Newport History Society

NewsletterMay 2012

Web Address - http://newporthistorysociety.wordpress.com

Chairman’s Report

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May 2012

Our extended Annual General Meeting saw the resignations ofPaul as Chairman, Phil and Paula as Joint Treasurers and Derekwho had kindly taken over from Don as Programme Arranger.

As your new Chairman I am very grateful for all theircontributions to the work of the Society. Paul is a hard act for me tofollow but I will do my best.

We reckon that it is 14 years since Phil and Paula began in theirpost - they have certainly earned a rest! We are very lucky thatMargaret Robson has volunteered to become a member of theSociety and has been elected Treasurer. Margaret, welcome and Ihope you enjoy your new post. Phil and Paula will give you all thehelp you need and part of the duties will be undertaken by "The 2Lizes". Liz Phillips will also be our new Secretary and Liz Raymonthas kindly agreed to be Vice-Chairman. Gill (Publicity), Linda(Archivist) Julian (Finds Officer and Field Officer) and PhilWalker(Web site manager), will continue in their posts .

Reports on last year's activities show that we are a flourishingSociety. Our Archives are being built up rapidly and the number of"hits" on our web site is surprisingly large.

S N A P is very popular as a source of pictures and information onthe history of Newport.

We had an interesting range of speakers and our visits weresuccessful in spite of mixed weather.

I would like to say a big thank you to all those who quietly beaveraway in the background and to especially thank Julian Meeson andhis helpers who have set up displays in No. 3 High Street. Julian’sgroup are to be congratulated for their amazing fieldwork, over theyears, particularly with the Brook Cottage project at Forton.

I hope our new-look team will continue the good work and I wishyou all the best for the coming year. Please remember this is YOURSociety - any help and ideas for our activities are always welcome.

Martin Elkes

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RARE 1657 MANUSCRIPT IS RETURNED TO NEWPORT

At the autumn of 2010, Elizabeth Kosinski, Archivist and Librarianof Adams' Grammar School, had an unexpected telephone call.Later, in the Old Novaportan’s Newsletter, she described whatfollowed:

"On the 20th October 2010, out of the blue a telephone call from Mr.Henry Aldridge, auctioneer in Devizes was put through to theLibrary. A deceased's estate (family from Ireland) had in theirpossession a manuscript from 1657. Included in the handwrittenpages was a copy of the "Original Letters Patent for the foundationof a Grammar School at Newport, in the county of Salop" It wasindeed a fortuitous call for Adams.

During Half-Term, I went to view the item and was allowed to takesome photos. Copies were sent to David Bartle, Archivist atHaberdashers Hall and Ruth and David Taylor, authors of thehistory of the School. The Archivist at Habs was very interested,saying that at Haberdashers Hall they did not have a copy of whatwas in the bound volume, but it was Ruth Taylor who, looking up herold research notes from a visit to the Guildhall in London, told uswhat it was. She had noted that in Manuscript 1657 there was a notethat a "Bound copy of these (to do with Wm. Ad. Charity) documentsis to go to the Minister of Newport (Mr. Malden in the 17th C.) forreference for the Visitors (now known as Governors) at theirmeetings. And one copy for the Master (headmaster, the first onebeing Thomas Chaloner). Both copies are to be handed to theirsuccessors." Over the years both copies had gone missing.Then we had to jump the hurdle of an Auction on Nov. 13th. The

money had to be found and the bidding had to be successful. It wasKeith Morris, the School Business Manager, and myself whoconsulted widely as to price and method of bidding. Money wassecured from the Adams Governors Fund and our bid wassuccessful and thus we own the Manuscript.

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What is in the document?

1. Copy of the letters patent sealed by Oliver Cromwellnominating the Haberdashers as wardens of the Charity.

2. A licence of mortmain from John Cooke Esq.3. Deed of purchase from Charles Sawyer of Knighton in

Staffordshire.4. Grants of further lands owned by William Adams.5. Conveyance of land to the Wardens of the Haberdashers.6. Conveyance of three houses in Newport on land wherein the

School and officers houses are to stand.7. The release made to the Masters and Wardens for the

discharge of two annuities.8. Copy of the Statutes regarding the duties of Headmaster.9. Copy of the Statutes regarding the running of the School.

10. Catalogue of Books donated by William Adams and others.11. Catalogue of goods held in the Headmasters House, signed

by Thomas Chaloner, and in the Ushers house.12. Copy of an Act of Parliament after the Restoration of 1660

referring to the school at Newport.

