2016 |
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In association with Fakenham and district Sun - Fakenham's only free paper
Readers of the ‘Fakenham and District Sun free paper’ will be familiar with our regular ‘Local History Corner’ articles which have appeared each month since December 2011.
For those who may not receive a printed edition, there is an opportunity here to view the current article as well as those from previous editions. |
December 2016
Fakenham Community Archive celebrates landmark achievement
This month’s photo shows the committee members who run Fakenham & District Community Archive archive, which, we are proud to say, has itself made history! The photo shows us celebrating the ‘Sustained Achievement Award’ given by the Community Archives & Heritage Group, a national body representing all UK community archives. The award is for archive groups who have achieved a high standard of excellence, good practice, new ideas and initiatives sustained over at least a 10-year period. Fakenham and District Community Archive has actually been in existence for over 14 years, starting in 2002 as a joint project between Norfolk County Council’s Library and Adult Education Services. The initial aim was to collect historical images of the town and its surrounding villages in preparation for the launch of a national website of community archives. |
Public funding for this ambitious project was sadly withdrawn in 2005, but our local archive continued to be run by a group of enthusiastic volunteers, who carried on collecting images, records and memories and sharing them with the public on a computer in the library, museum and finally on its own website. The group has raised its own funds and also been given small grants from local and national bodies to buy the equipment that allows us to share the archive with local community groups, day centres, residential homes and schools.
The whole archive now contains over 11,000 images, 1,000 of which are displayed on our website. The website also enables us to have contact with members of the public who have queries or further information or photos to give us. We have also set up a Facebook page, which reaches a younger generation and generates lively debates and comments.
We run a monthly archive session where people can bring in their photos for scanning, join in a discussion about the slideshow presentation that runs each session, or look through laptops and photo albums. The session is a friendly, sociable event, with refreshments provided.
Our community archive works alongside Fakenham Local History Society and the Fakenham Museum of Gas & Local History, and the three organisations combined about five years ago to form the ‘Fakenham Heritage Group’, between us organising local history talks, town walks, taking part in library and school projects, national commemoration events, displays and history fairs.
We have also published our first book: ‘Evacuated to Fakenham’, a diary of a London schoolboy sent to live in Fakenham during the Second World War. This continues to sell well and can be purchased in the Sweets ’n’ Things shop in Fakenham Market Place or via our website.
Our enthusiastic committee of ten volunteers intends to continue to build the archive, continue our work and reach out to as many diverse members of the community as possible.
Our next archive session will be held from 2.00 to 4.00 pm on Monday 30th January 2017 in the Trinity Room, Fakenham Parish Church
Join us over a cup of tea and a biscuit for a friendly chat! You can see photos of Fakenham and surrounding villages, bring in your own photos to be scanned into the archive, watch a slideshow, browse through our photo albums or search the whole archive on our laptops.
Chris Chalk, Secretary
Fakenham & District Community Archive
The whole archive now contains over 11,000 images, 1,000 of which are displayed on our website. The website also enables us to have contact with members of the public who have queries or further information or photos to give us. We have also set up a Facebook page, which reaches a younger generation and generates lively debates and comments.
We run a monthly archive session where people can bring in their photos for scanning, join in a discussion about the slideshow presentation that runs each session, or look through laptops and photo albums. The session is a friendly, sociable event, with refreshments provided.
Our community archive works alongside Fakenham Local History Society and the Fakenham Museum of Gas & Local History, and the three organisations combined about five years ago to form the ‘Fakenham Heritage Group’, between us organising local history talks, town walks, taking part in library and school projects, national commemoration events, displays and history fairs.
We have also published our first book: ‘Evacuated to Fakenham’, a diary of a London schoolboy sent to live in Fakenham during the Second World War. This continues to sell well and can be purchased in the Sweets ’n’ Things shop in Fakenham Market Place or via our website.
Our enthusiastic committee of ten volunteers intends to continue to build the archive, continue our work and reach out to as many diverse members of the community as possible.
Our next archive session will be held from 2.00 to 4.00 pm on Monday 30th January 2017 in the Trinity Room, Fakenham Parish Church
Join us over a cup of tea and a biscuit for a friendly chat! You can see photos of Fakenham and surrounding villages, bring in your own photos to be scanned into the archive, watch a slideshow, browse through our photo albums or search the whole archive on our laptops.
