Archaeological news (May 2014)

Several archaeological projects are taking place in Nottinghamshire this year.

'Toton Unearthed' is a community archaeology project between the Friends of Toton Fields Group and Broxtowe Borough Council, funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund. The archaeological work is being carried out by Trent & Peak Archaeology who are based in nearby Chilwell. The project aims to locate the mills and manor house in Toton by carrying out non-intrusive surveys, digging of test pits, and excavation over three phases. Further details from the Toton Unearthed website.

Attenborough & Erewash Heritage Rescue: In partnership with the Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust, TPA are also working on a new community archaeology project based at the Attenborough Nature Reserve. Volunteer 'explorers' are tracking down 'lost' artefacts that were extracted from the reserve during quarrying activity over the last century and are now scattered across various museums and collections. "By creating a photographic catalogue and working with maps and records, they will weave the artefacts into an accessible narrative detailing Attenborough's past that will be presented in an exhibition as part of Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust’s 50 year celebrations". The exhibition will be held on the 10th-11th May at the Attenborough Nature Centre. Anyone wishing to take part should contact Genevieve Carter at TPA.

Mercian Archaeological Services are organising a week long Training Field School at King John's palace, Kings Clipstone, 25th-29th August 2014 or 1st - 5th September 2014. Participants will learn about all aspects of archaeological excavation and receive hands on training and learning from archaeological professionals. To book a place visit and for more information:  http://www.mercian-as.co.uk/fieldschool.html

Mercian AS are also running the Robin Hood's Village Dig in July. This forms part of the Festival of British Archaeology and the dig will run from the 14th - 26th of July with an open day on Saturday the 26th.

The free volunteer dig is being run in conjunction with the Edwinstowe Historical Society and will investigate the development of the village through test- pitting.

Free guided walk: 'In the Footsteps of the Chartists', 1 June 2014

Exhibition: The First World War in The University of Nottingham’s Historic Collections

A new exhibition at the University of Nottingham's Weston Gallery 'looks at the war through the eyes of the people who experienced it - from the soldier on the battlefield to the worker in the munitions factory, from the volunteer nurse to the wife and mother, and from the British ‘Tommy’ to the German ‘Fritz’'.

The exhibition runs from on the 9th May to 17th August and a series of talks will be held to accompany it. Admission is free. More information is available on the Nottingham University website.

Contemporary Biographies (1901)

I've just added 341 biographies of the leading inhabitants of the county in 1901 to my Nottinghamshire History website. The profiles and photographs were originally published in a lavishly produced book called Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire at the Opening of the Twentieth Century; [and] Contemporary Biographies and provide a fascinating insight into the movers and shakers of Nottinghamshire in the final year of Queen Victoria's reign.
The biographies start with what the book's editors considered to be the elite members of county society (the 6th Duke of Portland, the Bishop of Southwell, the High Sherriff, the Mayor of Nottingham and Members of Parliament) and includes the nobility and gentry, the professions (military, clergy, doctors and dentists, lawyers, architects, engineers, stockbrokers and accountants), businessmen and industrialists, and sportsmen.
Facial hair was extremely fashionable at the time and the portraits show an impressively wide range of styles!

• Nottinghamshire History website

New historical guides to walking and cycling in Nottingham

Chris Matthews has designed and written two historical guides to walking and cycling in the Nottingham suburbs of Aspley and Bilborough. These well produced and informative guides are freely available from most public libraries in the city or can be downloaded from his website (where you can also find Blog entries to accompany the guides):

• A New World: Blog & Booklet
• Garden City: Blog & Booklet

There is also a launch event at St John's Church in Bilborough on Saturday, 5th April (6-8pm), which will include a talk about the history of the area with 'specially sourced archive film footage'.

'I worked at Raleigh' website launched

Nottingham University and Excavate (formerly Hanby & Barratt) have collaborated on a new website that aims to capture 'the voices and stories of local people who worked at Raleigh.' The Raleigh bicycle factory on Triumph Road in Radford closed in 2002 and the website holds a range of audio recordings and short films that provide a comprehensive overview of what it was like to work at one of Nottingham's most important companies.

• I worked at Raleigh website
• Nottingham Evening Post article

"Community Archaeology in the East Midlands" conference, 5th April 2014

Mercian Archaeological Services CIC are holding a Spring Conference, "Community Archaeology in the East Midlands," on the 5th April at Nottingham University Museum conference room.

 

The day begins at 9.30am with talks beginning from 10am. The museum will be open throughout the day and there will be displays of community archaeology around the site.

 

For further information see the Mercian Archaeology website.

Nottinghamshire Local History Association Spring Day School, 'A river runs through it: the Trent and its communities since c.1750', 22nd March 2014

The Nottinghamshire Local History Association's Spring Day School is entitled 'A river runs through it. The Trent and its communities since c.1750' and will take place at the Village Hall, Ravenshead on Saturday 22nd March 2014.

The cost is £7 for NLHA members and £8 for non-members. Booking is not required but you can secure a place by contacting David Anderson (treasurer@nlha.org.uk).
Speakers:

• Philip Riden - Trade and traffic on the Trent since 1850: an overview. 
• Hywel Maslen - New sources for the recent history of the Trent at the Waterways Archives. 
• Wendy Freer - Life on board boats on the Trent in the 19th and 20th centuries. 
• Hes Kapur and Les Reid - The Newark Heritage Barge: achievements and plans.

