EVENTs
Annual outing - Tuesday 25 June
This year we are heading in a completely different geographical direction from usual and going to Hertfordshire to the former ancient Roman city of Verulamium. Here in the third century a local citizen, Alban, became a Christian after sheltering a priest who was fleeing from persecution. He was put to death for refusing to renounce his new faith and became the first British martyr. He was buried on the hillside and a church was built over his tomb – making the site the oldest place of continuous Christian worship and pilgrimage in Britain. A Benedictine monastery was founded there in the 8th century and by 1115 a fine abbey church was completed in the Norman style. After the dissolution of the monasteries the Abbey was closed in 1539 and the church slowly declined before being saved in the mid-19c when Sir George Gilbert Scott was appointed to restore it. In 1877 the church became the Cathedral for the new Diocese of St Alban’s.
Our day in St Albans will start with a guided tour of the Cathedral and Abbey Church (after some refreshments, of course) and then you will be free to explore the other attractions of the city, which include several museums and the Roman site and museum. There are plenty of good places to eat and a wide variety of shops.
Please put the date in your diary. We will be issuing booking forms at the end of March.
Local and Family History Advice Session
Next date: The date of the next Family History Advice Session will be announced here as soon as it is known.
If you would like to attend the session, please book a slot in advance using the contact form. Janet Hurst will then get in touch with you to make the arrangements.
Interest in the centenary of World War I may also have prompted you to find out what your ancestors did in the conflict. A good deal of military information is now online and we can help you to access it.
On the other hand, if you are interested in any aspect of local history, or the history of your house, then we may also be able to help using the information held in the Society's collections of documents, books and photographs.
This year we are heading in a completely different geographical direction from usual and going to Hertfordshire to the former ancient Roman city of Verulamium. Here in the third century a local citizen, Alban, became a Christian after sheltering a priest who was fleeing from persecution. He was put to death for refusing to renounce his new faith and became the first British martyr. He was buried on the hillside and a church was built over his tomb – making the site the oldest place of continuous Christian worship and pilgrimage in Britain. A Benedictine monastery was founded there in the 8th century and by 1115 a fine abbey church was completed in the Norman style. After the dissolution of the monasteries the Abbey was closed in 1539 and the church slowly declined before being saved in the mid-19c when Sir George Gilbert Scott was appointed to restore it. In 1877 the church became the Cathedral for the new Diocese of St Alban’s.
Our day in St Albans will start with a guided tour of the Cathedral and Abbey Church (after some refreshments, of course) and then you will be free to explore the other attractions of the city, which include several museums and the Roman site and museum. There are plenty of good places to eat and a wide variety of shops.
Please put the date in your diary. We will be issuing booking forms at the end of March.
Local and Family History Advice Session
Next date: The date of the next Family History Advice Session will be announced here as soon as it is known.
If you would like to attend the session, please book a slot in advance using the contact form. Janet Hurst will then get in touch with you to make the arrangements.
Interest in the centenary of World War I may also have prompted you to find out what your ancestors did in the conflict. A good deal of military information is now online and we can help you to access it.
On the other hand, if you are interested in any aspect of local history, or the history of your house, then we may also be able to help using the information held in the Society's collections of documents, books and photographs.
VISITS BY THE TRANSPORT HISTORY GROUP
The following locations and months are proposed for the Transport History Group for 2019. There may be changes, including other visits, but equally some locations may not be possible. We will publish more details as soon as we know them.
Sat Apr 27 London Transport Museum Reserve Collection, Acton
Wed May 15 Royal Gunpowder Mills, Waltham Abbey
(Tue Jun 25 Annual GGLHS outing, this year to St Albans)
Thu 25 Jul Canal boat ride from Bradford on Avon to Avoncliffe
Sat 31 Aug Epping Ongar Railway Classic Car Rally, Ongar
Wed 2 Oct Brewery Museum, Burton-on-Trent
Sat 2 Nov Farnborough Air Sciences Museum
Please note we reserve the right to change these destinations - and that they have not necessarily been booked.
To download a flyer for the outing to the London Transport Museum Reserve Collection, please click here.
To download a list of outings, please click here.
Visit to London Transport Museum Reserve Collection, Acton
This large building holds the overspill from the restricted London Transport Museum at Covent Garden. Expect to see lots of old buses, trams, Underground trains, posters, drawings, signs and other ephemera. There will also be mini guided tours, talks and films. There are likely to be other attractions which will be announced nearer the time. For a flyer with further information and booking, please click here.
The following locations and months are proposed for the Transport History Group for 2019. There may be changes, including other visits, but equally some locations may not be possible. We will publish more details as soon as we know them.
Sat Apr 27 London Transport Museum Reserve Collection, Acton
Wed May 15 Royal Gunpowder Mills, Waltham Abbey
(Tue Jun 25 Annual GGLHS outing, this year to St Albans)
Thu 25 Jul Canal boat ride from Bradford on Avon to Avoncliffe
Sat 31 Aug Epping Ongar Railway Classic Car Rally, Ongar
Wed 2 Oct Brewery Museum, Burton-on-Trent
Sat 2 Nov Farnborough Air Sciences Museum
Please note we reserve the right to change these destinations - and that they have not necessarily been booked.
To download a flyer for the outing to the London Transport Museum Reserve Collection, please click here.
To download a list of outings, please click here.
Visit to London Transport Museum Reserve Collection, Acton
This large building holds the overspill from the restricted London Transport Museum at Covent Garden. Expect to see lots of old buses, trams, Underground trains, posters, drawings, signs and other ephemera. There will also be mini guided tours, talks and films. There are likely to be other attractions which will be announced nearer the time. For a flyer with further information and booking, please click here.
FURTHER AFIELD
South Stoke Historical Society On Thursday 25th April at 8pm in South Stoke Village Hall Corry Starling is giving a talk to South Stoke Historical Society. All are welcome. Guests £5, youngsters £3 and members are free. (Membership costs £12.50) He is the miller of Mapledurham Water Mill. This is the last commercially operated mill on the River Thames and the site has had a mill there for over a thousand years. Corry will tell us about the mill’s history, how it operates and what the future holds for this enterprise.
On the 12th June there will be a follow up visit to the mill to see it in action followed by a cream tea. Fingers crossed for good weather.
Didcot Archaeological and Historical Society holds talks, usually on the second Thursday of the month. For details see www.ddahs.org.uk
Oxford Local History Association is holding a Study Day at Shipton under Wychwood on Saturday 11 May on the subject of Wychwood: the forest then and now. The cost is £10 per person, and places can be booked via the website www.olha.org.uk
South Stoke Historical Society On Thursday 25th April at 8pm in South Stoke Village Hall Corry Starling is giving a talk to South Stoke Historical Society. All are welcome. Guests £5, youngsters £3 and members are free. (Membership costs £12.50) He is the miller of Mapledurham Water Mill. This is the last commercially operated mill on the River Thames and the site has had a mill there for over a thousand years. Corry will tell us about the mill’s history, how it operates and what the future holds for this enterprise.
On the 12th June there will be a follow up visit to the mill to see it in action followed by a cream tea. Fingers crossed for good weather.
Didcot Archaeological and Historical Society holds talks, usually on the second Thursday of the month. For details see www.ddahs.org.uk
Oxford Local History Association is holding a Study Day at Shipton under Wychwood on Saturday 11 May on the subject of Wychwood: the forest then and now. The cost is £10 per person, and places can be booked via the website www.olha.org.uk