Programme

2025 meetings

3rd February 2025

Speaker; Bob Roach

Subject ; Bridges and Crossings of the River Mersey at Runcorn3rd

This meeting will be held in MSCC – members £2.00 visitors £3.00. Please arrive from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start.

3rd March 2025

AGM

Speaker; Tony Bostock

Subject; Mary Fitton, The Life and Loves of an Elizabethan Maid of Honour

This meeting will be held in MSCC – members £2.00 visitors £3.00. Please arrive from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start.

7th April 2025

Speaker; Stuart Jepson

Subject; Stories around Flower Cottage and the Wheelrights of Frodsham

This meeting will be held in MSCC – members £2.00 visitors £3.00. Please arrive from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start.

12 May 2025

Speaker; Tina Lawton

Subject; Traveller's Rests

This meeting will be held in MSCC – members £2.00 visitors £3.00. Please arrive from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start.

June visit 2025

Historic St Michael's Church and Village, Shotwick

Details to be confirmed

July Walk 2025

Details to be confirmed

1st September 2025

Speaker; Chris Green (The History Chap)

Dad's Army Cast's Real Wartime Experiences

This meeting will be held in MSCC – members £2.00 visitors £3.00. Please arrive from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start.

6th October 2025

Grandfather's Journeys in Tall Ships

Speaker; Ian Bellard

This meeting will be held in MSCC – members £2.00 visitors £3.00. Please arrive from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start.

3rd November 2025

Subject; Cheshire's Roll of Honour

Speaker; Stephen Benson

This meeting will be held in MSCC – members £2.00 visitors £3.00. Please arrive from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start.

8th December 2025

Speaker to be arranged

This meeting will be held in MSCC – members £2.00 visitors £3.00. Please arrive from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start.

5th February 2024

Speaker: Jonathan Pepler

Title: Cheshire Maps and Map Makers

The talk will begin with a brief description of the development of map-making in general, then look at the development of printed county maps and their role in popularising maps. I will then consider the three main types of large-scale local maps, estate, inclosure and tithe. The talk will end with a brief overview of the Ordnance Survey, It will be illustrated throughout with local Cheshire examples.

4th March 2024

Speaker: Tony Bostock

Title: Place names and field names: a source for local history

Tony is a keen local historian who has been studying the history of Cheshire, especially the Northwich and Middlewich areas for over fifty years. During this time, he has conducted a great deal of research and has written several books and articles on various aspects of Cheshire History.

Names of towns and villages, and those of fields, hold clues to interpreting the past. In this talk the meanings of Cheshire names will be discussed and how they can assist in the understanding the local history of an area.

This meeting includes our AGM and will be held in MSCC – members £2.00 visitors £3.00. Please arrive from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start.

8th April 2024

Speaker: Edward Hilditch

Title: The history of Ness Gardens

Ness gardens are located on the Wirral just south of Neston. Ed, a retired teacher, leads guided local history walks around Neston area and is chairman of the Burton and Neston Local History Society.

This meeting will be held in MSCC – members £2.00 visitors £3.00. Please arrive from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start.

13th May 2024

Speaker: Claire Moores

Title: We don't want any - Master's not in.

What really happened on Census night.

This meeting will be held in MSCC – members £2.00 visitors £3.00. Please arrive from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start.

July 1st

Churches of Frodsham 2024

Meet at Frodsham Community Centre Car park in time for a 2pm start on Monday 1st July

A short walk and talk looking at some former places of worship and active churches along High Street & Main Street, Frodsham, including a brief visit to St Lukes Church. Refreshments available at a local hostelry at the end.

Saturday 8th and Sunday 9th Jun 2024

FDHS will be at the Church with our Memorials Exhibition, do come and join us for this event which is a joint venture with the Church.

Click the link below for more details.

https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=842758794561295&set=pcb.842758904561284

A second flier for this event

https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=499704172384550&set=a.322521623436

2nd September 2024

Speaker: Sheila Walsh ( a Speke Hall Guide)

Title: Things that go bump in the night and a quick history of Speke Hall

This meeting will be held in MSCC – members £2.00 visitors £3.00. Please arrive from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start.

7th October 2024

Speaker: Mike Royden

Subject: The coming of the canal to Chester and the re-cutting of the Dee

After studying Medieval, Modern History and Archaeology at the University of Liverpool, Mike taught History for 25 years and also lectured in Local History in the University of Liverpool Centre for Continuing Education. He has researched and written about various aspects of history for over 35 years

This meeting will be held in MSCC – members £2.00 visitors £3.00. Please arrive from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start.

