Newsletter No. 86 - September 2006
By courtesy of the University's special collection, Huntley and Palmer
archive. The packing room
Chairman's Corner
Amid all the doom and gloom of contemporary politics and England 's
dismal sporting record this summer, it is gratifying to report that local
history is alive, well and flourishing in Berkshire . In July I was invited
to the fortieth-anniversary celebration of Goring and Streatley Local
History Society: a very professional power-point presentation of some
of its photographs (now on CD) of the changing face of Goring (strictly
speaking an Oxfordshire village but umbilically connected to Streatley
in Berkshire); a delicious birthday cake and a toast to the society proposed
by one of the five founder members present. A few days later came the
launch of a most enterprising booklet of historic walks round the territory
of our latest newest member society, Winnersh and District Historical
Society Research Group.
Further afield, I attended an important meeting at the Institute of
Historical Research in London organised by the National Committee of
the Victoria County History. The Committee's plans have implications
for the future of local history in the county and elsewhere: no less
than to revive the VCH where it is moribund, and to embark on additional
research in counties, like Berkshire , completed long ago when the remit
was limited and the output less useful than where the work is ongoing.
This will involve not only local fund-raising to support professional
researchers, but also local research groups supported by the National
Committee, to work on the history of their parishes with a view to the
results forming part of eventual revised parochial entries in the VCH.
Such a project is already underway in Derbyshire. The committee had already
decided to invite Dr Kate Tiller, Chairman of the Oxfordshire VCH Trust
to talk after the AGM on 17 th March 2007 and meanwhile will discuss
the problems and the feasibility of our involvement with other interested
parties in Berkshire .
All three occasions have highlighted the increasingly important role
of amateurs in maintaining and promoting good local history either as
officers of local societies, members of research groups or as 'graduates'
of the many courses in the study of English local history at all levels
from the weekly class to the part-time degree. We are fortunate to have
all these people in Berkshire . To quote a recent Guardian article,
through 'patient grubbing in church or courthouse archives, interviews
with the disappearing older generation and collection of materials' they
tell 'the true story of this country'.
Joan Dils, Chairman, BLHA
Words from the Editors
It seems a little incongruous to be listing your Christmas socials in
the dates for diary insert when we are still in August, but it is good
to see that so many of you have a varied autumn programme. As well as
the usual dates for diary there are two further inserts with this newsletter
that I would like to bring to your attention. To compliment the flyer
for the Berkshire Record Society please also see the article included
in this edition written by Peter Durrant who has given us a very comprehensive
picture of the activities of the Society and the benefits to be had for
those who wish to become members. We have in the past included in our
pages a list of those courses run by the University of Reading 's Department
of Continuing Education, which it was felt would be of interest to our
members. Please see the flyer that they have asked us to enclose as well
as the information included under Courses.
Once again we have had a good many contributions from member societies
informing us of their activities. Whilst I am always happy to receive
hand written or typed copy, please don't forget that you can also send
your contribution electronically. Please, if you have not contributed
before or have done so on an irregular basis, send us your news we would
like to know what you are up to.
We are planning to hold a special day in the autumn of 2007 where it
is hoped members will be able to share some of their research findings.
As the article by Peter Durrant and our special feature demonstrates,
there is no shortage of archive material to be had locally, so what research
is being done? For anyone who would like to contribute, more details
in our next issue.
Margaret Simons
Requests for Information
Responses to Dave Osborne at webdesigner@blha.org.uk.
All has gone strangely quiet on the request front and there are no requests
to be published in this issue.
Notice Board
Written in Latin, often faded, and in many cases damaged by damp, the
account rolls of Reading 's merchant gild are not the easiest things
to read - yet they offer a vivid picture of life in mediaeval Reading - the
market stalls, the street cleaning, the maintenance of public buildings,
the borough courts, the street entertainments, the relations with the
abbot. In 1357/8, for example, the gild's expenses amounted to £10
19s 6d (slightly more than its receipts, as it happens). A good deal
of this was spent on food and drink ('for roebuck meat and mutton, 15d'; 'for
congers, 6d') and for wine for the abbot ('item, sent to the abbot 3
gallons of wine . price 2s'), but substantial sums were spent on repairs
for the guildhall, including taking down a gable and replacing it with
a lantern, for which 23 men were paid in kind with 14d worth of bread,
26d worth of meat, one pennyworth of garlic and a hefty 3s ½d
worth of ale. All this, and much more for the next century and a half,
is now accessible thanks to the meticulous edition prepared by the late
Cecil Slade, and published in two volumes by Berkshire Record Society.
These volumes are just two of the ten published by the Society since
its foundation in 1993. Others include Gillian Clark's edition of the
correspondence of Foundling Hospital inspectors in Berkshire, 1757-1768,
with its often heart-rending stories of the orphans sent from the Hospital
to be fostered in Berkshire; Ian Mortimer's edition of the glebe terriers
compiled at the insistence of Archbishop Laud in 1634, which contains
not only a comprehensive account of church glebe and tithes, but also
numerous field names (Bushie Roses and Holly Roses, Coales Piddle, Gooers
Hedge, Maple Hays, Sparrow Acre, Stuckwell Foot, Swilly Acre and Thorny
Down are just a few) and incidentally tells us of the existence of a
poor house in Finchampstead; Christine Jackson's account of the workhouse
set up in Newbury in 1628 under the will of John Kendrick to provide
employment for the poor, and of the cloth making that was carried out
there; and my own edition of overseers' case papers, 1654-1834, which
includes first-hand accounts of the lives of hundreds of individuals
applying for parish relief, of the hardships they endured, and of the
distances they sometimes travelled. William Waters, for example, who
was born in Somerset, worked in Topsham (Devon), Jersey and Blackwall
near London between 1788 and 1796 before being married in the latter
year in North Curry in Somerset. A year later he was in Chieveley.