'Great British Railway Journeys' visits Nottinghamshire

Michael Portillo's entertaining series, Great British Railway Journeys, has finally got around to visiting Nottinghamshire. Clutching his well-thumbed copy of Bradshaw's Railway Guide he starts the programme in Nottingham and a chat about the poet Henry Kirke White in the refined surroundings of Bromley House Library. His next stop is Mansfield station and the story behind the Robin Hood Line, which was created in the 1990s as part of the economic regeneration of the former Notts coalfield. He concludes his brief visit to the county with a visit to Welbeck Abbey to hear Derek Adlam describe the enigmatic 5th Duke of Portland and his extensive building works (including the famous tunnels) on the estate. The episode is still available to view on the BBC iPlayer:

• Great British Railway Journeys - Series 5, Episode 10

Launch events for new book on the Nottinghamshire Miners and the 1984-85 Miners' Strike

There are two launch events for a new book by David Amos on the Nottinghamshire Miners and the 1984-85 Miners Strike:

• Saturday, 18th January 2014 at Bestwood Winding Engine House (10am – 1pm)
• Saturday, 15th February 2014 (11am – 2pm) at The D H Lawrence Heritage Centre, Eastwood

The book, based on his PhD research, will be available to buy (at £13.99 each) at both events. There will be a small coal-mining heritage display at each of the launch events and tea, coffee and light refreshments can be purchased at both events.

The First Nottinghamshire Local History and Archaeology Day, 21 June 2014

The event will be held at the University of Nottingham Museum on Saturday 21 June, 11am–4pm. 

This event will bring together local history and archaeology societies from throughout the county along with archaeological units, museums and other regional archaeological organisations to display, examine and discuss current archaeological work being undertaken throughout Nottinghamshire. This exciting day can be enjoyed by everyone including those with a general interest in what is happening in their area, people actively taking part in archaeological work and those wanting to get involved.

11am-12.15pm – Short talks on local archaeological projects

Five local societies present their work. The session will be introduced by David Knight from Trent and Peak Archaeology who will also give a short overview of work in the region.

Recital Theatre (no. 3 entrance next to the Museum). Free but tickets need to be booked through the box office.

12-4pm – Stalls

Local history and archaeology societies and regional archaeological units and organisations will display and discuss their work. See the wide and varied work that is being done and find out about opportunities to join in. Practice Hall (no. 3 entrance next to the Museum). Drop in event.

12-4pm – Portable Antiquities Database and the Historic Environment Record for Nottinghamshire

Join the Finds Liaison Officer for Nottinghamshire and Nottinghamshire County Council to see what has been found in your area and bring objects for identification. Drop in event. Museum

12-4pm – Hands on Sessions with archaeological material from Nottinghamshire

Come and handle and find out more about a wide variety of archaeological material from Nottinghamshire including stone artefacts, pottery, coins, animal bones and environmental material dating from the Palaeolithic to the post medieval period. Angear Visitor Centre, Djanogly Gallery 2, Learning Studio (no.1 entrance next to the Museum). Drop in event.

This day is organised by the University of Nottingham Museum and supported by the Thoroton Society and the Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies.

Consultation event for project on Segelocum (Littleborough)

I was interested to see a flier on the Nottinghamshire County Council's Community Archaeologists' Facebook page inviting people along to a consultation meeting to discuss a bid for Heritage Lottery funding to investigate the Roman small town of Segelocum (Littleborough) in north Nottinghamshire.

The event is on 28th November at 7pm in the Sturton Hall Conference Centre, Brickings Way, Sturton le Steeple, DN22 9HY.

• Community Archaeology - Nottinghamshire County Council Facebook page

Trent & Peak Archaeology: laser scan videos on YouTube

A colleague has just alerted me to an impressive laser scan flythrough of the Workhouse at Southwell. A quick look at Trent & Peak Archaeology's YouTube page reveals other videos of Nottinghamshire subjects:

• Southwell Workhouse
• Newark marketplace
• Wollaton Hall
• Laser scan survey of Stapleford Anglo-Saxon Cross
• An explanation of archaeomagnetic dating at the TPA excavation at Girton Quarry

Work starts on the National Civil War Centre in Newark

Contractors have started work converting the Old Magnus Buildings on Appletongate into a £5.3 million National Civil War Centre "where the centrepiece theme will be the deadly struggles for power in 17th century Britain." Newark was a staunchly Royalist town and played an important role in the English Civil Wars: King Charles I surrendered to the Scots Army here in 1646.

• Civil War Centre, Newark on Trent
• Newark Advertiser article

The Battle of Hatfield and Cuckney church

The Battle of Hatfield Investigation Society are putting together a project to determine the location of the Battle of Heathfield (AD632) which led to the death of King Edwin of Northumbria. Traditionally, the battle is assumed to have taken place near Doncaster but the Society think that it was fought near the village of Cuckney in west Nottinghamshire.

Over 200 adult male skeletons were discovered at Cuckney church in 1951 when work was done to protect the building against subsidence from coal mining. Although it has been assumed the burials related to a 12th century battle the Society are arguing that they may be the fallen from the Battle of Heathfield and want to excavate at the church to find and analyse the skeletons.

• The Battle of Hatfield Investigation Society website
• Article on The Chad website
• BBC Nottingham article