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Home 2026

Post Archive by Year

Below you'll find a list of all posts from 2026

book cover

Walking the Lost Railways of Essex

Twenty-one circular walks covering 120 miles of footpaths

essexfootpathslost railways
thatched hut

The Vikings are coming!

There’s plenty to look forward to at Flag Fen over the coming months from their biggest living history event of the year to creative family workshops

archaeologyflag fenvikings
violin player

Miss Ruby Violet Hurn 1908-2007

On 1 October 1908, Ruby Violet Hurn was born at Madison Bull Lodge, Audley End, where her father, Harry Hurn, was head groom to Lord and Lady Howard de Walden.

royal college of musicruby hurnsadlers wellsviolinist
hotel frontage

Rose & Crown Inn, Saffron Walden, 1359 –1969

December 2009 marked the 40th anniversary of the tragic fire at the Rose & Crown Hotel in Saffron Walden, during which eleven people lost their lives.

14th centuryfirelaw changepolishRose & Crowntown ccntre
Reredos

Radwinter’s Remarkable Reredos

A 16th-century altarpiece of international importance was restored to its full splendour and returned to the parish church of St. Mary the Virgin, Radwinter in September 2003.

IchenhauserRadwinterreredosSt Mary the Virgin RadwinterTemple Moore

Prof. Steve Osbourne – renowned diver and swimmer

“Prof’ Steve Osbourne was a renowned diver and swimmer who entertained seaside visitors by undertaking daring aerial aquatic feats from, amongst other sites, the piers of Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth.

aerial-aquatic featsDeborah Mary FreestoneNorwich Mercury‘Professor’ Steve Osbourne
PISTOL

Martin Robinson’s Notebook

The Catlin and Robinson families were well-known in this area at one time, and among family mementoes is an undated (probably early 20th century) notebook belonging to Martin Catlin Robinson, 1860-1933.

architectchief constablefarmerflying elephanthorse pistol
policemen

Prosecution Associations in NW Essex

Before the advent of the modern day police service, the Parish Constable maintained law and order at parish level. He would be elected from the parishioners on a yearly basis on Easter Monday of each year.

police constableprosecutionstheftvictims of crimewatchmen
tractor

‘War Ag’ in Saffron Walden district during the Second World War

The State-directed food production campaign of the Second World War had more impact on British farming than any previous State intervention.

agriculturecropsfoodMinistry of Foodpotatoesprisoners of war
Portrait

Audley End House Pleased with Return of Restored Portrait

The 17th Century portrait of the artist Sir Peter Lely with his close friend, architect Hugh May is due to go back on display at Audley End House this year.

audley end houseportraitrestoredroyalSir Peter Lely
Offices

Reminiscences of a Country Auctioneer

The profession of auctioneer is very old and well-respected. It can certainly be traced back to Roman times when, amongst other things, slaves were sold by auction.

auctioneermarket daysaleroomWatsons
book cover

Edward Bawden & His Circle

Edward Bawden’s (1903-1989) artistic career spanned more than sixty years.

artisticbawdenwatercolourist
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Recent Posts

  • chapel
    Gold Street Chapel
    I was born in Walthamstow, in April 1940 during the WW2 Blitz. As a family we were sent to live in Saffron Walden,
  • town view
    Saffron Walden Survey 1912
    The few dog-eared carbon copies that provided my introduction to the Saffron Walden Survey failed to reveal the unusual story behind its compilation.
  • information board
    Gibson Boulders get noticed!
    At the junction of Gibson Gardens and Margaret Way in Saffron Walden is a mound of grass with a few trees. On closer inspection it becomes apparent that there are also a number of large boulders here.
  • House
    The Richest Man in Walden
    George Stacey Gibson was not only Saffron Walden’s greatest Victorian benefactor but he was also probably the richest citizen of the town in his lifetime.
  • Roof tops
    Annual General Meeting
    We will be hearing from Douglas Kent on the latest developments at the Old Sun Inn, famous for its association with Oliver Cromwell.

Popular Tags

archaeology audley end book bronze age burial church clavering essex friends school gibson henry winstanley littlebury medieval murder museum town hall tuke windmill ww1 WW2

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SWHS on X (Twitter)

Saffron Walden Historical Society Follow 1,684 229

The Saffron Walden Historical Society, founded in 1933, organises eight lectures a year and publishes a magazine, the SWHJ, twice a year. We welcome new members

SWaldenHistory
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SimoninSuffolk avatar Simon Knott @SimoninSuffolk ·
9 Jun 2064242212242637176

2/2 I also recommend 'The Parish Churches of Norwich', available through all good bookshops or from Amazon at https://amzn.eu/d/03EhOSzU

Image for the Tweet beginning: 2/2 I also recommend 'The Twitter feed image.
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SimoninSuffolk avatar Simon Knott @SimoninSuffolk ·
8 Jun 2063922056001917436

Gerard Manley Hopkins died #OTD 8 June 1889. He was 44.

'What would the world be,
Once bereft of wet and wildness?
Let them be left,
O let them be left,
Wildness and wet;
Long live the weeds and the wilderness yet.'

From his poem 'Inversnaid', on the Canongate Wall of the

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SWaldenHistory avatar Saffron Walden Historical Society @SWaldenHistory ·
8 Jun 2064049764149149710

Brilliant as he was, he could be ungenerous and even snide about innovative and daring predecessors like Henry Winstanley of Littlebury who built the first Eddystone lighthouse in the 1690s. The grandfather or stepfather of civil engineering perhaps ...

Brilliant as he was, he could be ungenerous and even snide about innovative and daring predecessors like Henry Winstanley of Littlebury who built the first Eddystone lighthouse in the 1690s. The grandfather or stepfather of civil engineering perhaps ...
HistoryandHeritageYorkshire @GenealogyBeech

🧵Born on this day, 8 June in 1724 John Smeaton is often called the "father of civil engineering," He was a pioneering engineer known for his expertise and innovative design principles. From Austhorpe, Leeds, Smeaton showed an early fascination with mechanics. His most

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SWaldenHistory avatar Saffron Walden Historical Society @SWaldenHistory ·
5 Jun 2062809257200791727

That "but" is a book of many volumes ...

That "but" is a book of many volumes ...
Vincenzo DM @DM_Vincenzo

#OTD in 1568, the Counts of Egmont and Horne were executed on the Grand Place in Brussels. They were leading noblemen in the Habsburg Netherlands but were accused and convicted of high treason.

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