Description: The Meadows area of Nottingham was not developed until the mid-1800's due to restrictions by local burgesses to retain grazing rights of the commonly held fields which surrounded the city. A rapidly expanding population was crowded into the constricted city area, in which living conditions were squalid, with regular outbreaks of typhoid and cholera. In 1845 public pressure ensured an Enclosure Act was passed to enclose the open fields surrounding the town. The award was made 20 years later allowing the Meadows, Sand and Clay Fields to be used for building. The picture seen here is part of a large collection, donated to the Library Service by Bernard and Pauline Heathcote, which shows the Meadows as it developed after the Enclosure Act. Pictures of the streets show Victorian brick terraced houses, shops, pubs and factories, which by the 1970's had become worn and lacking in modern facilities. Over zealous Council Plans called for the redevelopment and modernisation of the whole area, and so whole streets in the Meadows were demolished and modern council houses built in their place, sadly removing some of the unique local community spirit which had existed there. These pictures show the Meadows before its mid-1970's redevelopment.