Chris Chalk, Secretary
Fakenham & District Community Archive
November 2016
Goggs' Hall - VAD Hospital
This month’s photo is of Gogg’s Hall, which became the VAD Hospital in Fakenham during the First World War. The VAD (Voluntary Aid Detachment) was formed from the combination of the British Red Cross and the Order of St John of Jerusalem and provided nursing services in hospitals in the UK and abroad. During the First World War temporary hospitals were set up throughout the UK to care for wounded servicemen arriving back home. Built in 1620, Gogg’s Hall, now named Grove House, is grade II listed and is situated in Tunn Street, close to the centre of Fakenham, |
This report (undated) appeared in the Dereham and Fakenham Times around 1914;
‘At Fakenham, Gogg's Hall will be the hospital, and if any of the patients have a love for historic surroundings they will rapidly recover in this hospital. Gogg's Hall is an Elizabethan mansion standing in a garden in the heart of the town. It possesses a dining room wainscoted in oak and a beautiful fireplace. Mr. F. S. Wigg, the Secretary of the Red Cross Society in the Gallow Hundred, has had charge of the work at Fakenham for some time. The stretcher-bearers, who have been trained under Dr. Palin, are very efficient. It is the ladies' detachment who are controlling the work of preparing the hospital, and a new class for nursing instruction has recently been formed. Dr. Fisher is the Commandant, and the trained nurse who will have charge of the hospital is Mrs. Palin. The nursing staff will consist of the ladies who have been through the classes of instruction and gained their certificates. There are about forty ladies with certificates. The hospital has been fitted with eighteen beds on the upper floor. The fine room on the ground floor will be used for the quarters and recreation rooms for the convalescents.’
If you would like to learn more about our local history, then do come along to our next community archive session. This will be held in the Trinity Room at Fakenham Parish Church from 2.00 to 4.00 pm on Monday 28th November.
Join us over a cup of tea and a biscuit for a friendly chat! You can see more photos of Fakenham and surrounding villages, bring in your own photos to be scanned into the archive, watch a slideshow, browse through our photo albums or search the whole archive on our laptops (we have over 11,000 photos to look through!).
Chris Chalk, Secretary
Fakenham & District Community Archive
‘At Fakenham, Gogg's Hall will be the hospital, and if any of the patients have a love for historic surroundings they will rapidly recover in this hospital. Gogg's Hall is an Elizabethan mansion standing in a garden in the heart of the town. It possesses a dining room wainscoted in oak and a beautiful fireplace. Mr. F. S. Wigg, the Secretary of the Red Cross Society in the Gallow Hundred, has had charge of the work at Fakenham for some time. The stretcher-bearers, who have been trained under Dr. Palin, are very efficient. It is the ladies' detachment who are controlling the work of preparing the hospital, and a new class for nursing instruction has recently been formed. Dr. Fisher is the Commandant, and the trained nurse who will have charge of the hospital is Mrs. Palin. The nursing staff will consist of the ladies who have been through the classes of instruction and gained their certificates. There are about forty ladies with certificates. The hospital has been fitted with eighteen beds on the upper floor. The fine room on the ground floor will be used for the quarters and recreation rooms for the convalescents.’
If you would like to learn more about our local history, then do come along to our next community archive session. This will be held in the Trinity Room at Fakenham Parish Church from 2.00 to 4.00 pm on Monday 28th November.
Join us over a cup of tea and a biscuit for a friendly chat! You can see more photos of Fakenham and surrounding villages, bring in your own photos to be scanned into the archive, watch a slideshow, browse through our photo albums or search the whole archive on our laptops (we have over 11,000 photos to look through!).
Chris Chalk, Secretary
Fakenham & District Community Archive
October 2016
Things that go bump in the night
This month’s photo shows one of the oldest buildings in Fakenham, a cottage situated in Swan Street, near the middle of the town. It’s at the end of a row of four cottages, which were built in the 17th century for the servants of ‘a big house’, and, it is thought, was once the home of a farrier. The cottage is reputed to be haunted: the present owner has heard rattling door latches at all times of day and the sound of an anvil in the middle of the night and caught momentary glimpses upstairs of a young lady with long blonde hair. When asked ‘what is your name?’ the letter ‘J’ in white appeared on a red wall! An elderly lady, dressed all in black, was also seen sitting in a rocking chair by the fire. On two occasions the entry door into the cottage, although carefully checked the night before, was found to be unlocked in the morning. Are any other local old buildings reputed to be haunted, we wonder? Let us know if you live in one! If you enjoy local history and hearing people’s memories, and if you’d like to see more photos of Fakenham and its surrounding villages over the years, then do come along to our next community archive session. This will be held in the Trinity Room at Fakenham Parish Church from 2.00 to 4.00 pm on Monday 31st October. |
You can bring in your own photos to be scanned into the community archive, watch a slideshow, browse through our photo albums, search the whole archive on our laptops or just join us over refreshments for a friendly chat about your local memories.
