Digital Archive: Journal No 13

Introduction to The Wychwoods Local History Society Journal No 13

Your editorial committee is pleased to report an embarrassment of riches for Journal 13. In fact members have been so co-operative that we are savouring a comfortable backlog of excellent material for the next journal.

However we are always on the look-out for new areas of local research or reader-comment on published articles (see the sheepwash correspondence in this issue).

It is gratifying to know that the journal stimulates thought and jogs memories. If members continue to respond to our efforts we will be delighted to institute a letters page, which might also feature genealogical or local history queries. Our archivist, Joan Howard-Drake, holds an enormous collection of census transcripts, newspaper articles and family history material. Perhaps she has the very piece of information for which you have been looking.

In this issue the fieldwalking group, led by Janet Wallace, report on a lean but interesting day. while the research group explores the 1788 small tithe account book of Dr Thomas Brookes. Occupations of the inhabitants of Milton, Shipton and Leafield were noted, including the status of the gentry. Was the resident excise-man in Milton in 1785 keeping a day-to-day watch on the operations he taxed? Sadly Tom McQuay died shortly after completing his article ‘The Doctor’s Bill’. We shall very much miss his contributions to our work.

The past recalled can provide a rich treasure-trove of historical information. Several of our articles prove this to be true and amaze the reader with the clarity and detail of childhood and youthful memories. Gladys Avery takes us back to a Chadlington farm in the 1930s and 40s; John Rawlins passes on Gwen Morgan née Silman’s memories as the last pupil-teacher at Milton school and Gwen Allen tells us about the late Mrs Henrietta Hackling’s thoughts on the day the pig was killed. All these memories provide rich embellishment to the bare facts and figures of census and tithe.

An interesting featrure of Anthony Cronk’s article is his determined search for the long-lost portraits of Harriott, Lady Reade, her husband, Sir John, the 5th baronet and their son, subsequently the 6th baronet. They are reproduced in this issue and are, along with the article, an invaluable addition to our store of Reade family information.

All things considered, forgive us if we disregard all superstition about the thirteenth volume of Wychwoods History and present it to you with a bit of a flourish!

Trudy Yates, Joan Howard-Drake and Sue Jourdan

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