A subscription to the Society costs £14.50 a year, and for that
you receive a copy of each volume as it is published. Whilst you may
not find that every volume is relevant to your research interests, like
most members you will probably discover sources you had not thought of
and will marvel both at the rich variety of records available and at
the stories that they tell. Why not join?
Peter Durrant, General Editor BRS
We have recently changed our name and launched an
appeal for a million pounds. This follows the closure of the Royal Borough's
exhibition area (Town & Crown) above the former Visitor Information
Centre in the High Street at Windsor . If we are ever to have another
permanent exhibition centre again we will have to finance it ourselves.
We have a website www.windsormuseumappeal.org.uk .
We hope that many of the members of the BLHA can help us, by looking
at our website and joining us at one of our meetings. Our website tells
you how to make a contribution to the fund and at meetings we will have
a bucket for a cash collection.
Our Chairman, Beryl Hedges retired at
the AGM and everyone was anxious to pay tribute to her, she is succeeded
by Dr Brigitte Mitchell.
Pamela Marson (new Secretary)
Following on from the report in newsletter 85 'Local History Project
influences birth of new society' Michael Bayley writes: - 'The Maidenhead
Waterways Restoration Group is now established and restoring part
of the pre pond lock navigation channel between Bray, Maidenhead
and Cookham. Its hydrological consultant has surveyed the first section
and temporary dams are being built to ascertain the sub soils present
porosity and all as the result of a largely oral local history project.
It is satisfying that the public and businesses
are accepting that local history can be useful, but more importantly
to the historian, the project has proved the existence of a fourth
Celtic dialect like Breton, Welsh and Cornish, used locally and practically
in secret so far as recorded history is concerned until about 1860.
The field where the buried wharf timbers were found was called Dry
Wells, the nearest a 19th century cartographer could get to DRE-GWELEI
the local name meaning "The house of the unloading". This is almost
the same name as the 18 th - 19 th Century Thames side port of Welly
House near Wraysbury. The place where Jos Searle's barge was unloading
in 1795 was North Town , N'OATH TONE in the "old fashioned way of
speaking" as my grandfather called it. It was the "The Watercourse
of the permanent pasture". In the centre of North Town lay Cordwallis
Farm, with a dangerously deep D shaped pond by it on Northtown Moor,
which the council filled in the 1950s. On its demolition the roof
tress of Cordwallis Farm showed its 15 - 16 th century date. It was
CORED - GWAL - LLYS, "The Mansion by the weir wall". The nearby pond
was the typical shape and depth of a flash lock weir pool. When not
in use for raising barges from one reach to the next the canal was
drained to grow lush pasture, hence the next farm was called Dollys
Farm from DOL-LLYS meaning "The mansion of the Meadows". The nearby
Blackamoor Lanes real name was BALLEKWR - MA - WY, " The place of
water of the bownet fishermen".
An 18 th century map of riverside Eton provides the best local illustration
of how English and Lowland British co-existed. Adjacent plots were
named Gran Gabbets and Corn Gabbets and on them in the 1920s lay
the much decayed skeletons of two Thames barges, with oaken keels
still over a foot square. The names referred to the old boats; GASA
GABBART means "the deserted barge", and CORN GABBART means "The Western
Barge" which is the Georgian and Victorian name for the upper Thames
trading barges, which had tall square sails on a mast that could
be towed by men or horses.'
Michael Bayley
The Annual General Meeting for the BLHA is scheduled for March 17th
2007. Once again we are fortunate to be able to hold the event at
MERL and Kate Tiller will be our guest speaker. Members are requested
to make a note of this and final details will appear in the next
newsletter.
The BLHA are intending to host a special day in Autumn 2007, anyone
interested in presenting a paper or giving a talk on group or individual
research interests details will follow in the next issue.
Don't forget membership rates are increasing next year, please refer
to issue 85 for the new levels.
Margaret Simons
A Stroll Through St James' Churchyard, Finchampstead by
Olive Butchart and Jim Bell
The idea of writing the booklet was
a) to give people a chance to walk around our beautiful well kept
churchyard with the booklet and sketch map inside and read about
and see some of the graves of our more famous forbears, b) to raise
money towards the major restoration programme of our Norman Church
due to start early 2007.
The price of the booklet is £2.50, p&p 37p. |
 |
Exploring Winnersh Now and Then, by
Winnersh and District Historical Society
The book is based on four walks in
the area, locating current places such as shops, services, etc
and relating them to those existing in earlier times, thus showing
the development over time. Four sketch maps help to locate particular
sites.
It has 64 pages, 57 photographs and a glossy cover (ISBN 0-9549905-I-X).
The cost is £3.75 available from local Winnersh outlets and
by post (plus 60p p&p) from Mrs S Young, 30 King Street Lane,
Winnersh, Wokingham RG41 5AY.
Stella Young |
 |
Cheapside in the Forest of Windsor , 2000, £10.00,
0-9537945-0-4, The Bobby's Notebook , On the
Beat in Early Victorian Sunninghill, 2002, £4.00, 0-9537945-1-2, Remembering
Wartime , Ascot, Sunningdale and Sunninghill, 1939-1945.
