Rural Development Commission

RECORDS OF THE RURAL DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION

This collection consists of negatives, contact cards, prints, slides and related material, showing all aspects of the RDC's work, and that of its predecessors. Most items are arranged according to the RDC internal classification scheme, as follows:

AC Admin Commissioners

ACH Admin Chairman

ACO ACCORD

AD Administration

AG Agriculture

AN Annual Report

AR Antiques Restoration

AS Administration Staff

AW Awards

B Baskets

BB Boatbuilding

CB Clay - Bricks

CD Community Devt

CP Clay, Pottery etc

CRS Courses

CT Commissioners' Tour

EL Electrical

EG Engineering

EX Exhibitions

F Farriery

FO Food and Drink

FS Field Sports

FD Furniture

G Glass

GD Graphic Design

HS Historic

H Horn

LG Leather and Sheepskin

M Marketing

PL Plastics

PA Printing/Model Making

PW Power

PR Premises

RC Rural Childcare

RF Rural Focus

RL Rural Life

RT Rural Transport

SE Services

SY Saddlery

SQ Stonework/Quarrying

T Tourism

TX Textiles

TH Thatch

TW Teleworking

U Underwood

VW Views

W Woodworking

WM Women at Work

WR Wrought Ironwork

WS Work Study

Each of these headings is broken down further by number, as detailed in SR RDC/PH4/2. Major finding aids are SR RDC/PH2/1 (for negatives) and SR RDC/PH4/3 (for slides). At the time of deposit, some items were awaiting classification (SR RDC/PH2/3-7), others had been collated as "archives" (SR RDC/PH2/8-14, SR RDC/PH3/1-35, and related items).

SR RDC/AD2/1-2 General administrative records (reports)

SR RDC/P2/B1-2 Servicing publications (other than RDC)

SR RDC/P4/A1-4 Technical bulletins (RDC)

SR RDC/P5/1 News release

SR RDC/P6/1-5 Sound recordings

SR RDC/PH1/1-10 Photographic negatives

SR RDC/PH2/1-14 Compilations of photographic prints

SR RDC/PH3/1-36 Photographic prints

SR RDC/PH4/1-3 Registers and indexes of photographs

SR RDC/PH5/1-11 Slides and transparencies

SR RDC/SP2/1-3 Records of events, societies and organizations

SR RDC/SP4/1 Personal records

<span class="wrapper"><p>D DX121 History of CoSIRA (1909-1979)</p> <p>D DX338 Rural Industries Bureau (photographs, 1930s)</p></span>

Accession no : DX397

Records deposited as a gift on 8 October 1998 by the Rural Development Commission, Salisbury, with no assignment of copyright.

In 1988 the Development Commission (DC) merged with its main agency, the Council for Small Industries in Rural Areas (CoSIRA) to form the Rural Development Commission (RDC). Both bodies had a fairly long history: Commissioners were first appointed to oversee the Development Fund in 1909, while CoSIRA was established in 1968. It was an amalgamation of the Rural Industries Bureau (RIB, established 1921), the Rural Industries Loan Fund (RILF, established 1940), and the Rural Industries Organisers (part of the Rural Community Councils).

The Commission advises the Government on matters relating to the economic and social development of rural areas in England. In order to further such development, it has wide powers to give financial assistance, and to acquire land, property and premises.