Rarely, something happens that fires people's imagination. Many visited the Parish Council Centenary Exhibition. They wanted more time to study the exhibits, and to explore the history of our area and of people who have lived here. Such a big effort went into that exhibition that it seemed a pity to let it all slip out of our memories. So Parish News editor Geoff Russell Grant and Eric Hall got together to put out a quarterly supplement to Parish News, on a trial basis, the first being published in November 1995. The articles have been very well received and sparked so much interest in our local history as to merit them being afforded a wider audience through the Internet.
"Live for the present, look to the future but don't lose sight of the past"
(anonymous Sussex village writer)
One of the contributors to the exhibition had written about Birch Airfield and he said that he had been met with replies to the effect that "Nothing ever happened there" when making enquiries about it. This is often the way when we accept what happens around us as part of a normal way of life.
We live close by one of the oldest towns in the country the history of which is the subject of articles in the local press. Some of the articles have touched on "our" area and tales of the Great Earthquake, the two World Wars, murders and the lock out of farm workers have been written up. Much more exists, we are sure.
Let us hear from you so as to prove that "Something interesting was always happening here"!
oooOOOooo
Listed below are all the articles which have been published to date. Photographs accompanying the original articles have been omitted. Comments and queries should be sent to the Editor of Parish News, Geoff Russell Grant ( see Contact details )
If you are looking for information about a particular individual, place or incident, you may find it helpful to use the site search facility on the Local History HOME page.
| Click on the article number to view the relevant page: | |
| Article | Topic |
| Number 1 | The Great War, the building of the Memorial Hall and the Start of Many Social Gatherings thereafter |
| Number 2 | Who Used to Live Here? |
| Number 3 | Shopping Down the Years |
| Number 4 | From Little Acorns Great Oaks Grow (Huttons, the Builders) |
| Number 5 | The Village Postman's Tale |
| Number 6 | Of Highways and of Travellers |
| Number 7 | Our Village Schools |
| Number 8 | Birch Village School - 150th Anniversary |
| Number 9 | Of Our Villages and Villagers in The Great War |
| Number 10 | The Village Postman's Life Off-Duty |
| Number 11 | The 1884 Earthquake, and The German Bomber Crash in 1943 |
| Number 12 | The Women's Institute |
| Number 13 | Murder at Birch, 1943 |
| Number 14 | The Blacksmith |
| Number 15 | The Miller |
| Number 16 | Little Birch Church |
| Number 17 | Martin Knowles Recollects |
| Number 18 | Emily and Walter Bond |
| Number 19 | Village Signs |
| Number 20 | Remembering the Fallen |
| Number 21 | One Hundred Years Ago |
| Number 22 | "Cheers" - local public houses |
| Number 23 | Charles G Round - Squire and Landowner |
| Number 24 | War Memorials and The Men They Commemorate |
| Number 25 | Pat Adkins Recollects |
| Number 26 | Layer Marney Tower |
| Number 27 | The 1901 Census |
| Number 28 | Village People in World War I |
| Number 29 | Of Local Records and Researches |
| Number 30 | Layer Breton |
| Number 31 | Village Celebrations |
| Number 32 | Harvest Supper Speech - Layer Marney, 1965 |
| Number 33 | Abberton Reservoir |
| Number 34 | Patrick Adkins - Local Archaeologist and Historian (1933-2003) |
| Number 35 | Village People in World War II |
| Number 36 | Researching Your Family History |
| Number 37 | Local Census Returns 1841-1901 |
| Number 38 | Layer Breton's Quaker Meeting House and Burial Ground |
| Number 39 | Hearth Taxes |
| Number 40 | Hobstevens, Layer Breton |
| Number 41 | Winter Weather |
| Number 42 | A Little History Concerning St Mary's Church, Layer Breton |
| Number 43 | The Wilsmore Family of Layer Breton |
| Number 44 | Ivy Moore (née Taylor) of Layer Breton |
| Number 45 | Layer Breton Luddites |
| Number 46 | Workhouses |
| Number 47 | Old Farming Records |
| Number 48 | Basil Bowyer's Reflections on his service in the Bucks Hussars in the Great War |
| Number 49 | Gardening in the Past |
| Number 50 | Layer Breton Chapel |
| Number 51 | Proof of Identity - 15th Century Style |
| Number 52 | Layer Breton Vestry - 1820 to 1861 |
| Number 53 | Birch Friendly Society |
| Number 54 | Layer Breton and the 1911 Census |
| Number 55 | Medical Officer of Health Reports |
| Number 56 | Public Health in our Villages |
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Page updated: 09 NOV 2009