2006, £10.00, 0-9537945-0-4
The authoress for all of the above publications is member Christine
Weightman, Heronsbrook Cottage, Cheapside, Ascot, Berkshire , SL5 7QG
. All the books are produced by 'Cheapside Publications',
Special Feature
In October 2006 the University of Reading
's new Special Collections Service opens to readers. Then you will
be able to use rare books and archives belonging to both the Museum
of English Rural Life (MERL) and the University Library's special
collections in its reading room at Redlands Road , within the MERL
complex.
You may already be familiar with the Museum of English Rural
Life , which holds many collections originating from Berkshire
. It featured in this newsletter (no.82, May 2005) on its arrival
in its refurbished and extended premises on Redlands Road , Reading
. The building was originally designed in 1880 for Alfred Palmer
by Alfred Waterhouse. Gifted to the University (adjacent on London
Road ) and extended in 1911, it became one of the University's
first halls of residence. |
The Reading Room at Museum of English Rural Life
which will be the hub of the new Special Collection Service. |
The University of Reading Library 's new Special Collections
store under construction in 2006, adjacent to the Museum of English
Rural Life, Redlands Road . |
This year, thanks to a Science Research
Investment Fund (SRIF) grant, a new state-of-the-art store was
completed next to MERL for the University Library's archives and
rare books. Its controlled environment and improved security will
ensure the long-term preservation of unique special collections
formerly held at the Main Library Whiteknights and other less suitable
stores. |
Now neighbours, staff from both MERL and the University Library have
come together to run the Special Collections Service, a joint reading
room service. Readers of the University Library archives and rare books
will come here instead of the University's Whiteknights campus.
So what might be of interest to Berkshire historians from amongst the
University Library's Special Collections?
Several of the archive collections
relate to the Reading area. These include:
A large collection of material relating to the local firm Huntley
and Palmers, and the associated company Peek Frean.
Henry Curtis Cherry's unpublished work on Berkshire genealogy
Records from Erlegh Park , Whiteknights
Waterhouse family papers.
The University of Reading archive reflecting its development
together with papers of ex-staff members. (This archive is not
yet fully sorted and listed.) |
Some of the material from the Huntley and Palmer
collection. |
Rare Book Collections of local interest include:
Parish library collections from Abingdon, Buckland, Didcot and Henley
The literature collection of local composer Gerald Finzi (1901-1956)
Books by or about local author and wood-engraver Robert Gibbings (1889-1958).
From 2 October 2006 the Special Collection
Service will open Monday - Friday
09:00 - 17:00, enquiries to specialcollections@reading.ac.uk or telephone
(0118) 378 8660. (Until the end of September the MERL Reading Room is
open Tuesday - Friday 10:00 - 16:30, telephone as above. However, University
Library Special Collections materials and staff will be unavailable while
still moving to the new site.) For more information, see www.library.rdg.ac.uk/colls/special/jointservice
Society News
Burnham Historians
Readers may remember that some time ago the writer enquired through
these Newsletters about tiles in Berkshire . Discussing that project
with members of Burnham Historians, and circulating the Newsletters and
Journals created an awareness of BLHA and the wish to become members.
As a new corporate member we thought that a few details about us would
be in order.
Burnham Historians is a small self-funding group - currently 5 members
- who research, record and respond to enquiries about local history in
the Burnham area. The group began in 1983 following an evening class
course, and subsequently wrote Yesterday's Town: Burnham. Through
its chairman the group also supports St Peter's Church in responding
to the historical queries they receive. Over the years various other
books, booklets and walk leaflets have been self-published covering places
within the ancient and modern parish of Burnham.
Being a small group, there are no lectures with guest speakers or social
events to report on through these Newsletters; members meet in each other's
homes to share their current research and discuss the steadily increasing
number of queries, which are received. These come from local people and
those whose families originated in the area as well as from those with
a particular interest in some aspect of Burnham. A useful tool in the
family history connection has been the granting of permission for Burnham
Historians to copy and distribute sections of the 1901 Census; an index
to surnames, roads and house names has been compiled to assist with locating
individuals.
When possible, photographic displays are created for local charity events,
and The Historical Association's national Local and Community History
Month and its forerunner continues to be celebrated with the help of
Burnham Library, which serves as a venue for a talk and a display.
Putting our area in context, BLHA members may know that Cippenham - now
part of Slough - was one of the ancient Liberties of Burnham and that
hence much of the original Slough Trading Estate which was built on Cippenham's
farm land was in Burnham Parish, in Buckinghamshire. Britwell is a name
now associated with a Slough housing estate, but the House and much of
its associated land remains in Buckinghamshire. Two of our books are
about Britwell Farm at different periods of its history.
Contact details are given below and the group welcomes your queries
and information.
Please contact the group by email on bhme@gme.prestel.co.uk or
telephone the Treasurer/ Secretary Mary Bentley on 01628 665932.
Mary Bentley
Goring and Streatley Local History Society
Our members' evening in April comprised talks by members about village
life in the 1960s at about the time the Society was founded. The accounts
included reminiscences of camping on a local farm, bringing children
to see the river and the lock, a verbal tour of village shops, many of
which are no longer here, a description of the building of new estates,
often in the grounds of larger houses and memories of some of the well-known
characters who used to live in Streatley. The talks stimulated the audience
to recount their own memories of those times.