4th November 2024

Speaker: David Cummings

Subject: History of Bridge Sreet, Chester

“The Story of a Street” is a fully illustrated talk about the history of Bridge Street in Chester over 2,000years. It is told using unique material including personal research, original black & white and colour photograph’s, paintings from the Grosvenor Museum Art Collection, papers from the City & County Archives, and maps, engravings and sketches published in the city. David has also had access to buildings not normally open to the public. The story he tells reveals many surprises about the trades and commercial interests of the city due to the successful activities of merchants trading at the Port of Chester in the 17th & 18th centuries.

This meeting will be held in MSCC – members £2.00 visitors £3.00. Please arrive from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start.

2024 meetings

Join us for our last meeting of 2024.

9th December 2024

Speaker: David Hearn

Subject: Christmas traditions in Britain and around the world

From benevolent witches to roller skating to church on Christmas Eve and wearing red underwear in Spain this talk includes both the familiar and the unusual traditions from Britain and around the world and explains why you are unlikely to enjoy Christmas lunch in Greenland.

This meeting will be held in MSCC – members £2.00 visitors £3.00. Please arrive from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start.

2023 meetings begin on Monday 6th February with a free Zoom meeting by Professor Steve Harding of Nottingham University, on Vikings in the Wirral. You will receive email details of how to join the online talk a few days before. Our Secretary will send instructions for loading Zoom, for those of you that have never used it and an email reminder before the February Zoom meeting.

F&DHS Programme February 2023 to December 2023

6th February 2023

Speaker : Stephen Harding

Title : Vikings in Wirral, this will be a Zoom presentation

Around 1000 years ago a group of Viking settlers from Scandinavia arrived somewhere along the north Wirral coast between Kirkby (the old Norse name for Wallasey Village) and West Kirby, having been driven out of Ireland. This initiated a mass migration of their fellow countrymen into the area and soon they had established a community with a clearly defined border (near Raby) a major trading port (Meols), its own leader, its own language and at its centre a place of assembly or government - the Thing at Thingwall. Their influence spread along the North West coast to the Solway, and the Wirral and West Lancashire Viking DNA project showed that up to 50% of the DNA of men from old Wirral and West Lancashire families appeared to be Scandinavian in Origin. Wirral was also possibly witness to one of the greatest battles in the history of the British Isles: Brunanburh (AD937).

Steve’s talk will give an overview about the research behind all this - complementing the books Ingimund's Saga: Viking Wirral (Chester University Press), and Science and the Vikings (NCMH Outreach) and will include the planned bid in January/February 2023 to sample and scientifically analyse an ancient clinker (overlapping planks) vessel – possibly Viking - buried deep under the patio/car park area of the Railway Inn, Meols, and research using isotopes on iron objects from Bebington/Storeton to try and find the Battle of Brunanburh

Join us for further meetings at Main Street Community Church from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start. Members £2, Visitors £3

After that, all our meetings will be in MSCC, or visits, or short heritage walks, with a break in August.

We have some interesting speakers booked already. Below is the programme for the first half year. You will receive an email reminder before each speaker meeting. The society's website

at www.frodshamhistory.org also holds a record of meetings, past journals and photographs of local areas and events.

6th March 2023– AGM followed by Peter Elliot - Was the legend of Gawain and the Green Chapel set in the Frodsham area?

F&DHS Local summer walk

10th July

2023 Lost Pubs of Frodsham 2: Leaders Sue & Kath.

Meet at the Bear's Paw at 1.30 pm for a walk on pavements, footpaths & part of Route 5 Cycleway to Quayside & the stone bridge. We will return via residential roads, footpaths & a few steps to the Church St railway bridge. The walk will focus on the sites of 8 lost pubs.

Distance: c.2 miles

2nd October 2023

Speaker: Anthony Poulton-Smith (author)

Title: Crime on the Canals

Crime on the canals looks at over two centuries of murder, theft, criminal damage, health and safety, and even truancy. Until the coming of the railways these waterways were the main arterial routes in the country and, as such, proved a temptation to every rogue, rotter and ne'er-do-well. Not just the macabre here but also the mysterious the hapless and more than a little humour.

