Ashford Archeological & Historical Society
We meet at The Quaker Meeting House, Albert Road, Ashford, Kent, TN24 8NY.
Meetings start at 7.30pm and usually end around 9pm.
This year visitors/non-members pay £4 cash on the door and EVERYONE IS WELCOME!
Our Secretary Marion can be contacted on telephone number 01233 820679 or by e-mail at trayton.wspont@btopenworld.com
Our website is www.ashfordarchhist.org
Our Facebook is facebook.com/ashfordarchhist Our Twitter is twitter.com/ashfordarchhist Our Instagram is instagram.com/ashfordarchhist Our Mastodon is mastodon.social/@ashfordarchhist
Programme of speakers attached as jpg/pdf and typed out below:
Monday 18th November ‘The Anglo-Saxon Cemetery at Stowting Revisited’ by Andrew Richardson Anglo-Saxon burials at Stowting were first recorded in the 1840s. Over
70 graves have been excavated, with 9 more discovered in 2023-24, deepening our understanding of the 5th-7th century community.
Monday 16th December ‘A Kentish Christmas’ by Geoff Doel This talk covers some of the old yuletide celebrations and customs in Kent such as hoodening and bellringing. Geoff lectures on folklore and has a vast knowledge of things that happened at this season in the days of yore.
Monday 20th January 2025 ‘Here Be Dragons’ by Imogen Corrigan Many churches right across Europe – and also medieval manuscripts – show fabulous monsters, mythical beasts and grotesques. What inspired these images?
Monday 17th February ‘The Venerable Yew’ by Martin Newcombe Have you heard of yew smuggling? Were yews planted in churchyards to protect cattle? This talk explores the history, folklore, uses of yew, and its role as Britain’s oldest tree in history and wildlife.
Monday 17th March ‘Digging Chariots With The British Museum’ by Louise Jessup Louise was assistant osteologist to Ian Stead of the British Museum, digging up chariots in East Yorkshire and France.
Monday 28th April (please note change of week) ‘Excavations at Smallhythe’ by Nathalie Cohen Discover the findings on this medieval site once used for shipbuilding, including the rare head of Mercury in the garden of Smallhythe Place.
Monday 19th May AGM and Member’s Night
Following Society business the floor is open for members – if they wish
– to present short talks on topics of their choice.