Please note that enquiries printed in the Newsletter are not included here but can be found by clicking on the Answers Please link above, along with other queries received since printing.
STOP PRESS:
25th September. Telling tales out of school. A talk by Dr Ian Roberts on the history of education and school life in North Tynedale & Redesdale from 1870 to 1944. Hexham Library at 2pm. Free entrance
Newsletter 51 Summer 2008
Welcome to the Summer 2008 Newsletter. I hope the weather will be better than last year, so that the summer outings take place in warm sunshine. Surely it can’t be worse? If you haven’t booked your place please contact Charlotte as soon as possible!
This newsletter is always looking for interesting articles and items so if you have found something out, want to know the answer to a query or simply want to share some information about Hexham and the surrounding area please contact the editor h.j.rutherford@fsmail.net (01434 601990) all contributions gratefully received.
There has been a very poor response to the request in the last newsletter for e-mail addresses in order to send this letter electronically. Please sign up for this service if you can: it saves trees and money! If you would like to receive future newsletter by e-mail, please send a message to h.j.rutherford@fsmail.net and you will be added to the electronic list.
You will be aware that the Society has a well used website which, whilst better than nothing, is very limited and we want to develop it to enable access to PDFs and so forth.
Do you have the required knowledge and time and are you willing to help set up a proper website for the society? If so please contact Mark Benjamin, who will be very pleased to hear from you! markbenjamin@hencotes.fslife.co.uk
A Victorian story: the Dunwoodie family of Hexham and their Hat Factory.
Joan Smith
Joan Smith has been investigating the history of her family, and the results of her work will be published in The Historian. The following article results from her researches.
There has been a great deal of research about Hexham tanneries and glove making, but little has been written about the hat industry in Hexham. Records show that at one time there were 16 Master Hatters in Hexham, who employed 36 journeymen and 28 apprentices. Evidence of trades and occupations is often found in the names of public houses and the hat trade was no exception. The Hatters Arms was situated in Hexham Market Place, from 1822 to1848. It later became the Hag Ends Inn, (first noted in 1860) which traded until 1913.
There is evidently lots of research to be done on Hexham hat making but some information is already known about one family engaged in the business; the Dunwoodies.
The Dunwoodie Hat Factory faced onto Bull Bank, adjacent to the Moot Hall on the north side. It was established (exact date unknown) by William Dunwoodie who died in 1863 aged 94. The business was continued by his son, also called William, who was a Master Hatter, having completed his apprenticeship with David Wilson, Hatter, on the 24th April 1818. William, the son, was born in 1803 and died on 21st February 1892 aged 89. Further information about the family has been gleaned from the census records. In the first detailed census in 1841 William is noted as being 35 and married to Dorothy Bell, from Humshaugh. They had married on the 14th March 1822 in Hexham and they went on to have eight children. In the 1851 census, William is shown as employing one man. In 1861, when William the elder was living with his son, this had doubled to two. Dorothy died on 22nd May 1868 aged 68 years.
In 1878 the Dunwoodies had a shop in Fore Street, opposite the Meal Market, which he boasted was the cheapest house in Hexham. The hat business was clearly profitable because in the mid 1880s William built Dunwoodie Terrace in Cockshaw and he was living there at the time of the 1891 census.
The Dunwoodie children obviously had ambitions beyond Hexham because one daughter, Mary, married a Mr H Marrett in London on the 9th July 1865 and William their son, 1824-1910, moved with the four children of his first marriage to London after the death of his wife in 1848.He returned to Hexham and married Ann Spedding in 1857 and went to live in Sele View House in Cockshaw. A second daughter, Isabella, married Thomas Hopper in Hexham Abbey on the 5th May 1884.
The factory was demolished in 1930 when the road was cut through at the side of the Moot Hall to enable better traffic flow through to the Hallbank area.
Hexham Historian Index
As an aid to both serious and casual researchers researchers of Hexham’s history, a full index to issues 1-15 (1991-2005) of the Hexham Historian has now been completed. Sadly, it is not possible to put the index on our current website, but a limited number of copies will be available in printed form, at a price to be decided. Any members wishing to have their own copy please contact Mark Benjamin at 9 Hencotes, Hexham NE462EQ, email markbenjamin@hencotes.fslife.co.uk so that he can gauge the number of copies required.
