, University of Birmingham.
Eligibility for the Award
Applicants should normally have, or be studying for, a Master’s degree or similar qualification in Heritage, History, History of Science and Technology, Industrial Archaeology, Architecture, Architectural History, Engineering or a related discipline.Extensive experience of using archives and/or oral histories for historical research is essential. The scholarship is open to Home/EU students.
Value of the Award
The award is for three years full-time or six years part-time study. Students will receive an income of just over £14,553p.a. (full-time) or£7,277p.a. (part-time), excluding fees. Fees are paid separately and the student does not need to cover them.
Application
Applications (a two page CV, letter of application and contact details of two referees) will need to be submitted to Dr Malcolm 12 March. The letter of application, no more than 1500 words, should explain how the applicant envisages the project, outlining relevant skills and indicating the ways in which the research might contribute both to academic knowledge and the representation of brickmaking at BCLM.
Further details are available by contacting Jonathan Wilson at BCLM, r 0121 557 9643.