HAVERHILL GROUP
INTRODUCTION
A market town for almost 1000 years, Haverhill still hosts a provisions market each Friday and Saturday throughout the year. The town is a popular shopping centre, with a combination of national and local retailers lining its streets. Haverhill was recorded in the Domesday survey in 1086, but even before the English and Normans came archaeological evidence shows that both Stone Age man and later the Romans thought this valley a good place to settle. The town thrived through its textile industry notably in the 19th century when it became a significant centre for the making of "drabbet" smocks for the agricultural workers. In 1856, D Gurteen & Sons built a factory with 32 power looms driven by steam. Although they had been in the town since the 1780s, the new factory brought expansion and the town became prosperous. It almost doubled in size between 1851 and 1901, bringing new houses, factories, schools, churches and public buildings to make it a complete Victorian town. In the late 1940s, Haverhill was named an "expansion town" by the then Haverhill Urban District Council and Greater London Council. The population quadrupled between 1951 and the present time and Haverhill continues to grow, with new facilities and new housing. It is a forward looking town with a strong sense of community and an active Town Council. (Taken from the 'Welcome to Haverhill' Brochure, available from the Haverhill Library.)
CONTACT
Chairman: Alan Bumpstead
Contact by
Email
PROGRAMME
The Haverhill group of the Suffolk Family History Society meets on the 2nd Thursday of each month in School Hall, Old Independent Church, Hamlet Road, Haverhill. Meetings start at 7.30pm. In addition to the monthly meetings there are several coach visits a year organised to major record offices such as the London Metropolitan Archives/Society of Genealogists and the National Archives at Kew.
| 2008 | Title | Speaker |
| 8th May | AGM + Open Evening Research facilities available including internet access |
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| 12th June | Death Recorded Capital punishment in Suffolk during 1732-1900 |
Pip Wright |
| 10th July | A Village Walk A guided tour of West Wratting |
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| August | No Meeting | |
| 11th September | Internet Sites for Family Historians To be held in the Computer Suite at Parkway Middle School |
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| 9th October | Buildings & Beliefs | Clive Paine |
| 13th November | Preserving your Family History Various ideas plus a demonstration from Keith Egglestone of ‘Egg Video’. Research facilities also available including internet access. |
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| 11th December | Christmas Quiz A social evening with wine and nibbles |
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| 2009 | Title | Speaker |
| 24th January (Saturday) | Discover your Family History – with Bernard Amps. A talk, with tips and advice, at 11am – followed by research until 3.30.pm. At Haverhill Library |
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| 12th February | Research Evening (With resources for most Counties plus internet access) |
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| 12th March | Education - 1700-1900 (A look at education in Suffolk during this period) |
Nick Sign |
| 9th April | Hit a Brick Wall? (Ask for ideas on how to trace those illusive ancestors) |
Pamela & Derek Palgrave |
| 4th May | AGM + Claims to Fame (Interesting discoveries made during the course of family research) |
Meryl Catty & Audrey Gillett |
| 11th June | A Village Walk - A guided tour of Wickambrook Start 7.00pm at All Saints Church (booking essential) |
Gillian Cooper |
| 9th July | Suffolk Regiment Archives (A look at what regimental archives are available) |
Gwyn Thomas |
| August | NO MEETING | |
| 10th September | Internet Sites for Family Historians To be held in the computer suite at Parkway Middle School |
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| 8th October | Who Do You Think You Are? (Research for a celebrity with Suffolk ancestors - Joint meeting with Haverhill Local History Group) |
Clive Paine |
| 12th November | Open Evening (Share your interesting findings, facts and photos. Research facilities available plus internet access) |
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| 10th December | Christmas Quiz (A social evening with wine and nibbles) |
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LINKS
Haverhill UK - A joint project produced by Haverhill-UK and the Haverhill Group of the Suffolk Family History Society, which contains census, burials and other information for the Haverhill area.
Suffolk County Council - Information on present-day Suffolk that may be of use to our overseas members.
