September 10th 7.30 at Park Junior School
Andy Meller – Tolkien and the Cotswolds – the shaping of Middle Earth.
From Stow’s Tolkien Door to the enchanting Puzzlewood, Gloucestershire profoundly shaped JRR Tolkien’s imagination. In 1929, he worked on a Roman dig at Lydney Park in the Forest of Dean that provided the inspiration for the Hobbit’s Middle Earth and the discoveries made there were the starting point for the legendary Lord of The Rings. Historian Andy Meller gave an intriguing illustrated talk uncovering Tolkien’s life-long passion for archaeology, myth and the Gloucestershire landscapes that brought Middle Earth to life.
July 9th 7.30 at Park Junior School
Kirsty Hartsiotis – Arts and Crafts stained glass in Cotswold Churches
The Arts and Crafts Movement was one of the most important design movements in British history. The Cotswolds has many links with the movement, with many designers settling and working in the area from William Morris onwards. One place you can see lots of Arts and Crafts work is in our churches, and by far the most common item you’ll see is beautiful, glowing stained glass, many pieces by makers who settled in the area, such as Henry and Edward Payne, Paul Woodroffe and Nora Yoxall, as well as stained glass designers from all over the country, including Christopher Whall, who created the first Arts and Crafts scheme of glass in a cathedral in Gloucester’s Lady Chapel.
Kirsty is an Accredited Arts Society lecturer, giving talks on both art history and folklore. She is also a museum curator, currently at Swindon Museums, and previously the curator of a Designated Arts and Crafts Movement collection at The Wilson, Cheltenham, and draws on her knowledge of the movement and 19th and 20th century art for her talks.
June 11th 7.30 at Park Junior School
Shepherd’s Crook Folk Choir
Songs from the Workhouse – a talk on life in the workhouse and traditional songs
Gloucestershire has a rich heritage of traditional songs and music. Surprisingly the workhouse has been a place where many songs were sung. Shepherd’s Crook Folk Choir talked about what life was really like in the workhouse illustrating this with songs collected by musician Percy Grainger and song collector Cecil Sharp in Winchcombe Workhouse.
May 14th Annual General Meeting 7.15 at Park Junior School
Agenda and Reports
followed by
Vicki Walker – “Some history of the Post Office in Stonehouse”
showing the various buildings which have housed the Post Office and the people who ran it.
Including a contribution by ex-postman Paul Dicker.
April 9th 7.30 at Park Junior School
Nick Sharpe – “Hillforts – A legacy of the Iron Age Dobunni tribe.”
With a book soon to be published this year, “A Guide to Hillforts, An Aerial View, The Legacy of The Iron Age Dobunni Tribe”, Nick presented a wide range of aerial photographs of local hillforts, talking about the different types and how they fitted into the landscape of Iron Age Celtic Britain.
Geoff Young – “The Great Chase.”
One of our members, Geoff Young, who was brought up in Stonehouse but now lives in France, entertained us with a family story – about a young ancestor that fled to America, in the 19th century, to avoid capture for his mis-adventures. His short talk was much enjoyed by all and we thank Geoff for his continuing support of our Group.
March 12th 7.30 at Park Junior School
Ian Boskett – “The Great Train Robbery 1963.”
Ian has researched the robbery in great detail and explained how the robbery was planned and carried out. He told us how the robbers stopped a train that was doing 85 mph without the signalmen knowing. He brought a signal light from the 1960s and demonstrated how this was achieved. This was an entertaining and informative talk with lots of humour.
February 12th 7.30 at Park Junior School
Vicki Walker and Shirley Dicker – “Stonehouse in World War Two”
How the village prepared for war and lived through it, and the changes that happened as a result.
Including: The Invasion Committee, shadow factories, Home Guard, Wycliffe College, evacuees and more
Wednesday January 8th 7.30 at Park Junior School
Pam Swain and Debbie Curtis – “The story of Stonehouse in Bloom”
Pam and Debbie told us about how SIB started and the various projects they have worked on over the past 10 years. Illustrated by photographs of the beautiful trees and flowers.
Vicki Walker – “Our Heritage Information boards”
An overview of how we created our 12 boards around the town and Doverow Wood.
To find out more click here.