In May Steve Capel-Davies told us about "Milling on the Thames", water
mills were mostly situated between Oxford and Maidenhead and were an
early attempt to obtain free power: There was often conflict between
the millers, who held back the water to operate their mills and navigators
who required passage for their boats. Besides grinding corn mills also
drove machinery, pulled wool and made paper. The talk was very well illustrated.
Our Annual outing in June was to the National Trust property at Mottisfont
Abbey, near Romsey. One of the main attractions was the National Collection
of old fashioned roses, which were their best when we were there and
the 38 members in the party had a very enjoyable visit.
Our AGM on the 10 th July marked the 40 th anniversary of the Society's
foundation and amongst the special guests were the BLHA Chairman, Joan
Dils and the fonder-chairman of the society, Ron Dell. After the formal
business those present enjoyed a social evening organised by Committee
members. Ray Carter retired as Chairman after 13 years and was elected
as the Society's President in recognition of his services to the Society.
Tony Simpson was elected Chairman for the coming year.
A.J. Simpson
History of Reading Society
The Society's meeting on 19 th April, (not as originally advertised)
was a talk by Donald Beaumont on Greys Court in the 16 th and 17 th Centuries,
in which he outlined the chequered lives of several members of the Knollys
and other families connected with this property just outside Henley which
is now owned by the National Trust, in advance of a members' visit on
14 th June. It certainly was not a good idea to be at court only to lose
favour in such turbulent times as prevailed in Britain in the Tudor,
Stuart and Parliamentarian eras!
The last indoor meeting of the 2005/06 session, on 17 th May, was a
talk by Manfred Brod, entitled 'The Case for Reading - Town Politics
in the Civil War and After, 1640 - 1662'. This turned out to be an interesting
aspect of local life in those turbulent times which is not otherwise
well documented and will in due course result in the speaker's extensive
researches being published in book form.
On 14 th June members visited Grey's Court to be taken round by Donald
Beaumont, while on 19 th July members were guests at the Berkshire Record
Office for a couple of hours of valuable insight behind the scenes. It
emerges that far too few are bothering to select a research subject aside
from family history, yet there are huge reserves of historic documentation
that have been saved and which are available for in depth research.
Meetings are held on Wednesday evenings mid-month (apart from August)
at Abbey Baptist Church , Abbey Square starting at 7.30pm prompt. Entry
free to members; Non-members £2.00. Inexpensive car parking available
for members. Meetings finish at 9.00pm with refreshments available.
The 2006/07 session starts with a very topical talk, by Anne Jessel,
on Swimming Baths in Reading in September, while our Chairman, John Dearing,
will present a fairly unusual type of meeting in October on the subject
of hymn writers who have had connection with Reading, either through
birth or ministerial calling. Most wrote the words but two composed the
music - and there are intended to be opportunities to hear each work - and
to join in! Martin Parsons, from Reading University, who is an authority
on all aspects of 'The Evacuations' during the Second World War will
be talking to us in November and Joan Dils will be giving her Presidential
Address in December.
Ring 0118 947 2470 or eMail Edward.W.Hooper@btinternet.com for
further details of the Society.
John Whitehead
Mortimer Local History Group
One of our newer members, John Allaway, during the April meeting told
of his recollections of Reading and visiting Mortimer in his boyhood.
He had a particularly interesting story of a German who escaped to this
country during the war and worked here for the duration, living locally
and servicing the German manufactured fire escapes for which he had been
trained. In May we held our Annual General meeting.
Our finances and membership remain satisfactory but, as with most societies,
we have difficulty in replacing our officers. After the break Angela
Philips, who recounted her sponsored visit to Guatemala , which she enjoyed
in spite of many hazards, entertained us. Her impression was of a cheerful
country, occupied by happy men and hard-working women.
Our speaker for June was unable to attend and at the last minute Bob
Owen, one of our members, came with his laptop projector and told us
of the thatching of his listed barn by Kate Glover, our local lady thatcher.
Kate has won national competitions on thatching and her work on Bob's
barn was of high quality. We were fortunate in that Bob had taken many
excellent illustrative photographs. We were also shown an article in "The
Daily Telegraph" entitled "Lady Thatcher (no not her)" which
described Bob's barn and Kate's work on it.
During our last meeting before the summer break Brenda Baldwin (who
you probably remember as Sadie Ward) came and gave a talk on agriculture
in wartime. She had slides from the Museum of English Rural Life showing
the progress in farming during the war, including really old farm machinery
being worked. Many of us were inspired to recount our memories of those
days when feeding the nation was so successful in spite of great difficulties.
June Woodward
Project Purley
In April we had a welcome return visit from Leslie Grout to give us
an illustrated talk on some of the burial grounds of London . With the
excellent photography, members were taken on a tour of the many burial
grounds in London , notably Highgate, Kensal Green and Golders Green
to name but a few. Leslie told of the history of these hallowed places
from their early days, and showed photographs of gravestones and mausoleums
where the remains of many of the illustrious and famous rest. Always
an interesting and humorous speaker, Leslie dealt with this somewhat
delicate subject to great effect.
May saw the start of the Summer programme, beginning with the annual
walkabout, this year to be taken in Reading . Under the guidance of Sidney
Gold, a member of the National Trust, and John Dearing, Chairman of the
History of Reading Society, members set off from the Forbury Gardens
, regrettably on a rather wet evening. However, the guides had planned
a most interesting walk, with much detail told about the buildings viewed
en route. Despite the heavy rain, much was learned of the history of
the centre of Reading , and members are indebted to their guides for
this.