Chris Chalk, Secretary
Fakenham & District Community Archive
Chris Chalk, Secretary
Fakenham & District Community Archive
September 2016
The Crinkle Crankle Wall
This month’s photo is of the wonderfully named ‘crinkle crankle wall’ in Fakenham, though the original house in Oak Street in whose kitchen garden it stood was demolished in 1968. This house was ‘The Oaks’, which was built in 1866 and was at one time the home of Dr. Palin (the grandfather of the actor and television presenter Michael Palin). This is an unusual type of garden wall and is also known as a ‘crinkum crankum’, ‘serpentine’, ‘ribbon’ or ‘wavy’ wall. Many crinkle crankle walls are found in East Anglia, a result of the influence of the Dutch engineers who worked in the fens to drain the marshes. However, it wasn’t until the 18th century that the term was applied to wavy walls. |
Crinkle crankle walls were usually aligned east to west, so that one side faced south to catch the warming sun, and were historically used for growing fruit. The crinkle crankle wall economises on bricks because it can be made just one brick thick and doesn’t need buttresses. The alternate convex and concave curves in the wall provide stability and help it to resist lateral forces.
If you enjoy local history and would like to see more photos of Fakenham and its surrounding villages over the years, then do come along to our next community archive session. This will be held in the Trinity Room at Fakenham Parish Church from 2.00 to 4.00 pm on Monday 26th September.
You can bring in your own photos to be scanned into the community archive, watch a slideshow, browse through our photo albums, search the whole archive on our laptops or just join us over refreshments for a friendly chat about your local memories.
Chris Chalk, Secretary
Fakenham & District Community Archive
If you enjoy local history and would like to see more photos of Fakenham and its surrounding villages over the years, then do come along to our next community archive session. This will be held in the Trinity Room at Fakenham Parish Church from 2.00 to 4.00 pm on Monday 26th September.
You can bring in your own photos to be scanned into the community archive, watch a slideshow, browse through our photo albums, search the whole archive on our laptops or just join us over refreshments for a friendly chat about your local memories.
Chris Chalk, Secretary
Fakenham & District Community Archive
August 2016
The Great Storm
August 1912 had been a very rainy month, and as the month went on the rain fell increasingly heavily. On the 26th August 1912 a huge, gusty storm started early in the day and swept across the whole of East Anglia, lasting until well after midnight. Nearly every part of Norfolk was devastated. The county became a disaster area. These photos, taken of the River Wensum at Goggs’s Mill, Hempton, show some of the devastation wrought by the great storm locally that day and the trail of destruction it left in its wake as homes were flooded, trees uprooted and railway bridges were swept away. You can see more old photos of Fakenham and its surrounding villages at our next community archive session. Sessions are held monthly in the Trinity Room at Fakenham Parish Church from 2.00 to 4.00 pm on the last Monday of each month - except Bank Holidays, where you’re very welcome to bring in your own photos - old or recent - for scanning into the community archive, watch a slideshow, browse through photo albums, search the whole archive on our laptops and join us for a friendly chat and refreshments. Chris Chalk, Secretary Fakenham & District Community Archive |
July 2016
Afternoon tea on the Wensum
This photo was taken in 1912 on the River Wensum at Hempton, with Goggs’s Mill in the background. The photo shows members of the Boating Club enjoying a cup of tea in their boats and is one of several we have in the archive of the Boating Club messing around on the river in those golden pre-war times around the beginning of the last century. You can see more interesting local photos from the past at our next community archive session. This will be held in the Trinity Room at Fakenham Parish Church from 2.00 to 4.00 pm on Monday 25th July. You’re very welcome to bring in your own photos - old or recent - for scanning into the community archive, watch a slideshow, browse through photo albums, search the whole archive on our laptops and join us for a friendly chat and refreshments. Chris Chalk, Secretary Fakenham & District Community Archive |
June 2016
Fakenham Barons Cricket Team
Our photo this month is of the Fakenham Barons Cricket Club team which was taken on a lovely summer’s day in the late 1980s or early 1990s. Pictured from the left are, Back Row: - Richard Lane, Keith Bird, Pat Johnson, Jonathan Newell, Don Kingsley, Matt Scott, Mike Leach, Steven White. Front Row: - George Elliot, Norman Raybould, Ann Johnson (Scorer), Trevor Marshall. You can see more interesting local photos from the past at our next community archive session. This will be held in the Trinity Room at Fakenham Parish Church from 2.00 to 4.00 pm on Monday 27th June. |
You’re very welcome to bring in your own photos - old or recent - for scanning into the community archive, watch a slideshow review of your most recent contributions, browse through photo albums, search the whole archive on our laptops and join us for a friendly chat and refreshments.
