These kick off with Frank Meeres presenting on Richard Caister, “The Good Vicar” on Wednesday Sept 23rd. Future events include; Bullards Brewery, the grand tour and Norwich and the plague, these can be accessed via the following link:
https://norfolkrecordofficeblog.org/history-talks/
Margaret is another person I didn’t know anything about. She was famous for being a lepidopterist and an adventurer which is a unique mix. But what is a lepidopterist? Where did she travel to? What did she collect and where is her collection held now? She travelled the world on horse back at great risk to herself but who was her guide and companion for 27 years? She is also famous for the diary she kept between 1878–1939 and for her carefully drawn sketchbooks of larvae and pupae, many previously un-described, which are held in the Natural History Museum. To find out more please select the following links, in the second link you will also find a short film about her:
https://peoplepill.com/people/margaret-fountaine/
https://norfolkwomeninhistory.com/1851-1899/margaret-fountaine/
You may recall that in April I included a request from the Heritage Centre for History Groups to start collecting information and photographs relating to the Coronavirus Pandemic. These records would display how we responded and lived through the crisis to future generations. A member of our group, David Woods, has taken some excellent photos of the crisis and I have included some of them below.
There is a statue of Maharaja Duleep Singh on Butten Island in Thetford. I have never heard of him, so who is he? Why is there a Sikh statue in Thetford? He was the last Sikh ruler, removed by the British and exiled to Britain in 1854. Where did he live on the Norfolk/Suffolk border? Which member of the royal family was he a firm favourite of? What was the Koh-i-Noor diamond and where does it reside today? Sikh pilgrims visit the statue every year. To find out more please select the following links:
I came across this castle a couple of years ago when walking with the Ramblers. The remains are quite impressive including the keep and the circular moat. It is well worth a visit. The castle was built in 1176 by William d’Albini, a Norman Baron and supporter of William The Conqueror. D’Albini also built Castle Rising and he built a new town to service his new castle but what was it called and how did this town become wealthy? To find out more, please access the following link:
https://www.britainexpress.com/counties/norfolk/castles/new-buckenham-castle.htm
I must admit I didn’t know what a Bone Mill was, so here is an interesting article about Narborough Bone Mill. Where did they obtain the bone from and what was it used for? They even imported human bone but where from? The smell must have been gruesome which is why the mill was located in a very isolated position. To find out more, please access the following link, also take time too explore this website that also has a huge amount of information on Norfolk windmills, watermills and steam pumps:
http://www.norfolkmills.co.uk/Watermills/narborough-bone-mill.html
Colin has asked me to share the following link of John’s forthcoming talks. John is a popular architectural historian with over 40 years experience teaching, lecturing and guiding specialist groups. John`s specialist subject is ecclesiology – the study of church architecture and associated topics. There are several talks about Norfolk Churches coming up which may be of interest to you:
https://www.eventbrite.com/o/john-vigar-30784745250
On Saturday, it was 75 years since the Japanese surrender and the end of the Second World War. It is wonderful that we commemorate these occasions and long may it continue! The following link has 11 photos depicting some of the celebrations. You can feel the release of the anguish of six years of war in the smiles! Please select the following link:
Another interesting article from this website is on somebody else I know nothing about: Alice L’estrange. It was very hard to be a famous woman in the 17th century but this lady managed several estates during the English Civil War whilst her husband and sons were away fighting.
https://norfolkwomeninhistory.com/1500-1699/alice-lestrange/
An interesting website worth exploring is: norfolkwomeninhistory. There are lots of names which I know nothing about. One of those is Amelia Opie. We all know of Opie Street but who was Amelia Opie and what was she famous for? Did you know she was a quaker and why did she give up writing fictional novels? The answers and much more are in the following article:
