The Gibberd Garden Trust
This year marks the 70th anniversary of the creation of the Grade II-listed house and garden at Marsh Lane, Harlow, by the architect Sir Frederick Gibberd and his wife. He is remembered
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Ancient Tree Forum
An ancient tree is one that is in the final stage of its life and is exceptionally old for its species. Such trees typically have a wide girth and a hollow trunk
The Georgian Group: Vanbrugh 300
Vanbrugh 300, presented by the Georgian Group and supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, marks the life and work of Sir John Vanbrugh (1664-1726), a man who managed to pack multiple
Roman Roads Research Association
By AD 150, the Roman road system extended for some 300,000km (more than 186,000 miles – 7.5 times the circumference of the earth). This comprehensive transport infrastructure underpinned the mobility and trade
The Carpenters’ Fellowship
Timber-framing is gaining momentum as a mainstream construction technique for new buildings in the UK because of its environmental benefits. Timber substantially reduces the carbon emissions and high energy costs associated with
The Handwritten Letter Appreciation Society
Are letter boxes, postage stamps, Christmas and birthday cards, love etters, thank you notes, pen pals, and postcards all destined to become archaic curiosities, like telephone kiosks? Denmark’s national postal service, PostNord,
Cooling Tower Appreciation Society
Reviled when they were first constructed, cooling towers are now admired for their gracious hyperboloid curves and sculptural presence, just as they are about to disappear from the landscape. The Twentieth Century
The C F A Voysey Society
In his speech of thanks for the dinner that was given to mark his 70th birthday in 1927, the architect and designer C F A (Charles) Voysey (1857-1941) declared: ‘my work was
The Friends of Cressing Temple
To enter Cressing Temple is to step back from the hurly-burly of modern Essex into a remarkable haven of timeless tranquillity in the form of a former manor that was granted to
the modernist society
the modernist society (the lack of capitals is deliberate, in line with the modernist philosophy of embracing innovation and seeking freedom from traditional forms and established rules) is the meeting place for
Friends of Highgate Cemetery Trust
Highgate Cemetery, consecrated on 20 May 1839, was created to provide a more hygienic alternative to ‘intramural’ burial (within church walls) or in overcrowded church- and chapel yards. Today, Highgate is known
The Great War Aviation Society
The decade between the first successful powered flight – made by the Wright Brothers on 17 December 1903 – and the outbreak of the First World War in August 1914 is known
Holst Victorian House
Gustavus Theodore von Holst was born in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, just over 150 years ago, on 21 September 1874. (He changed his name to plain Gustav Holst because of anti-German feeling during the
Ruperra Castle Preservation Trust
Ruperra Castle (Castell Rhiw’r Perrai; ‘pear-tree hill’) is garlanded with heritage designations, being a Grade II*-listed building and a Scheduled Monument, set within a Grade II Registered Park. Sadly, it is also
Fortress Study Group
Formed in 1975 (and thus celebrating its first half-century this year), the Fortress Study Group (FSG) is devoted to the study and preservation of artillery fortifications. While early examples of these structures
The Carriage Foundation
Almost every TV costume drama begins with the sound of horses’ hooves and the rumble of carriage wheels as members of the cast arrive at some stately home or other, ready for
The Watercolour World
The invention in 1900 by Eastman Kodak of the Brownie camera, selling for the equivalent in today’s money of £28, brought the watercolour age to an end. This too had begun, in
Partners for Sacred Places
For this month’s ‘Odd Socs’, we cross the Atlantic to look at the work of Partners for Sacred Places (PSP), an organisation dedicated to finding creative ways to maintain America’s historic places
The Chance Heritage Trust
Glassmaking was introduced to Smethwick by Thomas Shutt, who started making crown window-glass on a site alongside the Birmingham Canal in 1814. When he died in 1822, his company was sold to
Friends of the Roman Road and Fleam Dyke
Fleam Dyke is a linear earthwork some 5km in length, built in phases between the mid-4th and the mid-7th centuries. The path along the top leads to Mutlow Hill, where the Dyke
The Edward Thomas Fellowship
Sadly, trains no longer stop at Adlestrop, the station that is the subject of Edward Thomas’ best-known poem. That was lost to the Beeching axe in 1966, but there are plenty of
Tewkesbury Battlefield Society
On Saturday 4 May 1471 the ‘Wars of the Roses’ came to a head at Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire. The Yorkist army commanded by Edward IV and his brother, the future Richard III, chased
The Coker Rope & Sail Trust
There were nine sailmakers in West Coker at the start of the 19th century, and the bleaching fields around the Somerset village were white with canvas sheets laid out in the sun.