Programme
All talks take place in Strutt’s Community Centre, Room 107 unless otherwise noted, and start at 7.30pm.
The Programme of talks for 2024.
Thursday 18 January
Policing in 19th century Derbyshire
Robert Mee
Robert looks at the establishment and early days of the county and borough constabularies.
Thursday 15th February
The Chevin Tower
Ian Castledine
Ian offers a new theory on the Chevin tower based upon an examination of extant archaeology.
Thursday 21st March
The sheep looked after themselves – Religion and radicals in the early 1800s
Simon Wood
The story of the people of Belper and the Erewash valley whose religious revivalism and political radicalism intertwined during the early to mid 1800s, to make the area a centre of English revolutionary thought and action.
Thursday 18th April
Belper Voices
Chris Charlton
Scenes from the life of this mill town in a century that saw the rise and fall of the nailing industry, the coming of the railway and years of wealth for some and poverty for others . The words are from visitors to the town and from its residents.
Thursday 16th May
Our Digital Archive
Adrian Farmer
Adrian Farmer talks through the most recent additions to the Society’s digital archive of historic photographs, and explains what work is still left to be done.
Thursday 20th June
Demonstration of nailmaking
Richard Hazell
Belper Blacksmith, Richard Hazell will demonstrate how traditional Belper nails were forged and give us an insight into the life of nailmaking families.
Saturday 20th July
Walking the Deer Park Boundary (afternoon walk)
Adrian Farmer
Adrian follows the still-discernible boundary of Belper’s ancient deer park, telling its history and showing some remarkable survivals from when it was in operation. One mile walk on paths and pavements.
Meet at Coppice Car Park for a 2pm start.
Thursday 15th August
Everything but cotton… the industrialisation of Ambergate
Steve Hill
The walk is a follow-up to last year’s talk. Steve will walk us around the range of industries that have been active in Ambergate including the development of transport links, the Butterley Company and important local families.
Meet on Holly Lane, Ambergate at 6pm.
Driving from Belper on the A6, Holly Lane is first left after you pass under the railway bridges, just past the petrol station and the church. There is a small parking area on the left over the river bridge. If that is full, there may be space at the railway station car park.
This is a more challenging walk than the last one, so please wear appropriate strong footwear and outer clothing.
Thursday 19th September
Water: the Power that Changed the World (Belper)
Ian Jackson
Ian will be sharing some of his research findings about the use of waterpower in the Derbyshire Derwent catchment, and in particular the fascinating timeline of the Belper Mills, including William Strutt’s innovations, how George Herbert Strutt helped secure the future of the Milford, Belper and Masson sites by installing water turbines and how, against the odds, English Sewing Cotton Company continued use of waterpower through the 20th century.
Thursday 17th October
The Evans family – their local, national and international influence
Katherine Everitt
Katherine, a local PhD student, will cover the history and background of the Evans family of Derbyshire, including their connectivity and interactions in local, national and international trade. From a yeoman farmer to a baronet in six generations, the rise and decline of the family.
Thursday 21st November
The Buildings of Holbrook
Michael Lobb
MSDS Heritage recently completed an Historic England funded project on Holbrook’s Hidden Heritage. Michael Lobb is a Buildings Archaeologist who has worked extensively across the Midlands and now works for MSDS Heritage in Holbrook, Derbyshire. Michael has a particular interest in agricultural, domestic and industrial buildings from the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
Thursday 19th December
The Strutts, Cotton Textiles and Enslavement
Susanne Seymour
Although the Strutts were supporting the anti-slavery movement at home, their cotton purchases were sourced mainly from the slave plantations of Carriacou in the West Indies and Brazil. Dr Susanne Seymour of Nottingham University has been researching the sources of the cotton used at the Belper Mills and traced the plantations where the Strutts sourced the cotton.
