Development of the English Town (1942-43)
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The British Council Film Collection is an archive of more than 120 short documentary films made by the British Council during the 1940s designed to show the world how Britain lived, worked and played. Preserved by the BFI National Film Archive and digitised by means of a generous donation by Google, the films are now yours to view, to download and to play with for the first time.
Development of the English Town leads us on a swift journey through the ages, examining the motivations of town-builders from the Romans at Silchester right thorough to the modern designers of 1950s new towns. A promotion of the virtues of today's well-considered community blueprints, this film demonstrates the advances in town planning through a critique of our ancestors' built environments.
This film illustrates the main concepts behind town planning in England in every major era from the Roman period to the modern day, extolling the virtues of consideration of factors, exemplified in modern town planning. It unrepentantly presents all earlier 'organic' towns as unhealthy, or horrible, asking 'What kind of life must the inhabitants have had?' However, it also features the 'ghosts' of a Norman, 18th century footman, and a Victorian gentleman, who tend to challenge this view; but they are gently overshadowed by the narrator's opinion.
The 'London Overspill' policy was instigated in the 1930s to move people out of London, but started in earnest after World War II, as a reaction to the housing shortages caused by bombing and large amounts of substandard housing in the capital. In fact, it seems to suggests that war is useful in clearing overcrowded areas, as is now an opportunity to build more pleasant towns. The film finishes very much looking to the future, perhaps encouraging people to move into these new planned towns; presenting them as the ideal.
Locations featured: Roman Silchester (Between Basingstoke, Newbury, & Reading), Norman Rye (Near Hastings), Chipping Campden (Near Evesham), 18th c. Bath(?), Port Sunlight, Bournville, Letchworth, Welwyn Garden City and many other unnamed locations, including Nottingham, Hanger Lane Tube Station, etc.
NB. Film mentions Welwyn Garden City, which was 'finished' in 1948.
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Film about garden towns, 1940's - Film 443
Garden Cities.
Long shot of house roofs. Mine lift wheel. Miners come out of a lift carrying lamps. Slag heaps. Terraced housing with mine beyond. Terraced street with children in the street. Crowded street market and bus. Gas holder. Smoky roof tops, slum. Back to back housing. Stereotypical 'grim up north' images. Children play in the street. Workers leaving a factory or place of work, a low angle shot, they are a mixture of men and women and some of them are running. Aerial view of city. Poster for Garden Cities of Tomorrow superimposed over aerial view. Ebernezer Howard's book. Graphic view of Town Planning. Graphics showing developments and transport networks with the garden city. Relationship of workplace and houses. Civic centres, churches, shops, schools. Aerial view of the town, twenty five years after it was built. Nice suburban-type wide street with houses and hedges. Lots of exteriors of houses from the post World War One era. 1930's style Art deco factories. Small company workshops. British Lead Mills factory. factory in construction. Welgar food processing. Bareley corsets factory. All exteriors, no interiors. Workers leaving the factory. Man on bike cycles past railway line. Guessons Road. Large detached houses. Man enters front gate. Man thinks of his garden as a living room. Mother sits knitting. Girls lie on the grass talking in the garden, idealised home life. Sensible houses designed for comfort and family life. Exteriors of house types shown. Nothing showy. Simple houses to grow old gracefully. Tree-lined streets. safety for your children. More house exteriors. Flats as well around a communal garden. People can't build how and where they like, the town will develop naturally but controlled. Large department store in neo-classical style. Town hall, fire station. Police station. Children look at Disney lobby cards outside a cinema and enter. The Campus. school classroom. Science lab and desks with teenagers examining papers. Pottery class. Boy models with clay. Boys play cricket. Girls playing rounders and tennis. Rugby match. Four women sit around an elaborate tea table in a garden. They drink tea and chat. Three men play classical instruments in the garden. family picnic. Town fete with mini roundabout. Romantic couple walk arm in arm in a wood. People doing ordinary things - various shots. Child on a swing. A town to put people's needs first. Playing bowls. Aerial view of town.
Welwyn Garden City or possibly Letchworth - the town is never named in the film. The film is particularly good for its idealistic commentary on how is the best way to live, country and city brought together by planning.
2017 Community Land Trust Convening
The City of Columbia hosted the inaugural Community Land Trust Convening, welcoming regional land trust representatives to share and workshop together. The event had two goals: 1. Educate interested communities, regional partners and local partners on Community Land Trust organizations. 2. Share best practices of current and prospective CLTs.
This video contains the presentations of keynote speakers Mike Brown and John Davis of Burlington Associates, as well as regional partners from Columbia, MO, St. Louis, MO, Springfield, MO, and Lawrence, KS.
THE PROGRAM
00:00:00 Introductory Remarks, Mike Trapp, Ward 2 Council Member, City of Columbia, MO
00:07:05 Keynote Presentation, Part 1, Mike Brown, Partner, Burlington Associates
00:22:30 Keynote Presentation, Part 2, John Davis, Partner, Burlington Associates
00:51:16 Municipal-supported CLT Start-ups, Randall Cole, Housing Programs Supervisor, City of Columbia, MO
01:10:30 Innovative Community and Neighborhood
Development Strategies through CLTs, Chris Krehmeyer, CEO, Beyond Housing
01:29:27 Acquisition Rehabilitation for CLT Homes, LeeAnn Camey, Director, Springfield Community Land Trust
01:43:43 Benefits of CLTs in Varying Market Conditions, Rebecca Buford, Executive Director, Lawrence Housing Trust