Leicestershire VCH Trust
@leicsvcht.bsky.social
Working with volunteers across the county, our aim is to research from primary sources and publish a history of every town and village in Leicestershire
For a history of Ashwell (with drawings!) from 1912, see @bho.bsky.social:
Parishes: Ashwell | British History Online
british-history.ac.uk
Kate North@curatorkate.bsky.social · 3d agoA small selection of some of the lovely historic buildings in Ashwell, Hertfordshire. A short photo thread…
🪨 Join Charnwood Forest Geopark this October half term and uncover the fascinating story of our local geology. Featuring free hands-on activities for all the family! 📍 Haymarket Shopping Centre 🗓️ Wed 21 & Thur 22 October, 10am – 4pm 🌐 www.charnwoodforest.org/event/haymar...
Haymarket Shopping Centre Activity Days - Charnwood Forest Geopark
Join Charnwood Forest Geopark this October half term and uncover the fascinating story of our local fossils, geology, and landscape.
charnwoodforest.org
👉 Our friends at the Leicestershire Victoria County History Trust are giving you another chance to see the fantastic exhibition on the history of Nanpantan, this time at Loughborough Library. 👍 The Geopark are proud to have funded the research project that supports this exhibition.
Interesting #LocalHistory resource here - mapping historical data is something we're very interested in (watch this space for more), and this is a great way of visualising defensive monuments and their distribution.
Adam Chapman@adamchapman.bsky.social · 5d agoA resource I hadn't come across (but based on the excellent Defence of Britain data - which recorded civil defence and anti-invasion structures from both World Wars), an interactive map of the data maintained by Steve Thompson. (to whom many thanks!):
Such a privilege to work with the fantastic researchers involved in these projects. They are full of community spirit & rigorous research, and all demonstrate the value of studying places throughout time, their landscapes & communities. Long live the @vch-home.bsky.social
Victoria County History@vch-home.bsky.social · 6d agoWe're really excited to share updates on our exciting new projects in #Devon, #Dorset, #Kent , #Lincolnshire an #London in our latest blog with @ihr.bsky.social, part of our wonderful community of projects. Please take a look! #Skystorians
🥳 In celebration of International Geodiversity Day we're releasing a new animation that brings to life the amazing 562 million year old story of Bradgate Park and Swithland Wood! 🌐Read more, and watch the video, here: www.charnwoodforest.org/new-animatio...
Very enjoyable meeting with @fcboorman.bsky.social & our new volunteers at #Stanton-U-Bardon on Tuesday, then at #Loughborough Library today setting up our #Nanpantan exhibition (opens Monday, model yet to be dressed!) both thanks to #Geopark @charnwoodforest.bsky.social. Also indexing our next book
Our new project in #Lincolnshire on the town of #Spalding is supporting a workshop on an essential historical skill #Palaeography (reading old handwriting). Led by @gabbystorey.bsky.social, this workshop is open to all. #Skystorians #LocalHistory.
Spalding Gentlemen’s Society@17sgs10.bsky.social · 2w agoSign up for a VCH Lincolnshire - Spalding workshop, on 17th Oct. “This workshop is open to all – no matter your skills or experience – as a hands-on experience learning to read and transcribe documents from Spalding’s history,” says Dr Gabby Storey. www.sgsoc.org/the-victoria-county-history-project
❤️ Yesterday we hosted a very special event to say thank you to all our volunteers for the amazing work they have done over the past few years. 🌐 Get involved with volunteering today: www.charnwoodforest.org/volunteer/
🏗️ Stone quarried from Charnwood Forest is typically used with a rough finish: whether as kerbstones, setts, or stone for construction. 🏛️ This column from the Oxford University Museum of Natural History is a rare example of polished decorative Markfieldite, from Hill Hole.
Ibstock Historical Society, who were very helpful when we were writing our Ibstock book, will be at #Ibstock Palace on 3 October celebrating the history of this building www.thepalaceibstock.co.uk/events/the-p... We still have copies of our book for sale, at a discount if you buy from us
Meeting next week. Come along and find out more ...
Charnwood Forest Geopark@charnwoodforest.bsky.social · 2w ago📜 Our friends at the Leicestershire Victoria County History Trust are starting the next stage of their Geopark-support local history project, and are looking for volunteers to help research Bardon, Stanton, and Markfield. 🌐 Find out more and get involved: www.charnwoodforest.org/event/resear...
