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Awaiting updating
Helmdon Branch WEA - Publications
Charity reg. no: 1112775
In 1997-8 the group, under the direction of Val Moir, transcribed
the inscriptions in the parish church, churchyard, chapel, war memorial and elsewhere
round the village. There are over 500 entries, beginning in the
mid-seventeenth century. Where possible the most appropriate entry
in the burial register has been added.
In 2013 a group reformed to make a random list of all new the grave inscriptions in the churchyard since 1997. (Hard copies are with the church, the WEA and the school)
2014 was the 100th anniversary of the First World war and in November 2014 a War Memorial project was published on the website to find out more about the history behind the names of the servicemen on the Helmdon War Memorial. The group who gathered the information were Judy Cairns, Audrey Forgham, Cec Harrold, Danny Moody and Ross Vicars; Charles Binns restored many of the old photographs and postcards. The most relevant, up-to-date information available has been put together and can be printed off as a 96-page booklet.
(Hard copies are with the church, the WEA and the school).
2016 saw the completion of a new project, to list the graves in rows combining the graves with pre-1997 and post 1997 inscriptions in the newer arm of the churchyard, to the left of the church path. The rows have been re-numbered. Judy Cairns did the bulk of the research, Bill Elkington made a map, Conral Woolley checked the rows and Audrey Forgham typed the project for the website. A hard copy will be given to the church
2016 was also the year when the combined WEA/church project on cataloguing all the kneelers in the church was finished. Jenny Overson and Mary Nash did the bulk of the research, Colin Nash took the photographs and Audrey Forgham typed the project for the website. Albums will be placed in church for all to look at.
Other Printed Publications
All the Aspects of Helmdon articles are published on the Website. Refer to the historical articles index.
Aspects
of Helmdon No 1 (1997) contains analysis of census information and articles on the Old Bakehouse,
the railways of Helmdon, and lace making, as well as an article on
the recording of oral history and an example of it.
Aspects of Helmdon No 2 (1998) contains an article on Helmdon Enclosures
of the eighteenth century, work on the four public houses
(only one remains), an account
of the work that went on in the village (church churchyard, chapel
war memorial, etc.) transcribing the inscriptions, and
the wartime reminiscences of Mary Turnham, Harold Seckington and Alice
Hearne.
Aspects of Helmdon No 3 (1999) contains a history of Helmdon School from
log books 1872-1990, by a former head master. Also The
WEA (40 years in Helmdon), a
contribution on Wine and Wild Flowers; and the
reminiscences of Marjorie Watson, née Gulliver, whose childhood was
spent at Grange Farm. Copies available as below.
Aspects of Helmdon No 4 (2001) contains the Story of Jeffs Coaches, a focus
on Cross Lane, the Manorial history of Helmdon, the Story of the Gullivers,
History from Falcutt Fields, and an article about Helmdon Stone and the
Roll of Honour of Old Boys of Helmdon Council School serving in the
Great War 1914-1918. Copies available as below.
Aspects of Helmdon No 5 (2004) contains articles on The Shops of Helmdon, A Craftman's
Notebook, The History of Helmdon Parish Council, Helmdon and the World
Beyond, and the Reminiscences of Jim Watson. Copies available as below.AAspects
of Helmdon No 6
Aspects
of Helmdon No 6 (2008) It contains articles on Helmdon Buildings - Continuity & Change, Reminiscences of Evacuation from Malcolm Care, The Watsons - The Story of a Family, Reminiscences of Joan McCann, The Helmdon Cart, Glebe Farm Barn (with photos of the 1844 wash paintings of the old rectory), Reminiscences of Noreen White, In-Service at Falcutt House in the Thirties, Within Living Memory, and Helmdon from the 1901 Census Records.
Read the independent reviews
of WEA Helmdon Branch publications.
Village Film
In
April 2000 we finished the film HELMDON 1999 "A Year in the
Life of Helmdon".
Copies have been be given to the Record Office for posterity (with
explanatory typescript) and to the Parish Council, and are available
for loan by village organisations from the WEA.
Helmdon
Web Site
The creation
of a Helmdon web site was first mooted
in 1999. Now maintained by the Helmdon branch WEA with Danny Moody
as Webmaster, and Audrey Forgham as Website Editor the web site has become
a resource for the whole village.
The site has received much praise. In March 2002 it received the
Amdow Web Design Community Website Award. Then the web site was
reviewed by BBC's Radio Five team as part of Simon Mayo's regular
"Top Web Sites of the Week" feature, and in April 2002
they placed it fourth. A year later the site was acclaimed the UK
Villages Online Web Site for 2003.
Further success came in the Calor Village of the Year 2005, when
the web site was instrumental in Helmdon winning the ICT Village
of the Year for Central England (see
press cutting).
In 2013 the website won a prize for being the most informative website in Northamptonshire in a competition run by Northamptonshire ACRE.
In 2018 the parish council www.helmdonparishcouncil.gov.uk took over the transmitting of information about the parish council and village activities and www,helmdon.com became this website, www.helmdonhsitory.com, continuing to record the history of the village.
The web site
is being developed on an on-going basis. We would welcome your suggestions
and comments. |