The celebrated expert Todd Gray, Devon’s highest profile historian, is to discuss one of the most fascinating but least well known activities of World War Two in a special lecture this month.
In the late 1930s and throughout the War, a social research organisation called Mass Observation recruited local diarists to capture the everyday lives, thoughts and feelings of ordinary people.
Thousands of these diaries are housed in the Mass Observation archive, but those for Devon have not been publicised - until now.
A centuries-old tradition will return to North Devon when sheep are driven across Bideford Bridge during the Bideford Town Fair on Saturday 6 June at 10.00am.
The ceremonial sheep drive, last undertaken in 2012, will be led by the historic Incorporation of Weavers, Fullers and Shearmen as part of celebrations marking 555 years since the Guild was gifted land in Exeter on which it built the magnificent Tuckers Hall - the medieval home of the Incorporation and one of the country’s most important surviving guild halls.
The event revives a historic right and tradition exercised...
Have fun (re-)discovering Exeter, spotting things you’ve never noticed before, with two quirky treasure hunt style heritage walks - an all-year, fun and affordable way to enjoy some fresh air. Buy in printed booklet or instant download format (to print at home or use directly on up to three mobile devices) from https://www.curiousabout.co.uk/exeter.html and explore in your own time. Use code: Exeter15 for 15% off all Curious About walks.
Curious About Exeter visits not just the obvious places, but some unusual ones too, with hidden treasures to discover. Suitable for all ages,...
The hot and spicy history of the chilli plant will be on the menu as part of a special hot chocolate-themed event in Exeter.
Chilli peppers are eaten by a quarter of the earth’s population every day. This history of the plant shows the story of migration and social changes around the globe.
University of Exeter researcher William Jaggard – known to his friends as “chilliam” – is an expert on the plant and passionate about its place in cookery and horticulture. He has been asked by the Exeter Seed Bank to be a guardian for the chilli.
A colourful cast of characters living through Exeter’s most dramatic moments are bringing the city’s history to life thanks to new research.
The Hidden Exeter app allows people to navigate through the city using period and modern maps, exploring key landmarks.
The free app gives fascinating information about the lives and times of ordinary men and women linked to Exeter’s historic landmarks. There are audio trails led from Exeter residents of the 16th century, with two new trails now available.
The app is a result of work led by Professor Fabrizio Nevola from...
Have fun (re-)discovering Exeter, spotting things you’ve never noticed before, with two quirky treasure hunt style heritage walks - a safe, fun and affordable way to enjoy some fresh air. Buy in printed booklet or instant download format (to print at home or use directly on up to three mobile devices) from https://www.curiousabout.co.uk/exeter.html and explore in your own time. Use code: Exeter15 for 15% off all Curious About walks.
Curious About Exeter visits not just the obvious places, but some unusual ones too, with hidden treasures to discover. Suitable for all ages, the walks...
Have fun (re-)discovering Exeter, spotting things you’ve never noticed before, with two quirky treasure hunt style heritage walks - a safe, fun and affordable way to enjoy some fresh air. Buy in printed booklet or instant download format (to print at home or use directly on up to three mobile devices) from https://www.curiousabout.co.uk/exeter.html and explore in your own time. Use code: Exeter15 for 15% off all Curious About walks.
Curious About Exeter visits not just the obvious places, but some unusual ones too, with hidden treasures to discover. Suitable for all ages, the...
Family historian's success: First book to be published in USA
Ten years ago Margaret Rice set out to research the history into the Chappell family, who were merchants and mayors of Exeter during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.
Thomas Chappell was mayor of Exeter in 1588, and is Rice’s direct ancestor.
One of Thomas’s grandsons, Henry Bagwell (born in 1589) was a passenger in 1609 on a ship called the Sea Venture, part of a fleet of ships bringing supplies and colonists to the struggling settlement known as James Fort, later Jamestown, England’s first permanent colony in...
On 3rd August 1620, a sizeable crowd gathered in Fore Street, Exeter in front of Tuckers Hall to greet Thomas Shapcot who had journeyed from London on horseback bearing the Royal Charter granted by King James 1 to allow the Weavers Fullers and Shearmen of the City to become an Incorporation. This charter gave the Incorporation the seal of approval to become a self-governing body in order to protect the trades and mysteries of cloth-making from outside influences, who had interfered and reduced the quality of Exeter Cloth, affecting the reputation, reducing demand and the price to an...
