Come and celebrate Berkhamsted’s architecture and culture at this year’s Heritage Open Days Thursday 8-Sep-2016 to Sunday 11-Sep-2016
New! this year there will be…
EXPLORING GARRISON TOWN BERKHAMSTED
A THEN & NOW GUIDED WALK OF SITES IMPORTANT FOR
INNS OF COURT OTC DURING WWI
More details here
Lots of events to look forward to at the Museum…
Home Education Day on 14 July
A selection of drop in sessions about how we used live. Learn Victorian crafts, dress up in 1970s clothing, create a corn dolly and have a go at riding a 1940s bike.
Classic Vehicles Day 16-17 July
Local clubs and private vehicle owners will be bringing along their gleaming, lovingly-maintained vehicles to be proudly displayed among the Museum’s historic buildings.
Ragged Victorians 23-24 July
Learn about the less savory aspects of Victorian life in a fun, family-friendly event. Meet authentic Victorian characters – watch out for pickpockets!
Highwaymen 30-31 July
Take your life in your hands as you travel to, and through, the 18th Century! Meet costumed re-enactors in and around the Museum’s buildings.
On the evening of Friday 1 July, the original film from the summer of 1916 of the Battle of the Somme will be shown. This is to mark the 100th anniversary of the start of the battle. The film has been remastered with a soundtrack and provides an astonishing insight into the battle and how it was portrayed to the British public in the summer of 1916 when it was shown across the country and seen by millions.
The film starts at 7.30pm in All Saints’ Church Hall on The Causeway in Marlow and entrance is free of charge. The film will be followed by a short commemorative service at the war memorial outside.
Here is the May edition of the newsletter Marlow Remembers WWI
Exciting news of a proposed Town Hall Museum…
Back in 1967, Percy Birtchnell wrote: “The question of a museum for Berkhamsted has been raised many times, but we always come back to the housing problem… Documents are easily stored; it is not so easy to find space for the tools of old crafts, furniture, dresses, and other relics worthy of preservation”.
The old Fire Station behind the Civic Centre houses documents and artefacts on behalf of local history societies (including Berkhamsted, Tring, Hemel etc) in accredited museum conditions, but there is no facility for exhibits and public visits are by appointment only.
Percy Birtchnell would be thrilled that Berkhamsted Town Hall Trust has agreed in principle to combine with the Society to investigate the possibility of a Museum in the Town Hall:
“Iain Lang thanked Giles Clark for producing the paper. Pete Elsworth stated that the Trust agreed in principle to the proposal assuming that the required funding could be obtained. Pete Elsworth and Ian Reay to attend the next meeting that Giles Clark arranged with the Berkhamsted Local History and Museum Society and other interested parties. It was also agreed that the existing design drawings and documentation, produced by Robert Martell & Partners for an earlier second floor renovation project, could be used by Giles Clark.”
Could there be a more perfect location for our Museum?
Lots of events for heritage, local and family history coming up in the next few weeks at Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies. Check them out here.
I wonder if you can help. I am a PhD student at the University of
Cambridge working on a thesis entitled A Social and Emotional History of
Fathers and Sons in Britain, 1945-1970.
As part of my research I am interviewing men about their memories of
being a father or son in the generation after the Second World War.
Ideally, I am looking for men from the same family, who were born either
between roughly 1924 and 1940 (fathers), or 1941 and 1958 (sons). The
interviews are very informal, lasting between one and two hours, with
breaks, or however long the interviewee can spare. I am interested in
interviewing fathers and sons either separately or together.
All participants will have the option to remain anonymous and a
transcript of the interview will be made available to them. I do ask
that the interviewee agree to quotes being used for academic purposes
and potentially in published work.
Would it be possible for you to convey this message to your members to
see if anyone is interested and meets the criteria? I am hoping to
conduct interviews over the course of the next few months and I am happy
to travel anywhere convenient for the interviewees (I just need a quiet
room).
Contact Richard here
It’s a busy time at Hertfordshire Archives & Local Studies in the next few months with foyer displays such as “Letters Home: Voices from the Great War”, “Conscientious Objection in Hertfordshire” and a celebration of Graham Greene’s life and works (“Our Man in Berkhamsted”). Talks, workshops, family history surgeries and taster sessions. Join the conversation at Herts Memories or browse round the Heritage Shop. Don’t forget “Threads of Time” touring exhibition in the Upstairs Gallery in Berkhamsted – on until 2 Apr 2016.
Details of full programme here
Take a look at the link below for more details about current events at Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies. Spaces are limited on workshops, talks and tours so please make sure you book in advance, even if it’s free… HALS events
Just a reminder about the first Workshop of the New Year at Hertfordshire Archives. Join one of the senior Local Studies Librarians for the first in this series of local and family history workshops for beginners. Discover the range of resources available at HALS and find out how to access your past through them. Book this event here
Members of the Society are researching various aspects of Berkhamsted during World War One in preparation for a book to depict the effect of the war on the people of Berkhamsted. This will be linked to work being undertaken on the Inns of Court Officers’ Training Corps, stationed in Berkhamsted throughout the war. There will be short biographies of all the boys and men whose names appear on the town’s war memorials. The plan is to publish the book in time for the centenary of Armistice Day. Please feel free to contact us with anecdotes, memories or scanned photographs.
