Dr Peter Prattinton (1771–1840) was a gentleman antiquary who devoted the last thirty years of his life to the study of Worcestershire’s history. He was inspired by the unpublished research of Thomas Habington (d 1647) and Dr Charles Lyttelton, bishop of Carlisle (d 1768), plus the recently published work of Dr Treadway Russell Nash (Reference Nash1781–2), which made extensive use of Habington’s material. In 1810 Prattinton started to collate the Habington and Lyttelton manuscripts at the Society of Antiquaries’ library with Nash’s published work. Prattinton’s methodology and aims were explained in an unpublished letter submitted in c 1821 to The Gentleman’s Magazine (letter no. 574). He intended to produce a new county history using a compilation of the research of Habington, Lyttelton and Nash as a starting point. His aim was clearly to produce a definitive county history, based on the detailed study of primary sources and his own fieldwork (mainly church visits), perhaps akin to the four volume Victoria County History (1901–24). However, his research apparently was never completed, perhaps because the project was far too ambitious for a single author and researcher. A comment in a letter Prattinton received in 1821 implies that his work on Habington’s survey was now complete (letter no. 152). There is no good reason why Habington’s detailed parish-by-parish county survey could not have been produced as a stand-alone publication by Prattinton, as subsequently happened, as it is a key source for county historians (Amphlett Reference Amphlett1895–9). Sadly, Prattinton chose never to publish any of his research. Instead, he bequeathed an extensive research archive to the Society of Antiquaries of London (ms 520; Barnard Reference Barnard1931). Prattinton’s correspondence makes it clear that he was both modest and a perfectionist. He was appalled by ‘the numerous mistakes’ in some contemporary local histories, which he ascribed to ‘total ignorance and haste’ (letter no. 162). Curiously, he seems to have been uncertain of his own ability to do much better, so he was in no hurry to publish and even hinted in 1816 that he expected someone else to posthumously publish his own research (letter no. 83). Of course he had the luxury of no deadlines or funding bodies to deal with.

This collection of 574 transcribed and annotated letters plus a detailed introduction, which includes a short biography, is skilfully edited. The letters provide a unique insight to Prattinton’s personality, research and world. While some of the letters (both sent and received) are about social engagements, the majority concern aspects of his research such as the loan of documents or resolving queries, conveying the impression of a single-minded individual. He was in touch with many contemporary antiquaries, such as Edward Rudge and his son Edward John, who during 1811–30 extensively excavated the remains of Evesham Abbey church and reported on some of their discoveries to Prattinton, including in 1822 the opening of Abbot Henry’s grave (letter no. 205; Rudge Reference Rudge1824). Prattinton was clearly very interested in the Rudges’ fieldwork and realised the potential of medieval archaeology to supplement historical data. Prattinton and the Rudges were evidently friends, which probably explains why he provided them with some documentary information concerning Evesham Abbey, which Edward John published. However, when other county historians, including George May in 1833, sought Prattinton’s assistance with their research (letter no. 476), he invariably refused to help (letter no. 480), which seems rather mean-spirited as he often sought the assistance of others.

Sadly, Prattinton’s research is not widely known, and his archive is rarely cited as a source. He did not even merit an entry in the recent Oxford Dictionary of National Bibliography (2004). This volume represents the first book devoted to aspects of Prattinton’s research since Barnard’s seminal catalogue of his archive (Reference Barnard1931); let us hope it is the first and not the last twenty-first century Prattinton publication. It is surely time that we found a way of making his neglected archive available online.