Marching to the Great War


This postcard was sent to Mrs Ayres, Fivebridges Farm, Hemyock in 1915 with a picture of the Wiltshires cheering on their way on the Great Advance.

Postcard from the Great War


This postcard of the Wiltshires cheering on their way to the Great Advance in 1915 was sent to Mrs Ayres, Fivebridges Farm, Hemyock.

Blackdown War Memorials

Over the last few years work surrounding the Blackdown Hills War Memorials has been undertaken by Steven Trick and Andy Read. A website has been created to document some of their research and can be found here:

www.blackdownmemorials.wordpress.com/

WW1 meeting: 10th December 2013

The next meeting for our World War 1 project will take place on the 10th December 2013 in the Forbes Lounge of the Hemyock Village Hall. Commencing at 1930, we will hear from different people regarding areas of the project including research, publications and our drama group.

Anyone is welcome to come along and learn what is happening or offer their services.

Should you have any questions before, please email ww1@blackdownarchives.org.uk.

Uploading files for our Great War Project

Following a successful meeting at the Church Rooms on the 3rd September, many wheels are now in motion and the project structure is taking form.

One area which was discussed was the ability for people to upload documents to a central folder. This has now been created and for ease you can simply select the file you want to upload and click ‘Upload To dropbox!’ and it will appear in our folders.

If you are uploading information in this way, please also email ww1@blackdownarchives.org.uk. Equally, if you are having any problems uploading documents just get in touch via email.

The material added to the Blackdown Archives web site and dropbox is protected by the Trustees of the HH&AA. Approval for its use must be obtained from the Trustees of the Association

Upload Files To Our Dropbox!

[rad-dropbox]

The Great War Project

The 4th of August 2014 marks 100 years to the day since the Great War started. With such a big event that affected the lives of so many, the Blackdown Archives are pleased to announce plans for a major WW1 research project incorporating the villages of Hemyock, Culmstock and Clayhidon.

The project will focus on two main areas of research. Firstly we will be looking at the lives of fallen soldiers and secondly what life was like for those left behind.

With over 40 fallen soldiers, we plan to uncover as much information as we can on the lives of these young men leading them into to service and subsequently about their time in the forces.

As for the villages mentioned above, we will look at how the war affected village life in areas like farming and agriculture, the local economy and the roles of women in the villages, along with my many more.

The project will culminate in the production of a theatrical performance that we hope to run at the start of August 2014 to mark the centenary of the start of the war. Along with this, we hope to publish a book detailing the lives of the soldiers we have researched along with the effect on the villages.
Its and exciting project and with just under one year until the centenary it is a big undertaking, but one we all feel will be rewarding.

Can I help?

We are always keen to hear from people who may be able to help. Whether it’s volunteering your time or if you have information that you think could be helpful, do get in touch with us.

At present, we could do with volunteers in the following areas:
• Research (both online and local heritage centres)
• Book writing
• Script writing
• General help

If you are keen to volunteer or have information that may be beneficial, please feel free to attend a meeting on Tuesday 3rd September 2013 in the Hemyock Church rooms. Alternatively, you can email us at ww1@blackdownarchives.org.uk.

We will be regularly updating our website with the progress of the project so keep checking back to see how were getting on.