Anne Charlesworth Blackpool and Local History

Blackpool historian Anne Charlesworth started her journey on local history in 2014. She has become a familiar and respected voice in the town’s heritage community, drawing on years of research and a long career in education to bring Blackpool’s past to life. A retired teacher, Charlesworth has spent over a decade focusing on local history, a role reflected in her public profile and her regular involvement with civic and cultural organisations across the Fylde coast. Her talks, articles and public appearances have become a key feature of the area’s heritage scene and she is currently President and Secretary of Blackpool & Fylde Historical Society.

Charlesworth is known for her clear, accessible storytelling, often examining Blackpool’s growth through the lens of individual buildings, neighbourhoods and social changes. One of her particularly enlightening talks explores the early evolution of South Shore from 1819 onwards, highlighting how small settlements and early businesses shaped the area long before Blackpool became a major seaside resort. Her ability to unpick the layers of everyday history has made her a sought-after speaker for community events.

For several years she has been researching the Tyldesley family of Foxhall and Myerscough and in 2024 she published her first book ‘Thomas Tyldesley and The Lancashire Plot’ which investigates the role that Tyldesley played in Lancashire’s first Jacobite plot.

Here she is after giving a presentation for the Blackpool & Fylde Historical Society at Blackpool Cricket Club in early 2025.

In addition to her talks, Charlesworth contributes written features to local heritage-focused platforms, including investigative pieces on familiar local businesses such as the former Hartes building; in this she traces its transformation from an early public baths and bowling green, to a troubled public house associated with gambling and violence, to its later development as a market, then Woolworths and later businesses. These articles reflect her interest in how the local urban landscape has evolved and what these changes reveal about the town’s social history.

Beyond her writing and public speaking, she plays a key role in the online community of heritage enthusiasts as an active administrator of the “History of Blackpool”, “Marton’s Past” and “Blackpool & Fylde Historical Society” Facebook groups. In that capacity, she helps coordinate discussions, share historical resources and engage a wide audience of past and present local residents and visitors in discovering and preserving Blackpool and Fylde’s past. Through education, research, online engagement and public outreach, Anne Charlesworth has positioned herself as an important advocate for local history.

Best of all, she has been very supportive of Blackpool Timeline and we certainly appreciate it!