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Recently, at the School archives, Mrs. Kosinski showed theManuscript to one of the History Society's members. It is asubstantial, leather-bound volume containing more than 100manuscript pages. It is, indeed, a handsome book and the schoolmust be pleased to have it back where it belongs.

“The manuscript was displayed at the Full Governors Meeting inLongford on the 14th December and taken to be shown to the Courtof Assistants, Haberdashers Hall, London. I was told that theHaberdashers were mightily impressed. The document has beendigitised at the Guildhall Library in London and has returned,hopefully to be suitably displayed in Big School Library at Adamsin the near future”.

Elizabeth Kosinski

The information above was supplied Mrs. E. Kosinski, the Librarian andArchivist at Adams’ Grammar School,

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Rare 1657 Manuscript contd.

Much of it relates to the financial and legal framework by whichWilliam Adams was able to create the School's foundation and itsfuture support through the Haberdashers. However, manyNovaportans, who have attended Adams', past and present, willfind of more interest the Statutes which prescribe the way in whichthe Schoolmasters were appointed, and how they ran the School.Much of the text can be already read in David and Ruth Taylor's2002 "Mr. Adams' Free Grammar School" but perhaps it would begood if some of the most interesting items of the Statutes werepublished in the web-site and the Newsletter.

Phil Walker

Subscriptions

Our Secretary, Liz Phillips, hasasked that a further reminder be madeto those members who have not yetpaid their subscriptions. The final dateis the 31st May.

Non-payment does not mean thatthose people will be put in the pillory orstocks but it will be assumed that theyno longer wish to remain as members.

Web Address - http://newporthistorysociety.wordpress.com

Memories of Newport and District History Society

At least as early as 1979 a group of local people, who were interestedin history, were looking at the topography of the town and gatheringtogether artifacts which they had found on their Sunday walkabouts. AHistory group was set up by Berwick Roberts, Ray Edwards, acarpenter, Neil Edwards, his brother, Roy Sumnall, an artist, HeatherWilliams, an art historian with Paul Custance and Terry Gilder, whowas Editor of the Newport and Market Drayton Advertiser. Ray was thefirst Chairman and Heather offered to be Secretary with Berwick asArchivist. In 1983 they were joined by May Bye and in 1984 by TaviaMaclean. Then they were joined by Arthur Hawkins who took on thepost of Treasurer of the Society.

That embryonic archaeology group of people, grew into the HistorySociety that we have today. In the early years, Newport and DistrictHistory Society, as it was then called, was composed of groups ofmembers who followed their own interests in local history.

The work of the archaeology group declined until a metal detectingenthusiast called Julian Meeson resurrected field work with amazingvigour and determination. Since his involvement thousands of findshave been made in the area. Those finds have been recorded and thatprocess has led to the name of Newport History Society, as it is nowcalled, being put well and truly on the National History Map.

The groups met together about once a month to compare notes andannounce to the whole Society what they had been up to. There was aNewspaper Group, which usually met on a Monday evening, firstly ina room above the Information Office and later in the Advertiser officesin St. Mary Street. Chairperson of the Group, Heather Williams,together with Margaret de Boer, May Edwards, Beryl Osborne, MaryLawton, and Merlys Jardine, would spend those evenings searchingthrough old copies of the Newport and Market Drayton Advertiser forsnippets of information that might be of interest to themselves and therest of the members. Many items of interest extracted by them havebeen recorded and some have been printed in the Newsletter over theyears. Sadly Merlys passed away a few years ago and Mary died,recently, on 10th October 2011.

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Heather has moved on to do other things and Margaret has movedaway from Newport to be near her daughter.

The Vernacular Architecture Group (VAG) was headed by HeatherWilliams as Chairperson together with Tavia Maclean, May Bye, wholooked after the separate finances of the group, Sue Goodwin, whocompiled the drawings, Ada Routledge who was a retired Headmistressof Sambrook School, Beryl Osborne, Helen Crump, Helen Gibson andDoris Goodall. They were later joined by Mike Abbott and BryanLloyd. At some stage in those early years Mary Lawton also joined theteam even though she was still continuing with her newspaper searches.The VAG spent much of their time studying, measuring, sketching, andmaking drawings of many buildings in and around Newport. Betweenthem they managed to produce records for posterity. Copies of therecorded assessments are held in the Society archives.

