Local History

Next meeting – Monday 10th November – we shall have a planning meeting and then in December the Reverend Speed will tell us about the life of Benjamin Drawwater, who sailed with Captain Cook and is buried in Greasley churchyard.

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We had a very interesting meeting in October, with a presentation by our own member, Jim Stirland, on the topic of Water, Water, Everywhere. He brought a lifetime of experience and expertise to the meeting and we were amazed to hear about some of the conditions that miners had to cope with – 98% humidity and overalls that stood up on their own at the end of a shift!

Jim gave us a good background into the history of mining in our area, and why it is imperative to pump water out. He focused upon a specific project that aimed to pump an enormous amount of water  via a system of underground pipes and above ground lagoons. He brought fascinating photographs of this, which he had kept as part of his own archive. There are still lagoons in a nature reserve in Newstead village, which can be visited, but the underwater system was flooded in 2000. He explained why the mines could never be started again, now that they have been so long underwater.

In September Carol gave us an interesting insight into D H Lawrence, his life and connection to Eastwood and the use of the area and people in his books. She explained why certain families in the area were very against him and how this has sometimes impacted how Eastwood has viewed his legacy. It was a very engaging talk which all members enjoyed.

Our speaker in July was Diana Pidgeon, who took us on a varied journey regarding Kimberley from the Doomsday Book to the present day.  It helped us to view Kimberley in many ways, including landmarks such as the War Memorial (the only domed memorial in the country) and the Water Tower at Swingate which can be seen from miles around. Diana spoke of Kimberley’s industrial heritage, which included Mining, the railways (two railway stations), the Brewery and the many pubs.  It was interesting to learn that the Wolsey factory (now demolished) was originally a large lace factory and that the Queen Adelaide pub (now housing) was the first lace factory in Kimberley.

It was a very informative talk and will perhaps encourage some of us to visit the local library and pursue some of the subjects in more depth.

The topic of our meeting this month (May) was The Eastwood Murder.  Our speaker, Helen Baker, introduced us to Sarah Barber, who was found guilty of the murder of her husband Joseph.  This was in the 1850s and Joseph was found to have died from arsenic poisoning. Sarah was sentenced to hang, but this was commuted to transportation to Hobart, Tasmania (Van Diemen’s Land).

Helen made the topic interesting by giving us an insight into the places in and around Eastwood where Sarah had worked and lived.  She was a barmaid at the Sun Inn for a time and lived in Bomfords Row and Church Lane (Street). Bomfords Row was of particular interest to Helen as some of her family had lived there and a few of our members were able to remember the shops which Helen’s family, the Gregorys, owned in Eastwood. It was a very interesting topic, about which you can find out more, either at the library or on line.

We had another good meeting yesterday (April) , with three new members. Our topic was Old Photos and we brought a lot of items to share with each other. Some of the group were fortunate enough to have original photographs of family members who used to live in the locality, with the oldest dating back to 1890s Kimberley. It was fascinating to hear the stories behind the pictures, both about the people and the buildings and locations. We thought about how our local towns and villages had changed – some, like Underwood, losing many of its shops, and others like Kimberley, losing its factory and acquiring a large supermarket. The coming of the M1 had affected quite a few locations and in one photograph it showed a tram in the early 1900s, well before the modern ones were re-introduced.

Some members also brought in interesting books, full of old photographs or postcards of different areas. It was tantalising to try to match them up to modern day locations. We found many connections between the group, and were able to make links to some of the topics that have already been discussed.

We had another interesting meeting in March, this time led by Karen Walsgrove. She shared her reasons for becoming a member of the Haggs Farm Preservation Society, and how it is linked with the life and writing of D.H. Lawrence. It is the setting for several key scenes in Sons and Lovers, and Jessie Chambers has long been known to be the inspiration for Miriam Leivers in the novel. We learnt about the history of Haggs Farm, both before and after Lawrence’s time, and how access has been denied by the Barber family, who felt that they had been unfairly portrayed in Lawrence’s novels. It has now passed to a distant relative, but there seems to be little progress towards any kind of public access, however limited. There are yearly inspections to comply with building regulations and its historical significance, but few people have seen any of it. This was felt by the group to be a sad state of affairs, and that it would be of great interest to people from all over the world who are interested in Lawrence. Karen was ably assisted by Carol, who added to our knowledge about D.H.Lawrence’s life and his links to Eastwood and the surrounding area.

February 2025: We had an excellent meeting today with a very good turnout. Our speaker was Pete Collins, the Operations Director of the Bennerley Viaduct Trust. He gave a really informative and detailed talk about the history of the local railways and the building of the viaduct, and its purpose within the network. He then traced how the disused viaduct and area has been rescued by the hard work of amateurs who formed the Friends of Bennerley Viaduct, and campaigned tirelessly for it to be restored and made accessible to the public. We were shown maps and designs of the new Visitor Centre and cafe, which should be open to the public by this summer. We all appreciated the hard work and determination that had gone into reclaiming an important part of our industrial heritage. There is a ten year plan in place, and it will be fascinating to see how the site is developed.

When it is open, we may organise a visit to see it for ourselves at first hand.