Saturday 11th May 2013 - with the Fairfield Studies Team
On Saturday 11th May, the Fairfield Area Studies Team are coming to talk to the Friends about the Fairfield Estate, Stogursey. The Fairfield Estate, Stogursey, has been occupied by the same family for 900 years, and the vast archive from Fairfield is kept at the Somerset Heritage Centre. Members of the Fairfield Area Studies Team have been studying the development of the House and the estate, the everyday running of the estate, and the people involved. Four members of the Team will give short accounts of their work, including researching the archives and recent archaeological fieldwork. Part of the archive will be on display.
The event will take place at the Somerset Heritage Centre, 2.00-4.30pm. It is free of charge for Friends and FAST members. Non-members are welcome; we suggest a donation of £3.00. To book, contact Bev or Helena at the Somerset Heritage Centre – phone 01823 278805 or email archives@somerset.gov.uk
If you are able to download and display a poster you can get it here.
Somerset Heritage Centre is at Brunel Way, Langford Mead, Norton Fitzwarren, Taunton, TA2 6SF. A map and directions can be found by clicking here
A visit to Fairfield House is planned for Thursday 23rd May at 1 pm.
As a follow-up to the above talks, a visit to Fairfield House will take place. This will cost £6 per person, payable on the day.(It is not essential that you have been to the talks on the 11th, but of course it will give you background information in advance.) Please contact the Heritage Centre to book and for details of where to meet. Friends members may be able to provide a small number of lifts for those without cars.Transcribing the Tithe Apportionments of Somerset Parishes
An update to the list of the tithe apportionments that have been finished is available under Projects - Tithe Award Details of the menu system on the left, or you can go straight to the page by clicking here. These awards are available to view at the Somerset Heritage Centre by request.
Join our transcription team!
If anyone would like to join our transcribing team by transcribing a parish of your choice that has not already been done, please contact Jenni by clicking here. There are two ways of transcribing - one at the Heritage Centre using original documents, or at home using folios sent by email. The choice is yours!
The task is not too taxing, does not need great computing skills and can be done in your own time - there is no rush to complete the job. We will give you full instructions and indeed answer any queries or try to solve any problems that you might have. If you are already a transcriber and would also like, perhaps, to do another parish, please contact Jenni by clicking here.
The Friends of Somerset Archives and the Dickinson Archive
The archive of the Dickinson family of Kingweston, is a large important collection held at the Somerset Heritage Centre.
In December 2011, volunteers from the Friends of Somerset Archives began the arduous task of flattening the thousands of documents previously contained within the hundreds of bundles. The enthusiasm of the team became very evident, enabling them to finish the flattening process 2 months earlier than expected, April 2012, when the seven volunteers divided into two groups. For a current update on the Dickinson Project either go to our Projects Menu on the left or click here to go directly to the page.
If you would like to help with either the conservation work or the indexing please contact Liz Grant at the Somerset Heritage Centre, archives@somerset.gov.uk.
Odd footnote to the Dickenson Project - The emptying of the cellar - and other oddities - click here to see more!
Any suggestions or comments about the website should be emailed by clicking here to web@friendsofsomersetarchives.org.uk - Malcolm Daniels, webmaster.