More often than not the properties were entered by invitation of theowners who would be curious about some of the features they hadnoticed within their buildings. Eventually the process of physicalexamination of properties came to an end but curiosity led the VAG totry to find out who had been in them and what the properties had beenused for. Documentary and oral research then began about trades andpeople thus sparking a greater in-depth search of the town and then thewhole area.

An Oral History Group was also started to make recordings of localpeople. Arthur Hawkins and Paul Custance were the recording expertsgathering the voices of some of the local inhabitants. Liz Raymont iscontinuing that very important work.

Three or four years ago the SNAP Project was set up by LindaFletcher and Phil Dainty to archive the many photographic images heldin the archives. Sue George, Sue Cleaves, Mike Abbott, Phil Walkerand Bryan Lloyd all joined in a course to learn about the digital copyingof the pictures and computerise the relevant data. In the digitised filesthere are over 5,000 images along with related information, which hasbeen recorded wherever possible.

This project led to the setting up of a Newport History web site whichcan be, and is actually, viewed worldwide with about 300 “hits” permonth. The site is superbly managed by Phil Walker.

Bryan Lloyd with help from Tavia Maclean.

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Titanic

Local Connections

The Fred Olsen ship Balmoral will meet up with the Azamura Journeyat the spot where the Titanic sank 100 years ago for a memorial serviceto remember the 1,517 people who perished in the disaster.

The service has been welcomed by Titanic Lecturer Joanna Vardonfrom Newport. Four members of Miss Vardon's family boarded thefamous ship - and all survived.

Miss Vardon said: "This is one of the most romantic and tragic eventsin history and I think it's fitting that it's being commemorated in thisway.

It's such a major talking point, even today, and the event deserves tobe recognised in a big way. The Titanic was the world's greatest shipand should have been unsinkable. There is still a complete fascinationwith what happened and it's a story that will be told for manygenerations to come."

Among the Shropshire contingent on the liner was Edward Willey,18, a farm labourer from Market Drayton who is believed to have died.

The Balmoral will sail from Southampton to the spot where thesinking took place. There, on April 14, she will be joined by theAzamara Journey which will have sailed from New York. Passengers,including relatives of those that died, will be served 1912-era food.Author Arthur Cropley, great-nephew of Charles Lightoller, the SecondOfficer of the Titanic will be onboard the Balmoral.

The following is from an article in the Shropshire Stardated Friday 30th December 2011

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Does Anyone Remember?

The Wilbrighton Races

Just recently John Beesley, of Brook Cottage Forton, showedme an old programme of the Albrighton Hunt Point to PointSteeplechases meeting. It was dated Saturday March 22nd 1980.

John explained that it was the programme for the last meetingthat was held there and if I would like it I could have it for theHistory archives.

Wilbrighton was where he used to live and farm. The largedistinctive house can be seen on the right, on the top of the hill,just after passing Park Farm, as one travels from Newport toStafford.

Below are views of the front and back covers of the document.

Front Cover Back Cover

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Did You Know?

The King James Bible was published in 1611.

The last two people burnt for heresy in England happened in1612.

James Napier invented logarithms in 1614

Coin-in-the-slot tobacco machines were introduced in Englishtaverns in 1615.

One-way streets were introduced in London in 1617.

First African slaves in North America 1619.

Source:- When, Where, Why & How It Happened - Reader’s Digest

The new Elected Officersand Back-room Workers

For 2012/2013

Chairman Martin ElkesVice Chairman Liz RaymontTreasurer Margaret RobsonSecretary + Subs & Membership Liz PhillipsArchives Linda FletcherField Archaeology Julian MeesonSNAP Phil Dainty & Sue GeorgeWeb Site & Computer Phil WalkerPublicity Gill WatkinsNewsletter Bryan LloydTeas Sue Cleaves & Kath Crewe

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Dates for your DiaryMeetings are normally held at the Baptist Church

in Water Lane at 7-30 p.m.

Contacts

Martin Elkes 01952 810656Tavia McLean 01952 404755Bryan Lloyd 01952 820256Gill Watkins 01952 810419

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2012

June 18th - Visit to Brook House & Forton - John Beesley Meet on New St. Car Park at 6-50 pm.

July 21st- Conducted Tour of Horsehay and Light moor 2-00 pm. To be confirmed.

September17th - Newport Buttercross - Tim Malin of S.L.R. Consulting.

October 15th - The Life and Work of Thomas Telford - PeterBrown.

November 19th - Telford and The Wrekin - Richard Bifield.

December 10th - Xmas Do at Newport Arms (The Swan). Details to be announced.

2013

January 21st - The Journey - Ted Cowling.