The Life and Times of Thomas Dixon 1805-1871, Stafford M. Linsley
Wagtail Press, 2006
Greg Finch
Thomas went on to work on the Newcastle & Carlisle Railway soon after it opened, and rose to become stationmaster at Hexham. The author’s research is complemented by a marvellous collection of prints, old photographs, maps and plans drawn together by Hilary Kristensen, (also the publisher). Many have not been previously published, and therefore, add to the strong local collection published in her Hexhamshire Memories in 1999.
In piecing together a story from a wide range of sources it is inevitable that the occasional speculation is open to debate. For example it’s arguable that Quatre Bras refers to the place just west of Hexham rather than Wester Byers, not far from Dukesfield.
Had it been possible to include an index the depth of content in the book, particularly the many references and footnotes on local people, would have been further enriched, but this is a churlish minor quibble. The author is to be congratulated, as is the publisher. Surely there are few -if any- rural parts of the country better served by high quality recent publications on their own local history. This latest addition to the collection is strongly recommended to anyone interested in the lead industry and life in Hexhamshire over a very interesting period of recent history.
Committee News
Michael Saxon has been elected as the new Secretary of the Society and Greg Finch has been elected as Treasurer. They have been getting to grips with the Byzantine workings of the Society and are already doing a marvellous job.
In order to introduce members to the new Committee members we thought it would be useful to have a short introduction to each of them. (Michael Saxon’s biography will appear next issue.)
So who is the new treasurer?
Greg and his wife Julie have lived just outside Hexham, in the 'Shire, for a dozen years, where their two young daughters have been brought up. Originally from South Devon, it was work for a large business and IT consultancy company which brought him to the North East, via London and
Manchester. Having had his interest in the subject stimulated by his A Level history teacher at Exmouth School he studied economic and social history at Bristol University and then went on to complete a D.Phil in the subject at Oxford, where he undertook his research into the English Industrial Revolution under Professor Peter Mathias. Work then took him off into a
completely different direction in IT systems development, project management and then business financial planning. However, going into freelance work a year or so ago freed up more of his time to undertake historical research again, along with a bit of acting, walking, gardening, archaeological volunteering and drystone walling. And since much of his freelance work involves "doing hard sums in spreadsheets" he is quite well qualified to be our Treasurer!
HEFC Historical Studies at Queen Elizabeth High School Community Education centre.
As part of the new programme of courses starting in September, there is the opportunity to study for an HEFC (Higher Education Foundation Course) in Historical Studies. It is designed to be part of an Access to Higher Education diploma, for those who want to eventually go to University but it can be studied for fun and interest alone. The Course runs over thirty weeks and is divided into two modules. The syllabus is designed to introduce students to historical method, and the sources of history as well as providing a forum for discussion. No previous knowledge or study is required.
In the first part the origins of the Second World War and the welfare state will be studied and in the second, there is an opportunity to study local history. The course promises to be very interesting and full details will be available in the Community Education brochure, published in the summer. Look out for it!
Answers Found!
Newsletter 50 Spring 2008
Welcome to the first newsletter of 2008. A particularly warm welcome to the new members who have recently joined the Society. We have a new secretary, Michael Saxon, and programme secretary, Liz Sobell, for 2008. The full committee will be confirmed at the AGM in March.
The Society is going from strength to strength and currently has approximately 240 members. 2008 promises to be an exciting year with three excellent trips, organised by Charlotte Coxon, timetabled for the summer and a wide variety of speakers booked for the monthly meetings, thanks to Donald Maxwell.
There is something for everyone: bring your friends and family!
The History Fair at the Wentworth in December was well attended and the Society sold a number of publications at this event and at the Abbey Christmas fair, with thanks to Ted Wall. Rodney Higgins is doing a sterling job of promoting the Society by giving talks to local groups and as a result has recruited a number of new members. The Hexham Historian for 2008 is well underway, under the editorship of Mark Benjamin, and promises to be a very interesting read as usual. The website is attracting a steady number of hits and the queries column is proving to be very popular.