Anthony is a freelance journalist and author, with 87 books, many articles, is a ghostwriter, innumerable crosswords and puzzles published, whilst also compiling and marketing quizzes. He is fascinated by the development of language and etymology, based in Tamworth Staffordshire and chairman of both Tamworth Literary Festival and Tamworth History Group.

This meeting will be held in MSCC – members £2.00 visitors £3.00.

Please arrive from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start.

November 2023

Speaker: Linda Clarke (CLHA committee member)

Title: Old Postcards

Details will be posted closer to the date of the meeting.

22nd May 2023

Speaker - Dave Thomas

Topic - Down on the Farm at Tatton.

Dave's topic is based on the 'Field to Fork Project' which was launched in 2017. His talk concentrates on the people who worked at Tatton Park Farm during the 1940s. Dave is one of the 'Learning and Interpretation' volunteers at the farm, entertaining visitors with talks of the life of a Teamsman, working with the heavy horses in the forties. Each volunteer plays a different character, dressed in period costume and depicting an actual person that worked on the farm. The talk will be given in period costume and Dave will be accompanied by another volunteer who plays the part of Auntie Mary.

Join us for further meetings at Main Street Community Church from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start. Members £2, Visitors £3

Our June activity will take place on Friday 2nd June 2023 beginning 2pm, in St Michael and All Angels Church. Little Leigh, Northwich CW8 4RR

It will be a combined talk with David North (the one we missed on 3rd April!) & guided visit.

Speaker - David North
Topic - The life & times of Terracotta Thompson of Northwich

David will tell us about the family connections of Terracotta Thompson & the products of his successful brick & terracotta industry which are to be found in buildings across Cheshire & beyond. David will open our eyes to the recognition of terracotta!
David's talk will be in the church and he will show us everything of interest in and around the church and answer questions. The Church has arranged for the Village Hall, which is directly opposite, to be open for access to the toilet as there is no toilet in the church. The church would appreciate a small donation from those attending.

Next Meeting - Monday 5th December 2023
This meeting will be held in MSCC – members £2.00, visitors £3.00. Please arrive from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start.
Speaker: David Cummings Title: The story of Hockenhull Platts, near Tarvin

David has managed or been involved in the reserve there since 1972, so has a depth of knowledge on the subject, and as a local historian he will bring out the fascinating history of the area as well as the natural history of the site.

February 2022

7th February 2022 The Great Storm of 1703 – a Zoom Presentation by Chris Green Do you remember the great storm back in 1987? Hours beforehand TV weather forecaster, Michael Fish, uttered these immortal words: “Earlier on today, apparently, a woman rang the BBC and said she heard there was a hurricane on the way. Well, if you're watching, don't worry, there isn’t!” Oh how wrong he was! But, despite the destruction that night it pales into insignificance to a truly biblical storm that hit Britain 284 years earlier. On the night of 26th November 1703, Britain was hit by the most destructive storm in 500 years. Across a belt running from south Wales to East Anglia winds of over 100 mph destroyed homes, churches and forests. Storm waves and high tides caused devastation along the coastline. 10,000 people lost their lives, the Royal Navy lost a fifth of its ships, windmills turned so fast that they caught fire and a cow was tossed up into the branches of a tree. The Queen had to be rushed to shelter as parts of the royal palace collapsed around her in London.Join Chris Green (The History Chap) as he brings the forgotten past to life with the story of The Great Storm of 1703. Speaker Bio:Chris Green (aka The History Chap) is a professional speaker who specialises in telling stories that bring British history to life. He holds a degree in Medieval & Modern History and was a national finalist in the Professional Speaking Association’s “Speaker Factor” competition in 2019. Previous listeners have described him as “engaging”, “entertaining” and “enthusiastic”. Recently one person wrote “You are the history teacher I wish I had at school”. His Youtube channel has received over 120,000 views in the last year. Find out more at www.thehistorychap.comPlease contact email: fdhsarchive@gmail.com if you would like to receive the Zoom link in early February.