In June an outing was organised to visit the Milestones Museum at Basingstoke
. Milestones , known as the living history museum of Hampshire , is a
truly fascinating place to visit. Members had an enjoyable time browsing
around the various shops and factories depicting everyday life from the
late Victorian period to the early 1940's. The Baverstock Arms was a
popular place to visit, as was the enactment of life in wartime followed
by singing of the old wartime songs. A really good place to visit.
Also in June Project Purley had a welcome return visit of the Rain or
Shine Theatre Company. In the Barn they performed, to a packed audience,
A Midsummer Night's Dream. A truly memorable performance, and with the
proceeds Project Purley were able to present a cheque for £500
to The Dogs for the Disabled Society.
July came, and time for the Barbecue. This year our Chairman John Chapman,
and his wife Ann hosted the event in their delightful garden. It was
a glorious summer evening, with lots of delicious food and drink, and
a good company. It was declared to be a lovely occasion, enjoyed by all.
Milly Bordiss
Sandhurst Historical Society
Our meeting are held at the Sandhurst Community Hall usually on the
last Thursday of each month, commencing at 7.30pm. The Society's website
can be found at www.sandhurst-historical-society.org .
Alternatively please ring Zoe on 01252 375579 for further information.
At our June meeting we had a very interesting talk accompanied with
slides on the history of Eton College . Our speaker was the Archivist
at Eton College Library.
On Freedom Day the Society had a stall on the Bull and Butcher field.
This attracted quite a bit of attention throughout the day. Hopefully
we will see some new faces at our next meeting! Many thanks to all those
member who manned the stall through the day.
We have an outing to Chartwell on the 29 th |July and another one to
Holloway College on the 15 th August.
Don't forget our photographic competition. Last date for entries is
30 th September. Details re this were printed in the last two issues
of this magazine.
Janice Burlton
Sonning & Sonning Eye Society
In September the Society will reach at its second birthday. We are not
planning anything as elaborate by way of celebration this year, contenting
ourselves with architectural and historical walks around Sonning under
the auspices of Heritage Open Days. These will run on Friday 8 September
at 2.30 pm, Saturday 9 September at both 10.00 am and 4.00 pm and Sunday
10 September at 2.30 pm. These will begin in the churchyard near The
Bull pub. To reserve a place please contact Diana Coulter on 0118 969
2132.
Our spring issue of bridge carried some excellent research
into The Eyot House in Sonning Eye, built by Arts & Crafts architect
Halsey Ricardo in 1904 for Reginald Blunt, one-time manager of William
de Morgan's tile factory in Fulham, London . This was expanded into a
small but fascinating exhibition when we held a successful members-only
summer lunch in the gardens of The Eyot House in June. The imminent summer
issue of bridge may be of interest for its article on the bells
of the church. St Andrew's has a fine peal of eight bells, four of which
date to 1640/41, the remaining bells having been added during the 18
th and 19 th centuries. They have interesting histories to tell, just
by their inscriptions alone.
If you would like to contact us, here are some details.
Membership Secretary
Carole Barnett 0118 969 6693 gordon@barnett19.fsnet.co.uk
Tickets for open events
Diana Coulter 0118 969 2132 diana.coulter@orange.net
Tony Swell 0118 969 1390 patsy-tonyswell@tesco.net
Diane Coulter
Swallowfield Local History Society
A large variety of photographs were on show at our June meeting. David
Blomley brought prints he had taken from a one hundred year old series
of plates; builder, the late Bill Yeo, had found these when working at
the vicarage. The Reverend Maunsell John Bacon had been an enthusiastic
photographer. Amongst his collection were family groups, children at
play, amateur theatricals and one striking photo of his brother, John
Maunsell.
J.M. was a renowned practical joker, vicar of Burghclere and a well
known balloonist, he was shown in the basket of this balloon with a dummy
army officer who was later to be ejected to be retrieved by a following
pack of cyclists.
The first car in Swallowfield, a de Dion Bouton, was included with a
young Sir Arthur Russell at the wheel.
The extensive Bacon collection has been donated to the Society and will
feature in the archive cabinet in Swallowfield Park .
Other members brought memories of motorcycle scrambling from the 1950s
and Great Western Railway steam locomotives. Reading Market Place as
it was in 1623 also featured. (This was not a photograph.)
The bulk of the material brought along was a collection of over 1000
local topographical picture postcards collected over a period of 40 years.
These were mainly of Swallowfield Parish 1900-1920. There were ten photographic
cards of Swallowfield Mill, which was destroyed by fire in 1961. This
building was unknown to most of our members.
One Beech Hill card showed a posed crew drilling for water. The name
board of 'Girdler the Builder' also featured on an unknown building construction
project, also with posed workmen.
Many question were left unanswered, the images featured being too early
to be remembered by those present.
Ken Hussey
Twyford & Ruscombe Local History Society
Joan Dil's talk on the Expansion of Reading 1840-1914 proved to be a
fascinating subject. She related how in 1801 Reading had a population
of 9000 and by 1880 it had doubled because of the influx of industries
such as Simons Brewery, Huntley and Palmers, Reading Ironworks and Huntley
Bourne and Stevens. This meant that it had an adverse effect on the health
of the workers. Sewage disposal and the provision of clean water were
improved and The Royal Berkshire Hospital was built. People from as far
away as Wales and London , including professionals came seeking for work.