The map on the cover of the newsletter is taken from a publication from 1759. It is a road map showing the route from Hexham to Tynemouth and would have formed part of a book for travellers, an early AA route map perhaps? The text down the right hand side reads: “Hexham labelled by Bede Haugustald, and by Mr Somner Hagulstaldefham; is reckoned to be the Alexodunu of the Romans, where the first Cohort of the Spaniard were in Garrison. It was made an escopal see by Etheldreda wife of K. Egfrid a 675, Wilfrid first bishop built in it a most magnificent Cath and Monastery and it was pofsefsed by 12Bps successefsively but being very much infested by Danes, the See was removed to York. The Town is at present well built enjoying a pretty good Mt on Tuesd. For Corn and c. And remarkable for a very bloody Battle fought near it between Yorkists and Lancastrians, wherein the latter were defeated chiefly by extra ordinary conduct and Bravery of In. Nevil Ld Montitcute, who was therefore created E of Northumberland by K. Ed 4th.”
It is interesting that the market is still held on Tuesdays! A review of a book dealing with the “very bloody battle” is included in this newsletter.
I hope you enjoy this issue. Any comments and contributions are welcome. Contact Helen Rutherford (601990) or h.j.rutherford@fsmail.net
If you would like to receive future newsletter by e mail please send a message to h.j.rutherford@fsmail.net and you will be added to the electronic list.
Hexham Library
Hexham library will be hosting a display on the World War II Home Front with a particular focus on the Bevin Boys, conscripts who served the war effort by ensuring the constant supply of coal rather than by fighting. The display, which is mounted by the Northumberland Collections Service at Woodhorn, will be in the library for 3 weeks from February 26th
The Loraine Family: research project
In Hexham Abbey there is a small brass plate attached to the backs of the north misericords which reads:
Percy Lyham Lorain P.C. G.C.M.G. 12th Baronet of Kirkharle whose banner is laid up in this church. Born 1880. Died 1961. He feared only his God and he was faithful to the king.
The link with Kirkharle may be seen graphically near to Kirkharle church, where there is a standing stone with this information:
This new stone was set up in the place of an old one by Sir William Loraine Bart. In 1728 in memory of Robert Loraine his Ancester (sic) who was barbarously murdered in this place by the Scots in 1483 for his good service to his country against their thefts and robbery as he was returning home form the church alone where he had been at his private devotions.
It is easily seen by visitors to the craft workshops and cafe there on the way to the church, where there is a plaque erected to the memory of Capability Brown by the Northumberland Association of Local History Societies.
Would anyone like to research the connection in more detail? If you are interested please contact Stan Beckensall. Tel: 604601
Wanted
Dr. Jim Hedley is looking to buy Robert Rawlinson’s 1853 Report to the Board of Health on the sanitary conditions of the inhabitants of Hexham, Published HMSO and Proceedings of the Berwickshire Naturalists Club Vol. 28 Part 1 (1932) and Part 2 (1933). Does anyone have copies of these books or know where they can be found? Please contact Dr Hedley on 01434 605450.
ANLHS News and Information
The ANLHS are holding a Mining History day school on 8th March 2008 at the Mining Institute in Newcastle. Speakers include Tom Peacock on The coal miner at home and underground and John Crompton on Mining of the North Pennines. Tickets cost £8 and are available from Mr M Thompson 21 Melrose Avenue Seaton Delaval NE25 OJR (enclose a SAE)
The Association of Northumberland Local History Societies Round the County Day 2008 will be held in the Memorial Hall Darras Road Ponteland on Saturday 7th June, hosted by Ponteland Local History Society. The programme includes a talk on Ponteland’s past and walks around the village. Tickets, priced at £6, and further details are available from Ponteland Local History Society Woodlands Prestwick Village, Ponteland. NE20 9TX (enclose a SAE)
The ANLHS are conducting a project to catalogue the Names and Signs of Northumberland Pubs and Inns. If you are interested in taking part in this survey please contact a member of the committee, of our Society, to register your interest.
