THS

News Feb 2005

Tewkesbury Historical Society

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News Archive for February/March 2005

The second half of our season is now well underway after a very enjoyable Social, thanks to the two Junes, Mary, David and Cliff. We are now proceeding towards:

1. The publication in March of our 14th Bulletin of Research.

If you click on the link you will be able to see the change in design of the cover thanks to Sam Eedle's professional expertise, the contents and my forward. We are deeply grateful to Derek Benson for his patient but speedy and efficient type setting and for Bill Camp for the liaison with the printer and for marketing them so efficiently to keep our bank balance relatively healthy in view of our ambitions. Not only are we grateful for the regular articles by our long term members but we are delighted that we can introduce some new writers to you. We hope that, after the AGM, some of these researchers will 'advertise' their articles by giving short talks to the membership on this most important of evenings when the Woodard Award will again find a worthy recipient.

2. The A.G.M. on 21 April 2005.

The main issue for agreement is a proposed modest increase in the subscription to the Society to ensure that our future plans can be supported. This is the first such increase since 1995. We shall also be proposing to the membership that Cliff Burd be made an Honorary Member for his outstanding contribution to presenting the history of the town both within and without the Society over a considerable number of years. This will be the first such award made to a member who is not retiring from active participation!

One issue will be up for discussion but may need an eventual change of constitution in a year's time: it concerns the increasing numbers of non-residents - many who live abroad - who take an interest in the Society and who ask for historical information, often from the Woodard Database. Some make small donations to the Society, but others join. How can we make non-resident members feel they are benefiting in the long term from their membership and can they make an effective contribution to discussion and decision making using Information technology which most such members use? Please click on Non-Resident Membership for a discussion of the issues.

One difficult job will be to replace our Secretary, Wendy Snarey who is retiring from the Committee. Her contribution has been immense in so many ways. However, we hope that, when she emerges from the winter "down-under", she will continue her wonderful transcriptions of historical data.

The Woodard Database. I should think many members would like this facility whether on-line or from a CD-Rom. It may be that your committee could discuss these possibilities which are fraught with difficulties. At present, I - as your Research Co-ordinator - do my best to answer written and electronic queries to non-residents; residents can make use of the facility of the Computer provided by the Library Service for the public which is always available in the Library. On Thursdays from 2.30-4.30 p.m., I offer tuition in how to use this unique resource. I hope that by the AGM that I will be able to announce that after a three year campaign, the County Library Service has generously provided us with an updated computer that can display photographs and enable faster transfer from Idealist to Word or Excel. For this, we are most grateful for the patient support of Jane Chappell and Marilyn Lane.

We are also thinking of the 60th Anniversary of the End of World War II, which is emerging all too quietly into the public arena before the Commemoration during the weekend of 9-10 July. Do you know that? The choice of date is a compromise but I hope that we can do far more for those who suffered so appallingly in the Far East and who often perceive that they were the forgotten servicemen. As a Society we are hoping to involve members in producing a booklet which brings to life the mere names which are displayed on the Cross and to involve students from Tewkesbury School in presenting an exhibition of life on the Home Front for the commemoration weekend. In this week, we hope to apply for a grant from the Home Front Recall fund which has only just come to our attention.

Finally, you may have heard that we are now supposed to benefit from the 2000 Freedom of Information Act the implications, of which can be studied with information from the GRO website. Will it make research any easier? I wonder!

We, in England, are looking forward to the summer months but, accordingly we commiserate with our friends members - and Wendy and Alan! - "down-under" who see the summer receding! If you are able to be in England on 23 June 2005, we are proposing to take you on a walk into a forgotten - yet accessible - aspect of our History.

John

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