Mrs Dils painted a picture of great depth of Reading and its growth.
Peter Delaney gave us 'The History of Wargrave', in May. Wargrave meaning 'a
clearing near a weir' had a church in 1121, which Hentry 1 st gave to
Reading Abbey. The present church dates from the rebuilding after a fire
in 1914 supposed to have been lit by the suffragettes. Local benefactors
include the Piggott family who founded schools; Mrs Harriet Smith gave
a hall, a hostel and Almshouses and left her house to Florence Nightingale.
Two other benefactors live there, one a physician to Queen Victoria and
the gardener Gertrude Jekyll. The village still maintains its rural atmosphere.
We had a happy return from Leslie Grout - one time winner of 'Mastermind'.
Without notes, he spoke of the growth of London in the 17 th century,
which needed land for the burial of the dead. He told wonderful stories
of famous personalities who were interred at the fifteen cemeteries around
London and held us in awe throughout.
This hot July we celebrated by holding a Ploughman's Lunch. Two gazebos
and umbrellas were erected to gain more shade. Salad and a drink were
served and all was merry. You can guess what happened - the heavens opened
sending everyone for shelter in the house. It made the day. We laughed,
as it was the best ploughmans ever.
Betty Cossey
Wargrave Local History Society
Sadly, we have to record the death of Brian Fennemore, the Society's
Chairman, in April. Brian had been a member of the committee since 1984,
vice chairman from 1985, and chairman from 1990.
In April, John Chapman spoke about the Postal History of Reading
. The earliest posts were in the Roman era but they then disappeared
for around 1000 years, when Henry I appointed messengers to deliver
his letters, and Edward I established a network for changing the horses.
A good network was established across the country in the 16th century,
but all the post went to London , where clerks calculated the charge
paid by the recipient. Some local postmasters developed 'cross posts'
to avoid the distance to London and back - everyone benefited, except
the Post Office! . The 'penny post' began in January 1840, soon to
use a prepaid label - and as people soon found ways to re-use these 'stamps',
the cancellation mark came into being.
In May, Paul Lacey, told us about the Thames Valley Traction Co
in the 1930s and 40s . The early fleet included over 100 Thornycroft
buses and when they moved to a new garage in Reading enough 'spare
parts' were found to build another one! The company had many garages
across its area - some large, such as Maidenhead or Reading , some
small, like Ascot or 'dormitory' sheds, as at Crowthorne. Paul told
us about the development of the local services, of several smaller
firms in the area, and also the Reading - London routes of Thackray's
Way. In much of the area, the coming of the bus routes led to a lot
of development, particularly alongside the main roads between the towns.
As a result, people - few had cars - could live in pleasant surroundings
but easily travel to a place of work, or to town for the cinema, shopping
etc.
In June, Ted Fox, himself a skilled wheelwright, gave us a most interesting
talk on Wheelwrights as a Rural Craft . Wheels had been around
for about 6000 years, and Ted outlined the history of their development
Ted then explained, showing both the tools he uses and the various parts
of a wheel, how he makes a wheel using this traditional method. Each
part would use the most appropriate wood - elm for the hub, oak for the
spokes and ash for the felloes. The metal hoop tyre, made to be smaller
than the wheel rim, is heated up to expand it, fitted over the rim, and
then rapidly cooled to bind the whole wheel tightly together.
In July, members made a visit to Eton College , followed, as usual,
by a lovely tea !!
Peter Delaney
Winnersh and District Historical Society
The April meeting began with our AGM. This was followed by members who
talked about things of historical interest that they had brought along.
It included a collection of milk bottles of varying shapes and sizes,
with some carrying the name of local dairies.
May saw us on a tour of St. Catherine's Church, Bearwood with the Rector.
He pointed out the board which had the names of local men who fought
from 1914 in WW1,, but no date when it ended! John Walter II built the
church and he and his family are buried in the churchyard, together with
the Harmans who donated the organ. We also saw the graves of Canadian
soldiers who died whilst at Bearwood Mansion , then being used as a convalescent
hospital.
In June, Ted Fox kept everyone entertained with one of his "Country
Talks". He brought along some of his tools, his memories, and a good
time was had by all.
July 17 th was a special evening for the Society. The Research group
had worked hard and produced our second booklet "Exploring Winnersh Now
and Then", and we put on a display of maps, photographs and old postcards
of the area. The meeting was open to members of the public, and local
councillors, schools, librarians etc., were invited. Free books were
to be given to local schools and libraries.
We were very pleased to welcome Joan Dils who had agreed to come to
officially launch the book and make the presentations. She was very encouraging
and it was good to see Peter Johnson as well - our sincere thanks to
both for their time and interest.
Stella Young
Wokingham History Group
In April, our planned talk on a local geophysical exploration was cancelled
at short notice. Fortunately, our Chairman came to the rescue with a
unique visual tour of Ashridge Farm. Trevor had visited this Grade II
house prior to it being sold at auction and his photos well illustrated
the many surprising 16 th century features that remain. Below a substantial
central chimney-stack, which dominates the symmetrical exterior, great
carved stone fireplaces are the focal points in the two large rooms downstairs.
Notably, the room on the left is the master's, with superior decoration
and carved initials, oak wood-work and stained glass. The room on the
right is the service side, similar but less ornate, with pine wood-work.