The following might provide a good starting point, taken from a Description of Hexham by E MacKenzie in 1825:
‘There are in Hexham 32 Inns and Public Houses. The Principal are, the Black Bull, which contains the assembly room and the excise-office, and where the True Briton Coach stops; and the White Hart, a convenient inn, where the mail coach halts for refreshing the passengers. The Newcastle stagecoach, runs to Newcastle from the Bush Inn. Messrs. Barker and Dickinson have each a circulating library and a printing office. The shops, in general, are respectable and the operations of trade are facilitated by Mr D. Bell who is agent for the banking house of Messrs. Lambton and Co. Besides the carriers between this town and Newcastle, carriers from the neighbouring places pass and repass twice a week, exclusive of the hundreds of carts that pass from the lead-mines towards Newcastle.’
Hexham LHS is an affiliated member of the Association of Northumberland Local History Societies and receives their annual journal Tyne and Tweed. The most recent publication includes articles on Harbottle Castle, Cullercoats, Plashetts, Trade Tokens and an evaluation of Northumberland County maps. The journal costs £4.50 and may be obtained, if he has any copies left, from Ted Wall, or from ANLHS at the Black Gate Castle Garth Newcastle Upon Tyne NE1 2RQ.
News
Projector update and request for a home for the equipment.
You may recall that the Society’s projector has disappeared…
A member of the Society has kindly donated a slide projector and stand so that speakers do not have to bring their own. Now all we need is a home for it. Can you provide board and lodging? Please speak to a committee member if you can help. We have also been offered the loan of A Power Point projector. These donations are much appreciated!
The latest issue of North East History was published in September 2007. The journal includes articles on woman workers in Sunderland Shipyards in the Second World War and the life of Labour pioneer Lisbeth Sim. Further information can be found at www.nelh.net.
The History of High Shield
John Chapman is well known by members of the Local History Society for his talks and his book the House Dater’s Toolkit. His book on dating domestic architectural elements and other features was initiated by the research carried out on his own house at High Shield which dates back to the 17th Century. This resulted in a comprehensive history of High Shield, owned at one time by the Bell family who played an important role in the wool and leather industries of Hexham. This makes fascinating reading for anyone interested in being a house detective. The paper is in manuscript form and John has donated a copy to Hexham library for anyone who might be interested in the subject.
Book Reviews:
The Battle of Hexham in its place
John Sadler and Alex Spiers
J.B. Jonas
It must be said that in this book the Battle of Hexham occupies about 12 pages out of the 168, a small place indeed. That is not to say though that this is not an entertaining and informative read, but it is primarily about the wars of the Roses and the Percy/Neville feuding that was one of their main ingredients. The authors have traced a painstaking course through the complicated family relationships and not infrequent changes of allegiance which characterise the lives of the Royal houses of York and Lancaster. The introductory chapter on the Art of War in the fifteenth century is very useful for the layman, and this is a book which will certainly appeal to the non- specialist reader. It is well and relevantly illustrated and a full bibliography provides plenty of avenues for more in depth study of the period. I have two (minor) criticisms. The family trees of the Hoses of York and Lancaster would have benefited from the inclusion of the Beauforts and some of the wives, especially in the case of John of Gaunt. He was married three times and it would have been helpful to see which characters in the story were the product of which marriage. Mention of ‘characters’ brings me to the second point. The thumbnail sketches of the dramatic personae at the start of the book are a lot to take in. It might have been better to have used each sketch, perhaps as a footnote or in the text, to introduce each character when they appear in the narrative. That said, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and found it helpful for the non-historian seeking to unravel and clarify a complex period of history.
The book is priced at £8.99 and is available form Cogito books in St Mary’s Chare, Hexham.
The Hextol Collection,
Brian Tilley
Rodney Higgins
Reader of the Hexham Courant will be familiar with the weekly Hextol column. Hextol first made its appearance in November 1933 and has been written by six editors since then. For the last decade or so it has been written by Brian Tilley the deputy editor. For the last two years he has been named the North East’s top columnist in the Tom Cordner North East Press awards. The judges thought that the Hextol column was one of the most enjoyable reads in the entire awards list.
This book is a compilation of some 75 of the Hextol articles. They are a delight to read, drawing wit and wisdom out of everyday situations, from childhood memories to personal reflections on day-to-day living. It is a book you can dip into when you have a spare moment and it makes a most enjoyable read.