Chris Chalk, Secretary
Fakenham & District Community Archive
Chris Chalk, Secretary
Fakenham & District Community Archive
May 2016
1940s Wells Road Playgroup
This photo was taken in 1946 and is of the young children in ‘Auntie Macinally’s playgroup’, which was held in Wells Road, Fakenham. We have the names of some of the children but would be grateful if you could contact us if you can name any of the others or have memories of the playgroup that you would like to share. Those identified so far are, far left: Michael Gibson, front left: Elizabeth Norman (daughter of Dr. Norman) Third from right: Chris Amos, far right: David Hayes (Hayes & Storr solicitors). |
You can see more interesting local photos from the past at our next community archive session. This will be held in the Trinity Room at Fakenham Parish Church from 2.00 to 4.00 pm on Monday 23rd May. (Please note this is a different day from normal due to the Bank Holiday on Monday 30th May).
You’re very welcome to bring in your own photos - old or recent - for scanning into the community archive, watch a slideshow, browse through photo albums, search the whole archive on our laptops and join us for a friendly chat and refreshments.
Chris Chalk, Secretary
Fakenham & District Community Archive
You’re very welcome to bring in your own photos - old or recent - for scanning into the community archive, watch a slideshow, browse through photo albums, search the whole archive on our laptops and join us for a friendly chat and refreshments.
Chris Chalk, Secretary
Fakenham & District Community Archive
April 2016
Fakenham Secondary Modern, Student Pupils.
These two photos were taken in the early 1960s at Fakenham Secondary Modern School (now Fakenham High School) at the newly opened Field Lane site. The school was brought into use for the summer term of 1958, and was officially opened on 10th November 1959. We know some of the names in the photos, but if you can identify any others we’d be grateful if you could contact us. Those identified so far are: Boys Back row, left to right: (1 John Vincent. (2 Bill Basey. (3 David Boley. (4 ? (5 Grenville Martin. (6 Malcom Hipkin. (7 Roy Dodman. (8 Bob Langly. (9 James Bushell. (10 Malcolm Howard: Front row:- (1 Bob Allen. (2 Victor Coppin (3 Philip Brunton (4 Kenny Francis. (5 Raymond Futter. (6 ?. (7 ?. (8 John Rogers (9 ?. Girls Back row, left to right: (1 Pamela Belton. (2 Ursula Beales. (3 Elizabeth Dunthorne. (4 Janet Mattless. (5 Brenda Colman (6 Wendy Baxter. (7 Monica Andrews. (8 Diane Aldern. (9 Shirley Billman. (10 Linda McDowell. (11 Linda Wilton. Front row: 1) Carole Hastings (2 Ann Keeley. (3 Ann Howling. (4 Edna Mason. (5 Mary Bell. (6 Jean Adams. |
You can see more interesting local photos – including school photos - from the past at our next community archive session. This will be held in the Trinity Room at Fakenham Parish Church from 2.00 to 4.00 pm on Monday 25th April.
You’re very welcome to bring in your own photos - old or recent - for scanning into the community archive, watch a slideshow, browse through photo albums, search the whole archive on our laptops and join us for a friendly chat and refreshments.
Chris Chalk, Secretary, Fakenham & District Community Archive
You’re very welcome to bring in your own photos - old or recent - for scanning into the community archive, watch a slideshow, browse through photo albums, search the whole archive on our laptops and join us for a friendly chat and refreshments.
