65 and Counting

 Are there any books written about St Albans?  Yes, I know of about 65 and there will be several others, not all will be available to buy, or even to borrow at the library, but they will have been written and published at some time.  Occasionally, a title might be available from sources such as Abe Books.  For others you may struggle to locate a title.

To trigger your memory why not begin with https://www.stalbansowneastend.org.uk/more/books-about-St-Albans/ 

This link will take you to the first of two pages illustrating the covers of 65 titles, and in most cases the ISBNs by which they may be located.  Even if your local library does not hold a copy, it may be able to bring one to you via the inter-library lending service.  Of course there will be tiles which predate the ISBN system, but that's progress for you!

Many of the covers shown will be familiar; others will be freshly new.  You will also realise a few covers give you the impression artistically of being dated.  

Three of the four titles illustrated below are newly published in 2025, while one, new to this website, had been published back in 2016 – plenty of time to become familiar with at book shops or in the Local shelf at St Albans district branch libraries.

We'll begin with a pocket-sized book published a few years back:       St Albans History Tour by Robert Bard.  And it genuinely is a pocket-sized little package.  Possibly readers will be more familiar with the same author's St Albans Through Time.

The locations will be familiar but the photo editing including selective closeups of many of the early twentieth century postcard views, have produced fresh perspectives of groups and individuals within the street scenes portrayed.   Many of the images have been given a high contrast treatment which suggest to us that we are looking at something quite different. The book contains an absolute minimum of text, and although the same could be said of many of the "little books" portraying the city, in this case the small blocks of text are also brightly bold.  The author does not wish to present the images only to be supported by a label taking second place on the page. Hooray! the mini-volume also finds space for an annotated map. Published 2016 Amberley ISBN 978-1-4456-5761-5.

In The Secret War in St Albans 1939-1945 Michael Barbakoff takes readers on a visit to a number of buildings commandeered during the Second World War for use in signals intelligence and special operations.  He identifies the nature of the research undertaken at each location.  For readers with little knowledge of these matters a more comprehensive list of the operational organisations, their codes and other abbreviations, might help us in our understanding, but the author presents us with a comprehensive list of other sources that we, his readers, might find useful.  

This title is a handy companion to Pamela Shields' Hertfordshire Secrets and Spies published by Amberley in 2009.  Published 2025  Amazon ISBN 979-82839-2983-6.

A book appears to be "authentic," it seems, if its cover portrays a photo of the Cathedral taken from Abbey Mill Lane. St Albans A Potted History by Valerie Shrimplin has such a picture on its cover! 

Glorious colour photographs and concise chapters take us through historical time in fewer than 100 pages.  So, a history of St Albans in a couple of hours.  As you might expect from this blog we would highlight any references to our East End, and in this book there are just two: the former prison entrance, and an advertisement for a coat from Nicholson's old factory in Fleetville.  But we would certainly recognise every other building, and each would surely be on a route the City Tour Guides would visit. Commended for its range of photographic subject matter, and the viewing angles chosen. Even both sides of a Roman Ver coin.  Well done to the photo editor!  Published 2025 Amberley ISBN 978-1-3981-2083-9.

What can we say of St Albans and Western Hertfordshire in the British Civil Wars 1642–51, other than the length of its title?  Oh, and the author line; its contributors were John Morewood, Nick Martin and Gill Girdziusz.

This is growing into a delightful series of Concise Histories, beginning with Mistress of Gorhambury Lady Anne Bacon and then St Michael's Village from rural settlement to residential suburb 1700–1930 – more lengthy titles!  These titles are introduced in no more than 50 pages which do constrain the telling of the story.  You don't need to hunt for details of the Civil Wars connection with St Albans and the answer to the question why?  In one small-format and concise account the authors have presented an essential account in one place.  Well done to the publishers St Albans & Hertfordshire Architectural & Archaeological Society; another lengthy title!  Published 2025  SAHAAS ISBN 987-0-9011-9426-8.