The book is priced at £9.99 and is available form the Hexham Courant office on Beaumont Street.
************************
Monthly meeting of the HLHS are held at the Trinity Methodist Church Beaumont Street, Hexham. Starting at 7.30 pm. Free to members. £2 for non-members. All welcome.
Newsletter 49 Autumn 2007
The Hopper Mausoleum
A possible research project for a member of the Hexham Local History Society.
Stan Beckensall has taken many digital images of the Hopper Memorial at Grey Mare Hill. Is anyone interested in undertaking some research for an article in a future Hexham Historian? The story so far…
At Grey Mare Hill, near Kilnpit Hill, to the east of the A68 to Consett, there is a remarkably little-known building called the Hopper Mausoleum. It stands on a hill with very good, almost all-round, visibility particularly to the south and south west, in the churchyard of St Andrew’s church, which is managed by the Historic Churches Trust. The Church dates from 1769, but was restored following subsidence, in 1892.
The memorial was built by Humfrey Hopper of Black Hedley in 1752 as a memorial to his wife. He was later buried there and details of his descendants were engraved in the building erected in a neo-Classical style, complete with niches, statues, pinnacles, iron railings and more. It was restored c1977 but has now been partly vandalised. It remains an imposing monument, accessed only by a signposted footpath on the south side of a minor road to Whittonstall.
On the south face, there is a slab with a dedication that has been added to over time, but which tails off – either through erosion or from being left unfinished. This notes that the monument was:
Erected by Humfrey Hopper of Black Hedley in memory of his wife Jane Hodsgon who died February 29th 1752 aged 77.
The inscription goes on to list members of the Hopper family.
The memorial is built from sandstone and until recently was home to a number of small states, but unfortunately they were recently stolen.
Close by, amid a graveyard that has some early 18th century tombstones, is a simple cruciform church. Inside it has a central arched roof that covers most of the interior, and is full of box pews. Who was Hopper and why did he build such a distinctive monument? Further research is needed. If you are interested please contact Stan stanbeckensall@yahoo.co.uk
HELP, HELP, HELP!
The Society used to have a slide projector but it has gone AWOL. Can any member help us to track it down? Alternatively, has anyone got a reliable slide projector they are willing to donate to the Society? We are in the embarrassing position of having to ask speakers to bring their own! Kodak has stopped producing their carousel projectors and we cannot hire one. If anyone can help, please contact Fred Donnan on (01434) 604082.
COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Do you want to contribute fully to the workings of the society? Do you want to bring some new blood to the proceedings? The Committee require a Secretary, Speakers’ organiser and a general committee member as soon as possible. Please contact Fred Donnan on (01434) 604082.if you are interested. Anyone is welcome to put themselves forward: whether you have been a member for many years or even if you joined last week!
The Website
On the very day we launched the Society’s website we received our very first web enquiry! Since then, we have received a number of others, all of which have been added to the Answers Please page and, with luck, will have been answered by at least one of you!
Don’t forget: Items of interest to our members that arrive too late for inclusion in one Newsletter and that cannot wait until the next are added to the Newsletter page of the website. Definitely a case of “watch this space”!
Any members who may be able to help, or are simply interested in having a look can access the site at www.northumberlandlife.org/hexham-local-history-society/AboutUs.asp
THE CORBRIDGE ROMAN BRIDGE PROJECT
Tyne and Wear Museums' project on the Roman bridge at Corbridge, funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, is reaching its final stages. During excavation of remains of the ramp, which once carried the road onto the bridge, over 300 huge stones of the collapsed retaining wall were rescued and lifted onto the riverbank. The wall has now been reconstructed in a position safe from erosion by the river. The display will be completed in the autumn. The excavation report is due to be published this winter and will include the results of the new survey of the Roman stones in Hexham Abbey crypt. (Webmaster's note: I regret that the photo accompanying this article in the paper version of the newsletter was not in a suitable format for inclusion on the website)
STOP PRESS: Hexham Hospital needs your help!
