A Zoom Webinar

Chris Taylor: Lewes Street Stories – Mill Road, Malling

The story of Mill Road, Malling is about the development of its industries and buildings alongside meeting the people who have lived and worked there since the 16th Century. In this talk Chris Taylor will present the findings of his recent investigation into the history of Mill Road, the latest in Lewes History Group’s ‘Street Stories’ series.

The street got its name from an imposing windmill that was present from at least the late 16th Century until it was destroyed by fire in 1908. A laundry overlapped with the mill and flourished for 40 years at the bottom of the road, where the flats now stand. It too burnt to the ground in 1941.

Generations of families have lived in Malling Hill Villas, an Edwardian terrace, built on the mill land. Facing them, a street of mixed council-built and private housing was developed in the 1920s and 1930s. Chris Taylor comments, “Over the years Mill Road has been home to millers on the fiddle, at least one Mayor of Lewes, wartime evacuees and a troupe of travelling players. I hope the audience will enjoy finding out about this small street’s past as I have.”

Malling Windmill and Mill House from the Wallands, c. 1858-1868
Cropped image reproduced with permission of Sussex Archaeological
Society Ltd.

To join this talk, you need to
  1) register your intention in advance
  2) receive our confirmation email with a link to the talk
  3) click on that link to attend the talk 10 minutes before it starts

LHG Members can attend our talks for free. We will send members emails with a link to Zoom registration. Then please follow steps 1, 2, and 3 as above. 

Non-members of LHG can buy a ticket (£4) from TicketSource. The ticket will provide a link to Zoom registration. Then please follow steps 1, 2, and 3 as above. 

Please join the webinar at 7:20pm.

We would recommend a computer screen or an iPad as a minimum screen-size for viewing our webinars.

Our presenters will be speaking live, and you can ask questions by typing in the Q&A box in Zoom.

See the Talks page for a list of  forthcoming monthly events organised by the Lewes History Group.

 

This talk was rescheduled from Monday 14 December 2020 due to technical difficulties

A Zoom Webinar

Chris Horlock: A Sussex Christmas

Lewes History Group’s December talk on Zoom by local historian Chris Horlock reveals how the people of Sussex celebrated Christmas in the past. Even those who know Sussex well will discover some new and surprising things in his talk.

Many of the customs of the traditional twelve days of Christmas are detailed, including putting up the decorations, bringing in the yule log, preparing the Christmas day feast, plus the curious ‘Mummer’s Play’ entertainment. There’s a Christmas tale or two along the way, including a mysterious incident during the great snowstorm of 1881, plus how in 1939, the snow at Burwash was not the usual colour!

Chris Horlock is an expert on Sussex folklore and folk history, and a collector of old photographs. He writes regularly for Sussex Life, has published a number of books and is an accomplished speaker.

Skating on Falmer pond c.1908

To access this talk, you need to register your intention some days in advance: Click to Register

There is no charge for this talk.

After registering and well before the talk, we will send you a confirmation email containing information about how to join the webinar itself.

Please join the webinar at 7:20pm.

We would recommend a computer screen or an iPad as a minimum screen-size for viewing our webinars.

Our presenters will be speaking live, and you can ask questions by typing in the Q&A box in Zoom.

See the Talks page for a list of  forthcoming monthly events organised by the Lewes History Group.

 

This talk will be followed by a short Lewes History Group AGM for members, scheduled for 8:45pm on Zoom. [AGM Zoom link was sent to LHG members on 27.11.20, and will be re-sent at a later date]

A Zoom Webinar

Chris Horlock: A Sussex Christmas

Lewes History Group’s December talk on Zoom by local historian Chris Horlock reveals how the people of Sussex celebrated Christmas in the past. Even those who know Sussex well will discover some new and surprising things in his talk.

Many of the customs of the traditional twelve days of Christmas are detailed, including putting up the decorations, bringing in the yule log, preparing the Christmas day feast, plus the curious ‘Mummer’s Play’ entertainment. There’s a Christmas tale or two along the way, including a mysterious incident during the great snowstorm of 1881, plus how in 1939, the snow at Burwash was not the usual colour!

Chris Horlock is an expert on Sussex folklore and folk history, and a collector of old photographs. He writes regularly for Sussex Life, has published a number of books and is an accomplished speaker.

Skating on Falmer pond c.1908

To access this talk, you need to register your intention some days in advance: Click to Register

There is no charge for this talk.

After registering and well before the talk, we will send you a confirmation email containing information about how to join the webinar itself.

Please join the webinar at 7:20pm.

We would recommend a computer screen or an iPad as a minimum screen-size for viewing our webinars.

Our presenters will be speaking live, and you can ask questions by typing in the Q&A box in Zoom.

See the Talks page for a list of  forthcoming monthly events organised by the Lewes History Group.

 

A Zoom talk for Members

Neil Kirby: Christmas Past and Present

Neil Kirby started  his first job at London’s Grosvenor House Hotel in the basement at the age of 15½, rising to General Manager, and eventually buying a multi million pound hotel of his own. His  career has been truly inspirational.

Christmas is a very busy but an exciting time of the year in the hotel industry. Neil will fascinate us with his stories of Christmas past and present, and explain the work involved in keeping both his staff and guests safe in a pandemic, while maintaining his very high standards.

 

Marcus Taylor: Books for Christmas

Our second speaker is Marcus Taylor of the Friends of Lewes, who will be discussing books published by FoL.

These talks are for members of the Friends of Lewes. If you would like to join FoL, and attend our talks, please find details on our Membership page. We send Zoom links to our members a few days before each talk, so please join in time! You can contact our Membership Secretary via email.

A Zoom Webinar

Ian Everest: Shepherds of the Sussex Downs – Their lives and times

Central to Sussex farming in past centuries, and in particular to the economy of the Lewes area, were the tens of thousands of sheep that grazed on the Downs.

The shepherds, who spent their solitary lives caring for their flocks, were a familiar part of the local countryside. They and their flocks assembled each autumn for the annual Lewes sheep fairs.

Ian tells their story.

Postcard showing a shepherd and dog watching over a Southdown flock above Southerham. The Southerham chalkpits and limeworks are visible.
Image from the Mike Green collection

To access this talk, you need to register your intention some days in advance: Click to Register

There is no charge for this talk.

After registering and well before the talk, we will send you a confirmation email containing information about how to join the webinar itself.

Please join the webinar at 7:20pm.

We would recommend a computer screen or an iPad as a minimum screen-size for viewing our webinars.

Our presenters will be speaking live, and you can ask questions by typing in the Q&A box in Zoom.

See the Talks page for a list of  forthcoming monthly events organised by the Lewes History Group.