This distinction is repeated upstairs. Throughout there are ancient doors
and windows with their original furniture.
Trevor then took us round Whiteley Village , founded by a bequest of
the London store owner in 1914 to accommodate the elderly. Its charming
decorative features extend from the houses to street furniture. To this
tranquil oasis the alms-folk qualifying for our recently defunct Henry
Lucas Hospital will be housed.
In May, Dr David Peacock revealed many interesting aspects of the results
of his research into "Jack of Newbury" and the history of the Tudor clothing
industry. "Jack" was actually the son of John Smallwood alias Winchcombe,
and traces of his house and his large kersey cloth processing buildings
can be seen in Newbury.
In June, Nigel Hammond gave a lucid insight into the "Drove routes from
Wales to England ". Using existing examples of these formerly wide roads,
he explained how great herds of up to 2,000 Welsh sheep, or up to 4,000
cattle, (or pigs, donkeys and poultry) would travel at 2 mph, for 3 to
4 weeks, along one of three main routes to London . The drover went ahead
on horseback to arrange grazing and accommodation, often marked by Scots
pine trees, while the shepherds did their job on foot. Because of money
problems, ranging from toll fees to highway robbers, the Black Sheep
Bank was formed - by the 19 th century this became Lloyds Bank.
After our July AGM, many historical curiosities were revealed in Trevor's
pre-recorded "Berkshire Beyond the Obvious". Such surprising hidden gems,
from a tithe barn, fire-marks, pumps, underground hideouts to memorials,
are all around the county, normally not noticed.
Barbara Young
Heritage, Family History, Museums and Libraries
Electronic mailing list
Do you want to receive news updates from the
Berkshire Record Office? Or would you like to receive an electronic
version of the quarterly newsletter The Berkshire Echo , with stories
and information about BRO? BRO is now offering you the opportunity
to sign up for its new mailing list. If
you would like to subscribe, please send a message to arch@reading.gov.uk
Fair Mile Hospital archive available for research
Work on the archive of Fair Mile Hospital is nearly complete, and the
catalogue is now available in the BRO search room. It will shortly become
available online via www.a2a.org.uk .
The Hospital was opened in 1870 as the Berkshire
Lunatic Asylum in a partnership between Berkshire County Council and
the Boroughs of Newbury and Reading , and took in patients from all around
the county. Though the Hospital is gone what remains is a rich and unique
history of the care of both 'lunatics' and 'mental defectives' from Victorian
Berkshire through to the Second World War. We have created some pages
on the history of the Hospital and life in the Victorian Asylum, which
you can view at www.berkshirerecordoffice.org.uk/collections/fairmile.htm
Online access to manorial documents
BRO, together with the Centre for Buckinghamshire
Studies and Royal Holloway College , has been awarded £10,000
by the Marc Fitch fund towards a 15-month project to produce an online
index to the manorial documents register for both counties.
The register is a list of court rolls, accounts, rentals and surveys
of manors, which are held both in public institutions and private hands.
Currently it is kept by the Royal Commission on Historical Manuscripts
as a hard copy only. The Berkshire and Buckinghamshire project will see
the register remodelled as web pages searchable by manor, parish and
date. Sara h Charlton has been recruited as Project Officer and began
work in February.
To see how the finished product will look, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/mdr
Interested in schools in Bracknell Forest ?
Following the success of our guide to WW2 records at BRO, we have embarked
on the creation of similar guides to school records that we hold. We
are going to do this by modern council area, and the first guide to be
completed is for parishes and places within Bracknell Forest . The guide
gives details of admission registers, governors' minutes, logbooks and
other school records held for each school in the district. Details of
school name changes and mergers are also included. It is hoped that the
guide will be available online soon, but in the meantime hard copies
can be requested from BRO.
Mark Stevens, Senior Archivist
DISPLAYS
Since the re-organisation of the Local Studies area on the top floor,
for the last year or so we have had two large glass display cases in
the middle of the bookshelves.
In the first instance we displayed material which is normally kept in
the strongroom, to give visitors some idea of the range and richness
of the collection.
Then we had an exhibition about John Man, author
of "The Stranger in
Reading ," (1810), "The History and Antiquities . . . of the Borough
of Reading," (1816) and of a rather large and splendid map of the town
(1813). Besides the printed material, we were able to display a couple
of unpublished works of his from the Library's collection.
Presently, during August and September, we have a display to celebrate
the 125 th anniversary of the inauguration of the Reading and District
Natural History Society. With the Society's help, we have been able to
put together a sequence of photographs showing groups of naturalists
out on field excursions, from 1881 to 2006. It is noticeable that in
the beginning, all the members seem to have been male, and it is interesting
to see what naturalists wore in the field, over the 125 years. In 1881
it was three-piece suits and neckties and hats!
Other memorabilia include the Society's scrap-books, members' notebooks,
a set of humorous cartoons from the 1930s, and textbooks on natural history
by eminent members of the Society.
The exhibition has aroused considerable interest - including
a visit from a couple whose wedding photograph happened to appear on
the page of one of the scrapbooks, where it had been left open in the
display.
The next exhibition will be in connection with
the publication of a new book which marks the 200 th anniversary of
Sutton & Sons, the
Reading seedsmen - who have now moved to Torquay. The text went to the
printer this week - the middle of August.