Have you any memorabilia, photos, memories or stories about Hexham Hospital? You may have been a patient, a volunteer or you may have worked there. The hospital is planning an exhibition to celebrate the old hospital and the opening of the new and would like your help. Please contact Sonja Bailes sonja_bailes@yahoo.co.uk or 01434 684858
Hexham: a History and Guide by Stan Beckensall A Review by Sonja Bailes
|
In this latest book on Hexham Stan Beckensall takes us for a relaxed but perceptive guided tour round the town in his own, inimitable, style. We start in the market place and walk round all the streets of note, taking in well-known landmarks from the Abbey, Moot Hall and Gaol to the tannery area, railway and Egger factory. The narrative covers much of the local history of the town but it appears in its modern setting and there are reflections on current trade, industry, arts and culture.
The writing is easy but do not be fooled into thinking that this is a superficial account. Stan has included a welter of well-researched detail and he gives credit to the many other academics who have informed the content of the book, thus providing references for further study should the reader so wish.
As the writing is so accessible the book is appropriate for a range of readers; occasional visitors to the town as well as to the residents. It can be read as both reference and for entertainment. Some of the extracts are fascinating and recount such things as the almost unbelievably farcical opening of the 61 miles of railway from Newcastle to Carlisle on 18th June 1836.
The publication, however, has been considerably enhanced by the accompanying photographs, the majority of which have been taken by Stan himself, and they well illustrate the text.
This is not dry text either and the author does not always spare us his own thoughts and opinions. But it is none the worse for that. After all, if you feel strongly enough then no doubt Stan would welcome debate should you meet him accidentally during your own Hexham tour of the town.
‘Hexham: a history and guide’ by Stan Beckensall, Published by Tempus Publishing Ltd in 2007
ISBN: 978 07524 4361 4
From David Jennings:
(This was a letter sent to Tynedale Council; to date, David has received no reply!) We will publish any reply from the council when received…
In the last HLHS Newsletter, Mark Benjamin urges a degree of caution with respect to publications about Hexham not emanating from the Society. There is a case close to home where dubious history about the Hexham is before the public. It is the recently erected display board for Beaumont Street, which gives a mistaken and muddled view of Hexham in the 19th century. Thus:
- Beaumont Street was built in 1866 and not, as stated, 1864, nor was it laid out in that year, having been laid out, at the latest, by 1857.
- What might be called the ‘heading’ on the left of the board reads “Hexham grew quickly in the 19th century. The town centre was overcrowded and unhealthy until the elegant new Beaumont Street was built.”
- Hexham did not grow quickly in the 19th century. The population only just doubled between the start and end of the century – this was totally different to the rest of the UK.
- The town could be said to be unhealthy until well after the 1914-1918 war. It was in desperate condition for much of the 19th century, with the death rate much higher than the average for the UK (often 20% higher). Much of the centre was still overcrowded until slum clearance in the 1930s.
- Beaumont Street was built as a commercial venture by W. B. Beaumont, not to improve the health of the town. I doubt if it had a slightest effect on it.
- Encircling the heading is the following: “New streets, running water, proper sewers, better houses.”
- Until 1890, besides Beaumont Street, only about two other streets were built. They were not covered in tar macadam and could be a muddy quagmire in the winter.
- Although the water supply was improved in 1866, it soon became inadequate to meet demand, as well as being of inadequate purity. The town had to wait until 1889, for an effective supply of water (from Ladle Wells).
- As late as the end of the 1870s, the sewage system was completely inadequate, with human excrement often deposited in ‘middens’ close to housing. The sewage system slowly improved thereafter but it was only after 1900 that sewage was not allowed to run into the Tyne untreated.
- Between 1841 and 1891 only six new houses were built each year. It was only after the water supply from Ladle Wells came on stream did the rate of house building increase – between 1891 and 1921 the rate increased to 31. It was during this period that new street building commenced on any scale.
In view of the above, I have to say that the board for Beaumont Street is marred by some rather sloppy history – which is a pity, in view of the excellence of other features of the display. I am at a loss about the chosen emphasis on public health. It would have been much better to say ‘The building of Beaumont Street and its associated buildings was one of many significant steps in the development of Hexham as a commercial centre in the 19th century’. That statement could have been encircled by ‘gas lighting, railway, two newspapers, banks, livestock markets, purpose-built shops.’
