Report of the Yorkshire Union of Mechanics Institutes

Square bound book with textured cover. Report read at 44th Annual Meeting at Pontefract, 22 June 1881. Contains statistics of working mens clubs and mechanics institutes in Yorkshire, with each Institute given its own section reporting on its progress. "The past year has been a very trying one in every sense of the word. The continued depression of trade in several of the most important centres of Yorkshire has contributed to affect the prosperity of many of our most important institutions." For the year 1881 the number of institutions is 256 and 49,800 members; "...the number of female members, which was 2,700 in 1880 has increased to 2,950." The book also contains adverts for: R. Scott's Entertainments for Institutes or Home Circles, an optician and goldsmith who rents out his projector and his 4000 piece glass slide collection of paintings and engravings "to create the impression on the mind...of being bodily present at each actual place" accompanied by adverts for his pawn shop; Leeds Permanent Benefit Building Society; Yorkshire Penny Bank; Liebig's Chemical Food or Wine of Phosphates, a panacea for many ailments; Summer tours of Glasgow and The Highlands; G. Neighbour & Son's beehives; Miss Georgiana Foster's musical lectures; The Royal Handbell Ringers and Gleemen "Three times before Her Majesty the Queen." Printed in Leeds by Charles Goodall. ~