Chris Chalk, Secretary, Fakenham & District Community Archive
March 2016
Norwich Street Junction - Past and Present
These ‘past and present’ photos show of part of Fakenham town centre, at the junction of Holt Road and Norwich Road. The first photo was taken in 1970 while the second was taken just a few weeks ago, in January 2016, from roughly the same spot. The area was known locally as ‘Leach’s Corner’, after Leach’s greengrocer’s store that was demolished and replaced slightly further back by a more modern store (currently unoccupied). This once housed Godfrey’s DIY and then, until last year, the ‘Whichcraft’ craft shop. To the left of Leach’s store was Len Bryer’s fishing tackle and footwear repairs shop. On the right of the photo, down Norwich Road, you can see the Congregational Church (now Fakenham Antiques Centre). Beyond that the motorcycle showroom of Carley’s garage is just visible. You can come and see more interesting local photos from the past at our next community archive session. You’re very welcome to bring in your own photos - old or recent - for scanning into the community archive, browse through photo albums, search the whole archive on our laptops and join us for a friendly chat and refreshments. Chris Chalk, Secretary, Fakenham & District Community Archive |
February 2016
Bedraggled sheep rescued from local fen
These are photos of some wet and bedraggled sheep being rescued from Sculthorpe Fen when it flooded in the winter of 1977. The photos appeared in a local newspaper report at the time. We think the sheep belonged to Reg Edmondson and were looked after by local farmer John Chapman, who lived at Barons Hall in Fakenham. If you recognise anyone in the photos please get in touch, as we would welcome further details. You can come along and see more interesting local photos from the past at our next community archive session. This will be held in the Trinity Room at Fakenham Parish Church from 2.00 to 4.00 pm on Monday 29th February. You’re very welcome to bring in your own photos - old or recent - for scanning into the community archive, browse through photo albums, search the whole archive on our laptops and join us for a friendly chat and refreshments. Chris Chalk, Secretary, Fakenham & District Community Archive |
In response to this article, we were delighted to hear from Steve Norris who was involved in this rescue mission on Sculthorpe Fen. Steve wrote;-
‘Looking at your article regarding rescuing sheep at Sculthorpe Fen in 1977 I can put a couple of names to those involved. The chap pulling the inflatable (and on the right in the 'dry' photo) was Claude Goward the undertaker and the chap in the sheepskin jacket was me. I worked for RC. Edmondson then and we got a call from a member of the public to say that Reg Edmondsons' sheep were in trouble on the flooded fen. I owned the inflatable that helped get the sheep off the fen but the lamb on the front of the boat didn't make it. I can't remember how many sheep we rescued from drowning but it took a lot of trips backwards and forwards and I had to retire to the Hempton Bell afterwards to get my strength back!'
‘Looking at your article regarding rescuing sheep at Sculthorpe Fen in 1977 I can put a couple of names to those involved. The chap pulling the inflatable (and on the right in the 'dry' photo) was Claude Goward the undertaker and the chap in the sheepskin jacket was me. I worked for RC. Edmondson then and we got a call from a member of the public to say that Reg Edmondsons' sheep were in trouble on the flooded fen. I owned the inflatable that helped get the sheep off the fen but the lamb on the front of the boat didn't make it. I can't remember how many sheep we rescued from drowning but it took a lot of trips backwards and forwards and I had to retire to the Hempton Bell afterwards to get my strength back!'
January 2016
Cox and Wyman bicentenary dinner dance
The Fakenham printing firm of Cox & Wyman employed hundreds of local people in the 1960s and 70s. This picture was taken during the firm’s Bicentenary Celebration dinner-dance in 1977. Nine hundred people had to be accommodated for the celebration, which was held in the Steam and Engine Museum at nearby Thursford, with the museum’s dance hall organs and steam engines lining the walls. At that time the museum only catered for visitors and evening Wurlitzer organ concerts, so the small organising committee had to provide a bar, refreshment facilities, dance area, tables, chairs and even extra toilets! |
It was an enormous task, one of the first priorities being to bring in extra space heaters in that icy December. The museum was still open to the public up to the last minute, so the arrangements had to be put into place very quickly. Large space heaters and even a traction engine were arrayed to heat the vast building, while the ladies decorated the hall and the men erected a stage and unloaded lorry-loads of chairs, tables and equipment.
The celebration was a great success, and the dancing went on until after midnight, when the reverse operation had to be carried out – by 2.00 clock in the morning all was cleared away!
If you were employed by Cox & Wyman at Fakenham during the 1970s, you may remember receiving regular copies of the company's news journal, 'Trunk-Call', from which this photo is taken. These journals can now be viewed on our website.
You can come along and see more nostalgic photos at our next community archive session, which will be held in the Trinity Room at Fakenham Parish Church from 2.00 to 4.00 pm on Monday 25th January 2016.
Chris Chalk, Secretary, Fakenham & District Community Archive
The celebration was a great success, and the dancing went on until after midnight, when the reverse operation had to be carried out – by 2.00 clock in the morning all was cleared away!
If you were employed by Cox & Wyman at Fakenham during the 1970s, you may remember receiving regular copies of the company's news journal, 'Trunk-Call', from which this photo is taken. These journals can now be viewed on our website.
You can come along and see more nostalgic photos at our next community archive session, which will be held in the Trinity Room at Fakenham Parish Church from 2.00 to 4.00 pm on Monday 25th January 2016.
Chris Chalk, Secretary, Fakenham & District Community Archive
© 2011 Fakenham & District Community Archive.
Created in-house by Fakenham & District Community Archive
Created in-house by Fakenham & District Community Archive