War Memorials
Following Alan Grint’s sterling work with the St John Lee and Hexham war memorials, Marion Lewis is planning on listing all casualties from the two World Wars mentioned in The Hexham Courant – and is looking for assistance! If you’d like to help, please contact Marion on 01661 832270, by email at marion_ea@hotmail.com or by post at Woodbine House, Ovingham, Prudhoe NE42 6AA
NEWMP Education Pack Launched at National Family History Fair
THE Project's first Educational Pack - to support work in Primary Schools at Key Stage 1, is now available to order from the Website.
For those of you with an involvement in the Education field, we would be very grateful if you would make Primary School staff aware of the availability of this new resource
PUBLICATIONS NEWS Ted Wall
|
Reprints of Hexham Historians
The most popular Hexham Historians have recently been reprinted. They are:
1. Excavations, How Hexham got its name; St Mary’s Chare, etc
3. Abbey excavations; Bridging the Tyne; Wilfred Gibson, etc
4. Cockshaw history- leather industry; buildings, public health.
5. After the Vikings; Medieval topography; Acomb; 1890’s Growth; Regional Government HQ
7. Before Wilfrid -Romans and Anglo-Saxons
9. Hexham Schools history
10. A House in Hexhamshire; Priestpopple and Battle Hill; Hexham analysed 1851 and 1891; Hexham Cinemas.
New Publication – Canon Sidney Savage, Cleric and Man of Action
The Society has published a new book by David Jennings about the colourful life of Canon Sidney Savage. His part in the rebuilding of the Abbey a hundred years ago was just one episode in an energetic and sometimes controversial life. This included being one of the pioneer skiers in Switzerland, work in France and Serbia during the 1914-18 war, and ministering in London during the Blitz.
The cover price is £4.50 but it is available to members at the special price of £3.
Publications are on sale at the Society’s monthly meetings or by contacting Ted Wall at 01434 600422.
Members may be interested to know that the HLHS was founded on the 1st January 1966 and met at the Beaumont Hotel. Dorothy Stokoe, the librarian, was in the chair and the aim of the Society was to ‘foster an interest in local history and to encourage research with a view to recording the information gleaned’
By 1977, when the subscription was £1 the membership was about 40. Some members were helping in a dialect survey and others were compiling an index to The Courant. Does anyone know what happened to these?
Diary Dates
Saturday 1st December 2007 On 1st December there is going to be the second Northumberland and Borders History Fair at the Wentworth Leisure Centre organised by Colin Cargill Events. The fair will run from 10am to 4pm and there will be a variety of stands and displays. The Society is hosting a stand to encourage new members, publicise our programme of events and sell publications. Last year the fair was very successful and well attended. Keen volunteers are needed to staff the Society’s stall. If you would like to help please come and encourage more people to join! If you would like to be on the rota, if only for an hour, please contact Please contact Fred Donnan on (01434) 604082 if you can help. Come along and lend your support to this event.
Northumberland and Durham Family History Society talks
All held in the Community Centre Gilesgate at 7pm
8 November 2007: North east photographs & a trip up the Northumberland coast in old photographs (George Nairn)
10 January 2008: The Munitionettes (Patrick Brennan)
14 February 2008 Early Victorians from the North East (Mike Furlonger)
The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography is 3 years old in October and, to celebrate, the publishers are running a series of regional competitions which highlight the coverage of men and women who've shaped local history across the United Kingdom. Log on to www.oxforddnb.com at any county library to test your knowledge of famous people from the north east featured in the ODNB. Or you can log on using your library membership number from the comfort of your own home if you have your own access to the Internet. You have until Friday 9th November to win a copy of the new edition of the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary.
Outings: Advance publicity Charlotte Coxon |
As usual the Society is preparing a splendid programme of outings for 2008. Please put the following dates in your diaries, further details will follow shortly:
Sunday 18th May 2008 - half day (pm): Nenthead Mines
Wednesday 18th June 2008 - evening: Royal Air Force base at Spadeadam
Saturday 12th July 2008 - full day: Coniston and Brantwood (the John Ruskin house)
If anyone has any ideas for future issues or contributions for the newsletter please contact Helen Rutherford h.j.rutherford@fsmail.net or 601990. All contributions are welcome.
Help