Monday 7th March 2022

This meeting begins at 7.15pm with a short AGM – Agenda & Minutes previously sent to members.
From 7.30pm our speaker is Barbara Salter, her presentation is about tuberculosis & her experience of disease treatment in Crossley Sanatorium. She was admitted into this adult hospital as a 13 year-old! Barbara kept diaries during this time which she published along with her adult comments in 2021. Her book called Bed Absolute: a teenage diary of TB in the 1960s has had good reviews, including one by the British Society for the History of Medicine. It describes the book "as a fascinating social & historical memoir that should appeal... to historians of tuberculosis [as well as] to a much wider audience. Barbara's presentation promises to be an interesting one! Please email fdhsarchive@gmail.com, if you wish to receive joining details.
Join us at Main Street Community Church from

7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start. Members £2, Visitors £3

Monday 4th April 2022

Title: Newton Hollows in Hoole, and the Roman route between Deva (Chester) and Veratinum (Wilderspool)

Synopsis: Newton Hollows is an urban hollow way, unique in the UK. It runs through Hoole, Chester, more or less parallel to the Hoole Road. Even though it may not be part of a person's nearby environment, there is a lot of intrinsic appeal in the existence of the Hollows. The presentation examines the route in detail with some anecdotes about Roman roads in general, and buildings along the way, and some planned linguistic digressions on the origin of selected place-names. There are a lot of slides to keep the eye engaged, many of them photos taken by Monty, with some maps, both contemporary and historical, and Google Earth views, with animations to show the route on the modern land (& town) scape. The strategic importance of the relationship between the places at each end of the route, even in pre-Roman Britain, is explored. The part of the route between Helsby and Frodsham happens to be particularly interesting because of local place names and visible features.

Join us at Main Street Community Church from

7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start. Members £2, Visitors £3

Saturday 30th April

A repeat of the " Old Schools of Frodsham" a picture walk.

Monday 9th May 2022

Title: Understanding Victorian Architecture

Speaker: Chantal Bradburn

This meeting will be held in MSCC – members £2 visitors £3.00. Please arrive from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start. Chantal is the Widening Participation Officer in the Outreach Team at the University of Chester. Chantal will be mentioning some Frodsham examples. It promises to be an interesting talk.

Join us at Main Street Community Church from

7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start. Members £2, Visitors £3

Monday 5th September

This meeting will be held in MSCC – visitors £3.00.

Please arrive from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start.

Title: Welsh Copper

Speaker: Rob Toomey

From the earliest times Copper has helped mankind live more comfortably and trade more successfully but it also made conflicts more aggressive.

For long periods in ancient and recent history Wales has been the centre of world copper production and many of the places associated with its exploitation are within a short distance of us.

Rob’s talk will recount the history of Welsh copper and encourage listeners to visit the places described.

Monday 3rd October 2022

Speaker: Clive Brookes

Title: An overview of the life at Marbury Hall Camp 1939 -1948

Marbury Hall was one of the first locations in mid Cheshire requisitioned by the military and one of the last to be released. The camp began as a base for guarding important locations in Cheshire, a brief home for thousands returning after Dunkirk then major training camp for men to repel any German invasion. Troops trained here for all campaigns later fought by Britain around the world before becoming home for thousands of Patton’s Americans. It finished the war as a POW camp, housing some fanatical Nazis, guarded by Polish soldiers. The story is told through the accounts of many who served there or were later prisoners.

Join us at Main Street Community Church from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start.

Members £2, Visitors £3

7th November.

Speaker;Chris Green

Subject;Aethelflaed

England's forgotten warrior queen . King Alfred's daughter, who was known as the Lady of the Mercians, and her exploits against the Vikings.

Join us at Main Street Community Church from 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start.

Members £2, Visitors £3

5th December2022

Speaker;David Cummings.

Subject; Hockenhull Platts

The bridges are known locally as " The Roman Bridges" and it is certain that there were bridges there at the time of the Roman occupation of Chester. However these were probably constructed from timber and were in use until the late 15th C. When work was being done to underpin the present stone structures in the 1940's some earlier timber post construction (probably roman) was exposed. The three stone bridges that can be seen today were constructed around about 1470 and are typical pack horse bridges with a single arch construction. They are connected by a causeway or an embankment of over 250 metres built of earth, clay and topped with sets or cobbles. This enabled travellers along the old highway from Chester to London to cross the marshland surrounding the various courses of the River Gowy in comparative comfort.

Frodsham and District History Society

Programme and Events

Frodsham and District History Society

Cheshire West and Chester Council

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Frodsham and District History Society

Cheshire Local History Association

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Frodsham and District History Society

Cheshire West and Chester Council

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Frodsham and District History Society

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Frodsham and District History Society

Lawrence GregoryCheshire history

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Frodsham and District History Society

Programme and Events

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