Hope to see many past and new volunteers at this meeting as we start to explore the histories of the western side of Charnwood Forest
fcboorman.bsky.social@fcboorman.bsky.social · 3w agoAll welcome on 29 September: www.charnwoodforest.org/event/resear... with @leicsvcht.bsky.social
On Friday 2 October 2026 the Exhibition Visitors will see 'Walking Through Time: Fifty Years of Leicestershire Fieldworkers' in Market Harborough Museum, The Symington Building, Adam and Eve Street, LE16 7LT. We will meet in the cafe from 12.30 and view the exhibition from 1pm. #DiscoveryCircles
THIS FRIDAY: I'll be giving a public lecture for the @royalhistsoc.org on rights of way and the struggle for the land in post-war England and Wales... It's at Senate House in London at 6pm, and there are still a few tickets left! Also an online option: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/rhs-lectur...
RHS Lecture: 'In All Our Footsteps?' with Professor Glen O'Hara IN PERSON
'In All Our Footsteps? Rights of Way and the Battle for the Land after the 1949 National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act' at the IHR
eventbrite.co.uk
Obelisk at #Garendon Park and monument at #Shepshed (originally at #Dishley) to Ambrose Phillipps (d. 1737), who landscaped the parkland on return from his Grand Tour and decided it needed an obelisk (and Temple of Venus, and Triumphal Arch, now shrouded awaiting restoration). @vch-home.bsky.social
The trackbed of the Charnwood Forest Railway (LNWR) near #Loughborough is crossed by this bridge near the former Knightthorpe Lodge. Road above didn't go 'anywhere'. More investigation needed. Built at request of owners of Garendon Park? Or Knightthorpe Lodge? Why? Who paid? @vch-home.bsky.social
Ancestry is offering free access to 326 million of its records this weekend - discover more: www.whodoyouthinkyouaremaga...
If you are interested in the English Civil Wars there are some excellent speakers in this programme.
Many Heritage buildings will be open to the public in Loughborough on 19 and 20th September and also in other towns and villages across the county. See county listing at www.heritageopendays.org.uk/whats-on/pri... #HeritageOpenDays
Do you live in or near Bardon, Markfield or Stanton under Bardon? Would you like to find out more about their histories, or contribute what you already know? We have a new volunteer project starting this month. @charnwoodforest.bsky.social @vch-home.bsky.social
We have something very exciting on its way to the Hall! Here is a sneaky peak of a new permanent display on Dr Maud Sellers: steamboat lady, traveller, historian, archivist and the first female Merchant Adventurer in 400 years. Join us for a short thread on the indominable Maud...
The final guest post in celebration of my Loughborough blog's 13th birthday follows the renovated and reinvigorated Generator Building through its first 100 days since reopening, and looks ahead to its future. #OnePlaceStudy enjoy! lynneaboutloughborough.blogspot.com/2026/08/the-...
The Generator First Hundred Days: big achievements and fairy steps
In April 2026, the renovated Generator building opened its doors. Jill Vincent tells us about 100 days since that opening and about future plans.
lynneaboutloughborough.blogspot.com
Liberal England: Growing up at Foxton Locks around 1910 #canals
Growing up at Foxton Locks around 1910
Another video from Bob Trubshaw. He writes on YouTube: My maternal grandmother – known as a child as Dorothy Durran and in later life as Sar...
liberalengland.blogspot.com
Loughborough's Alexandra bedspread with 150+ signatures, from locals to Queen Alexandra herself, was created as a fundraiser for our Carillon War Memorial. The lead researcher of the names has been shortlisted for a #HODs2026 award! Read more here! lynneaboutloughborough.blogspot.com/2026/08/alex...
Alexandra Bedspread and Heritage Open Days - get voting!
4th August, the blog's birthday. Also coincidentally the day voting opens in the Heritage Open Days competition. VOTE NOW for the Alexandra Bedspread!
lynneaboutloughborough.blogspot.com
Tickets for the Tudor Times summit available here bit.ly/4wOdTnn Find out more about Henry VIII interacted with the families of his wives. From royal allies to London merchants our line up of Tudor experts explores a different aspect of Henry's matrimonial escapades.
📅 Sir George Trevelyan, politician and author, died on this day in 1928. 🗳 Born at Rothley Temple, Charnwood Forest, he went on to hold a number of ministerial roles, including Secretary of State for Scotland.
This is beautiful. A huge and complex building to draw, but the colours really bring out its beauty.
Hayley Draws Churches@hayleyfern.bsky.social · 2mo agoThe colours here are interesting.The sunlight keeps changing the way it looks, which is why I NEVER work from photographs.. It would be so flat compared to the effects of the sun, the wind, the clouds, the shadows. All I can say is that I look and I find the colours by looking.