We shall be dusting off some of the old seed
catalogues and advertising material from our collection to make the
display more colourful, and will probably search out the sheet from
one of the old insurance plans of Reading to show the firm's extensive
town centre premises. From it, you can work out that the Library is
about where Sutton's seed potato stores once stood. These large-scale
Victorian plans are particularly interesting because they show what
each building was constructed from, and what it was likely to contain - in
order for the insurance risk to be calculated. They also mark the fire
hydrants, of course.
There are lots of other subjects in mind for future displays, and we
hope to assemble a good variety over the next few years.
David Cliffe, Local Studies Manager
Reading Museum Service
These are just some of the events that may be of
interest to BLHA members. For details of all our forthcoming events and
exhibition details please go to www.readingmuseum.org.uk/news To
receive our latest 'what's on' diary why not join our free mailing list,
call us on 0118 939 9800.
Stanley Spencer: Painting Paradise
30 September - April
2007
Stanley Spencer is one of the most influential twentieth century British
artists. His work is inextricably linked with Cookham, the village on
the River Thames in Berkshire where he lived and worked. The exhibition
shows Stanley Spencer's unique vision of the paradise on earth he found
amongst the local people and in the landscape.
While the Stanley Spencer Gallery at Cookham is closed for refurbishment
its outstanding collection of paintings, drawings and memorabilia is
on view at Museum of Reading . Don't miss this unique opportunity to
see the whole collection displayed together.
Spencer Saturday Afternoons
Each Saturday Custodians from the Stanley Spencer Gallery will be in
the exhibition to chat to visitors about their local hero and his work.
Lunchtime talk - Disciples and Dust: Stanley Spencer Gallery
, Cookham
Wednesday 4 October with Dick Hurley, Chairman of the Trustees, 1.00-1.30,
free drop in
The Big Draw - Stanley Spencer Day
On Saturday 14 October the museum will buzz
with Spencer inspired drawing and activities for all the family, as
well as talks for adults by Spencer experts. You don't have to be able
to draw to join in - there is something
for everyone. Try your hand at comic art too! 11.00 - 3.00, free drop
in.
Lunchtime talk - The Stanley Spencer Gallery refurbishment project
Wednesday 1 November with Stuart Conlin, Gallery Manager 1.00-1.30,
free drop in
Heritage Open days events 8- 9 September
Brown, but not Boring! Friday 8 September
A chance to join the curators behind the scenes at
our south Reading store and discover some of the many intriguing objects
that AREN'T so brightly coloured! There are shapes and patterns to admire
and fascinating stories to tell with objects that may not be colourful,
but certainly aren't dull. Adults and children over 12, 2.00 - 4.00
Free, but numbers are limited so booking is essential,
call 0118 939800
Slates and Copybooks - Saturday 9 September
Your first chance to visit the Katesgrove Victorian schoolroom in its
new home at the Museum of Reading . Meet the strict schoolteacher, use
the slates and learn how to behave as a Victorian schoolchild, you are
sure to go home top of the class!
All ages. 1.00 - 1.30, 1.45 - 2.15 & 2.30
- 3.00. Free, but booking essential
University of Reading 's Short Courses in History
With this newsletter we have included leaflets detailing courses in
history for this autumn term at the School of Continuing Education at
Reading University . Courses are run on weekdays, mornings, afternoons
or evenings, for ten sessions and on some Saturdays, generally in the
university buildings on London Road . Courses are friendly and informal,
designed to interest the general public as well as the academic student
and the subjects covered are very wide. This autumn, for example, courses
in English history include Anglo-Saxon kings, medieval queens, pleasures
and pastimes in Tudor England, Disraeli, and a social history of the
Workhouse. The archaeology and history of Berkshire includes the prehistory
of the Thames Valley and the Saxons in West Berkshire . For those with
interests further a-field there are courses on the conflict of church
and state in medieval Europe, the dynasties of China, Germany from 1870
to 1990 and Byzantine history. Two study days, one in December and the
other in January, deal with developing researching skills using books
and the internet, of interest to all, archaeologists, family tree enthusiasts
and local historians.
Christine Wardingley
The Oxford University Department of Continuing Education also
have a number of part-time courses in their 2006/7 prospectus that may
be of interest to members. Please see below a selection of what is on
offer, not all courses are held in Oxford, but for more information on
these and other courses please call 01865 270360, email pp@conted.ox.ac.uk or
look at the website on www.conted.ox.ac.uk
Course Title |
Start Date/Duration |
Tutor |
The Tames Valley in the 16 th and 17
th Centuries |
02/10/2006/10 meetings |
Manfred Brod |
The Geology and Landscape of Berkshire
and Oxfordshire |
25/09/2006/10 meetings |
Leslie James |
Records of the Old Poor Law |
17/03/2007/1 meeting |
Peter Durrant |
A warm welcome to Dave Osborne, he replaces Emily Tarrant as our web
manager and has provided the following statistics.
Unique visitors *
Total since 1 August 2004 8400
Average daily visitors 11.06
Average weekly visitors 77.48
April 2006 554
May 2006 345
Jun 2006 312
July 2006 370
August 477
* Unique visitors means that it is not counting when a visitor
returns to the site.
Geographical breakdown (of last 100 visitors)
United Kingdom 84%
Australia 9%
United States 6%
Canada 2%
The statistical analysis shows that the most popular pages on the website
(aside from the home page) are the newsletters and queries page.
Dave Osborne, websitedesigner@blha.org.uk
© COPYRIGHT: Trustees of the Berkshire
Local History Association and Authors 2006
|
