The Stokesley Society

Newsletter No. 43 June 2011

THE STOKESLEY SOCIETY

Summer Events

Conducted Tour around Great Broughton, led by Jeff Taylor and helpers, followed by an optional pub meal at the Bay Horse at about 7.30 pm. This is an opportunity to hear about recent research on the local history of this area (see below). Meet at 6 pm outside Stokesley Town Hall, where cars can be arranged on Monday, 11 July. Free to members, £2 to non members.

Guided Tour of Ormesby Hall, including visit to Cellars and Attics (not normally open), followed by tea or coffee with scone plus jam & cream. Total cost £7.50. Meet at Ormesby Hall Car Park at 14.30 hrs on Friday, 26 August.

Please phone a Committee member (phone numbers on last page) by Tuesday, 5 July to book for the Bay Horse meal and/or the Ormesby Hall visit, as we have to provide numbers.

Autumn Public Meetings

Illustrated talks arranged at 7.30 pm in the Town Hall are:

Tanning in Ayton:by Dr I Pearce (involved with Ayton Archaeological Initiative) on Monday 3rd October. This talk had been arranged for November last year, but was cancelled due to the appalling weather.

The Stokesley Heritage Project: by Hugh Charman and members of the Committee on Monday 7th November. See below for further details.

Monday 28th November: topic to be announced.

The following Mondays have been booked for next year’s talks: 23 January, 20 February and 22 March.

The Stokesley Heritage Project

Last Summer we organised a tour of the Union Mill on Levenside plus a guided walk on the theme of Thomas Mease, who built the Mill. Encouraged by favourable comments, we decided to mark our 50th anniversary in Autumn 2012 by publishing some pocket size leaflets, describing areas of the town covering the history, buildings and people associated with them. We decided to apply for a Your Heritage Grant to support this project: we should hear the result by the end of September. Grant criteria required that our project should:

. Help people to learn about their own and other people’s heritage.

. Conserve the UK’s diverse heritage for present and future generations to experience and enjoy.

. Help more people and a wider range of people, to take an active part and make decisions about our heritage (participation).

While this meant that our original ideas needed to be broadened, we recognised that the participation criteria reflected our ultimate objective. In recent years fewer people have become actively involved in the Society along with other groups concerned with our heritage, the Conservation Area Advisory Group, Pride in Our Town and the Local History Study Group. This is a major concern as such involvement is needed to safeguarded this heritage for future generations. There are reasons such as increasing pressures on families and at work. However, in recent years there has been a revival of interest in local heritage in Great Ayton, and in the local villages, stimulated by imaginative projects that have benefited from grant support. Our main priority in recent months has been to revise our project and complete the application form, a demanding process.

The Stokesley Society main emphasis over the years has been buildings. However, we have recognised that Stokesley’s history is also an important part of our heritage, hence the talks given to the Society and five other organisations over the past two years. Knowing how this history is related both to that of the region and the nation enhances our experience when we visit other areas. The project focuses on the history of the town, its buildings and the people associated with them. Phase 1 will be concerned particularly with the following topics, leading to the production of three Heritage leaflets in Autumn 2012, to mark the Society’s 50th anniversary, together with guided walks and illustrated talks:

. The contribution of the Lord of the manor through the ages, e.g. the design of the town reflecting the medieval influence, in common with other Market towns in the region.

. National prosperity in the C18 and C19 leading to a rich inheritance of Georgian and Victorian buildings in West Green and West End.

. Stokesley’s flax mill in the C19 and the impact of the Industrial Revolution, which transformed the region.

In addition there will be research on a wide range of topics so that participants can develop their interests, e.g. the history of the Eure family (Lords of the Manor for 400 years, with links to Warkworth Castle), Stokesley in WW2 (troops, military workshops, and prisoners were based in the area), life in the narrow yards where many lived until they were cleared in the 1950s, a survey of the brickwork of buildings, relating it to changes in the brick tax. Oral history covering C20 will be a particular interest.

The research on other topics will lead into Phase 2 involving the production of a fourth leaflet, together with further guided walks and illustrated talks. Again there will be other research which could lead to subsequent projects.

The aims are (a) to widen interest in our heritage among residents, visitors and tourists, (b) for more people becoming involved in the local groups that are concerned with heritage in Stokesley, with some taking on leadership roles, to ensure that these groups continue to make a contribution.

Special attention will be given to children, with a part of the project involving Stokesley Primary School with children helping to produce guided walks and quizzes designed for families.

Conservation Area, Meetings and Committee

We work with the Conservation Area Advisory Group, which advises Hambleton Planning on planning applications in the Conservation Area and other issues. Last Summer we wrote to Johnson’s concerning the state of the woodwork of their frontage. We congratulate them on a quick response, with repairs and repainting of the frontage, also the side and back of the building.

Our public meetings with talks on topics of local interest have been well attended, justifying the use of the larger upstairs room in the Town Hall.

At the AGM Fiona Flower resigned from the Committee, which she served well by taking minutes of committee meetings and reporting for the press on Public Meetings. She concluded with a flourish in giving together with Heather Atkinson the talk “Stokesley Now and Then” last Autumn. We have welcomed Derek Whiting on the Committee.

The Committee

Our President is Tom Berry. Committee representatives are:

Hugh Charman	Chairman, Conservation	710507
Eric Lee	Treasurer, Membership	711112
Frank Robinson	Conservation	711356
Heather Atkinson	Conservation, Schools	700625
Richard Thomas	Posters, Society's Photos	711213
David Maudsley	Public Meetings	712760
Chris Taylor	Summer Events	710680
Derek Whiting	Publicity	710700

The Society's aims are:

To preserve and improve the appearance of the town,
To stimulate public interest in the beauty, history and character of the town and its surroundings.

Please use the form below if you would like to be involved, also for membership application and renewal, returning it with your subscription to Eric Lee, 71 Riverslea, Stokesley, TS9 5DE.

Name: ..........................................................

Address: ........................................................

..................................Tel .................

New Member ..... or Renewal ..... (please tick)

SUBSCRIPTION: Per household, £10 for three years or £5 for one year. Life membership, £50. Membership runs in calendar years.

I am interested in helping with (please tick):

Participating in the Stokesley Heritage Project: please note any particular interest: .........

Stokesley Pride Thursday working parties (meet 9.30am outside the Manor House)- planting, watering and other projects...…