South Staffordshire Council enables a ‘Walk for Health’ group to operate in the village. As part of the Great War commemoration, a walk was arranged on September 6th between Great Wyrley and Cheslyn Hay. It was attended by Gavin Williamson, M.P. with a large turnout of walkers attending and was supported by both Cheslyn Hay and Great Wyrley Societies.

Dave Dunham provided an interesting address at the coffee morning on sniping, with training and tactics therein, during the Great War. Actual guns were displayed which added a further interesting perspective!

A warm welcome was given at the coffee morning to our long-distance member, Jenni Bond, visiting the U.K. from her Tasmanian home.

Scheduled coffee morning speakers are Joe Dyke on ‘Coins and Postcards’ in October and John Talbot on ‘The Royal British Legion’ in November.

The Society participated in both the Cheslyn Hay Society OpenDay and the Scouts celebration on September 27th. Positive feedback has been received from our attendees at both events.

The genealogy and photo review mornings have been re-started. It is planned to continue them on the 4^th Thursday morning of each month for the foreseeable future.

It has been suggested that the frequency of magazine production be changed from quarterly to 4 monthly. Members will be consulted for feedback at the October coffee morning.

Maintenance and updating of the Photo Library is under review. Members will be consulted for feedback at the October coffee morning.

A start has been made on the feasibility of visiting the National Brewing Museum and the Imperial War Museum in the spring and summer 2015. Members will be updated as soon as further information is available.

Commemoration of the 100 year anniversary of the start of the Great War meant a busy period for the Society. On August 3rd, The Peace games were held and followed by the Royal British Legion commemoration service at St. Marks with a candlelit vigil being held at 11 pm at the Memorial Gates the following day.

A cross-section of photos is displayed below. It may be possible for DVD or still photo copies to be produced of the events. Any interested member should contact Diane and best efforts will be made.

The Society also arranged a swing band concert at the Sports and Social Club on behalf of the Royal British Legion and SSAFA. Thanks to the Club team efforts, it was a hugely successful evening and requests have been received for further similar evenings at a future time.

We hope to welcome a long-distance member (Jenni Bond) to our September coffee morning.

A status report on our Great War project has been discussed with, and issued to, the Heritage Lottery Fund. Further efforts are being made to better understand some artefacts. At present, the Imperial War Museum, Goethe Institute and German Historical Institute have been consulted.

An extensive range of documents relating to the Greensill family have been received and further research is being undertaken with the positive support of Helen Ralphs and the Cheslyn Hay Society.

Members have been consulted about possible future trips and visits. Initial feedback has been received and further information will be sought in readiness for possible trips to be discussed with members.

The coffee morning speaker was John Billingham who gave an entertaining and nostalgic talk about the 1950’s (hopscotch, early TV’s, sweets coming of ration, for example).

The coffee morning speaker in September is Dave Dunham speaking of snipers in the Great War and in October it is Joe Dyke whose theme is coins and postcards.The range of topics underlines the Management Committee aim to provide a breadth of speakers. Members are, again, asked to speak with Pam or Diane with suggestions of speakers they would like to hear at future coffee mornings. 

The coffee morning address by Derek France provided an entertaining insight into the world of speedway racing in the 1960’s and 70’s. Derek (known as Rick) during his racing days had racing enthusiasts in the audience who also recalled the thrilling times.

The August and September coffee morning addresses will be given by Jo Dyke on ‘life in the 1950’s’ and Dave Dunham on ‘The Great War arms / sniping tactics’ respectively.

The Society Committee strives to put on a variety of topics at the coffee mornings, as seen by the recent and future speakers. It is looking for feedback from members on speakers they would like to hear, if possible.

The Senior Citizens Centre has held its A.G.M.; it was agreed that charges to the History Society would be unaltered for the next year.

As part of the Great War project, the Society has supported the restoration of the plaque at the Institute on the corner of Norton Lane. Dr Paul Collins recommended a professional stone restorer (Brian Gibbs). The work was completed in July. The pictures below show the plaque ‘as was’ and ‘as now’ after completion. It means the fading plaque laid in 1870 is now preserved for future years.

A broadband facility has been successfully installed by BT at the Senior Citizens Centre. This will facilitate the proposed genealogy/ family history/ library access facility planned to start in September. It is provisionally planned for the 4th Thursday each month.

Also, as part of the Great War project, the Imperial War Museum has been visited. It recently re-opened after installing a new Great War hall. This is in addition to the extensive displays already in place.

The visit allowed some of our artefacts to be discussed with their experts and, also, to consider the feasibility of the Society visiting the Museum in 2015. Personally, the whole site was a thrilling experience that advantageously used new technology to further the overall experience. Members are to be asked if they want to consider a visit in spring / early summer 2015, if possible.

A big activity behind the scenes is the transcribing of burial records as part of the Great War project. Diane is painstakingly working away and maintaining a steady output. It would be of tremendous assistance if other members could provide support, as possible. It is a task that can be fitted in with available time. Please ask Diane for further information.

Thanks to the support of Dave Dunham and Ron Mattison, members were able to enjoy a visit to the Chase Great War training huts on June 12th. It provided a good insight with the many examples therein.

 

Gary gave a talk supported by photos and articles on Landywood Farm and the Snape family at the June coffee morning. The entertaining address demonstrated the rich history seam that is being unearthed.

A man of the village, Derek France, will be speaking of his life and career in the thrilling ‘world of speedway racing’ at the July coffee morning with Jo Dyke speaking of ‘Life in the Fifties’ at the August coffee morning.
The A.G.M. was held at the June coffee morning. Management Committee members gave synopses of activities over the last year with the on-going activities and the Treasurer summarised the financial status. It was confirmed that membership fees remain unchanged from those already in place.
At conclusion of the A.G.M., Gary outlined the Society profile since start-up five years ago and the target steps for the upcoming year. Members unanimously agreed that the Management Committee was re-elected for the upcoming year.

We participated in an enjoyable day at the Annual Carnival on June 28th. Thanks to everyone who manned our stand and the many visitors throughout the day.

The 100 year anniversary of the start of the Great War is looming. Commemorative events are being scheduled. A summary of the events will be distributed at the July coffee morning for members consideration and possible participation, if desired. Please send an e-mail if an electronic version is wanted, as and when prepared.
We supported an application by the Express and Star to the Heritage Lottery Fund to digitise their vast back photo library. It would then be available to the general public and groups such as our Society. The application was multi- layered and notification has been received that the first part of the application has been successful.
Enquiries for Family History information has been received from the Hitch and Hassall families and feedback has been sent, as available and researched.
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As previously mentioned, the Society is promoting an event on behalf of the Royal British Legion and SSAFA for the poppy appeal. On 9th August, a big band concert is being held at Great Wyrley Sports and Social Club. It starts at 8 pm. Advance tickets cost £4 from Gary or £5 payable at the door. The music is provided by the Miller Tones with vocal support from a male and female singer. It promises to be a great night of Glenn Miller tunes and swing music of that era.