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Published by D. J Coombes, 26 Newton Close, Redditch, B98 7YR on behalf of the Redditch Local History Society Copyright © 2015

Heritage MattersHeritage Matters is the Newsletter of the Redditch Local History Society Volume 6-06

Society ObjectivesThe Redditch LocalHistory Society wasformed at the end of2009 to meet aperceived need in theRedditch community.

Redditch’s history issteeped in industry butit’s seen a dramaticincrease in newcomerssince being designatedas a new town. And withan ageing populationwho have first handexperience of the oldtown we believe there isa need to promoteRedditch heritage.So simply put, our aimis to investigate,document and promote

Do you have a contribution to include in Redditch? If so please send it to the Editor.

The views expressed in this document are those of the contributors and not necessarily those of the RLHS

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Topics Covered inthis edition......

September 2015

Next MeetingPlease note that our next RLHS meeting will be on

Monday 5th October 2015 at 2:00 pmat Redditch Library

The talk this meeting is entitledThe Wilson's and the Redditch Fairs

and will be given by Tom Bough.

Mettis Aerospace

Memories of Old Redditch

As activities in preparation for our November Exhibition, RedditchPeople, get into top gear, a reminder that Anne Bradford andMike Johnson have already been down this trail.Back in the 1990s Mike was busy video interviewing Redditchresidents with the assistance of Gordon Anstis and these in turnwere turned into the “Memories of Old Redditch, The life andTimes “ series of booklets by Anne Bradford.Anne’s booklets will be on display at the exhibition and Mike’sfilms will be available to view on Drop-in days

Monthly Meeting ReportWW! Report

Where or What’s This?The Bromsgrove Guild2015 Exhibition Update

2015 Meetings &Events Guide

2016 MeetingsLibrary Book Club

Published by D. J Coombes, 26 Newton Close, Redditch, B98 7YR on behalf of the Redditch Local History Society Copyright © 2015

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22RLHS meeting held on Monday 7th September 2015 at Redditch Library.

Meeting Report

We began the meeting with an illustrated talk‘The Rise and Fall of Monasticism in Britain,with special reference to Bordesley Abbey.’ anillustrated talk by Don Vincent.As always, Don gave a very well researchedview of the subject and covered the topic frombeginning to end. We began with the firstrecorded monk, Anthony of Egypt in 251AD,the introduction of Christianity to Britain underthe Romans and on to its acceptance by theAnglo-Saxons.After the NormanconquestMonasticismthrived and mostorders werebased on theRules of St.Benedict. TheCistercian order,who foundedBordesley, werevery successfuland Bordesleywas one of therichest in theland. We concluded with what was effectivelythe end of monasticism in England. At the timeof the dissolution of the monasteries underHenry VIII, the church owned more than onethird of the country, something which wasobviously of great interest to Henry! Aninteresting and thought provokingpresentation.After refreshments, announcements weremade concerning the following events:

● The Heritage Open Day at Forge Mill NeedleMuseum, Redditch is on Sunday 13September from 11.00am to 4.00pm. Thisis a free open day featuring local groups andspecial activities. At the event the HistorySociety will have a display entitled ‘RedditchHistory in Print’ which uses early copies ofthe local newspaper.

● The next drop in Session at Redditch Libraryruns from 10am - 12pm on Friday 18th

September.●The next Bandstandevent is on 19thSeptember 12 - 4pmand is a CommunityFestival - a culturalcelebration withmusic, performances,stalls and food!●Our AnnualExhibition entitled‘Redditch People’ (29October to 22November 2015) atForge Mill MuseumGallery (and will later

be shown at other venues includingRedditch Library). This is progressing well,although there are still a few gaps in theinformation so far supplied.

Our next meeting is on ‘The Wilsons and theRedditch Fairs’ by Tom Bough at RedditchLibrary on Monday 5th October at 2.00 p.m.

Anthony Green

During the questions at the end on Don’s talk at the September meeting the point of whetherBrodesley Monks supported the building of an abbey in France was discussed. Pete Harris’sclaim that this is true is party supported by this statement on the Valasse Abbey site whichsays:

“The Valasse Abbey’s history is closely linked to Matilda’s, William the Conqueror’sgranddaughter. Matilda was held as a hostage in Oxford when she made the vow tofound an abbey if she could escape her prison. safe and sound.”

And“All the buildings were finished by 1218. A community of Cistercian monks arrived atthe Abbey in 1157.”

Derek Coombes

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Published by D. J Coombes, 26 Newton Close, Redditch, B98 7YR on behalf of the Redditch Local History Society Copyright © 2015

Where or What’s This?3

The Eagle LecternFollowing advice fromRalph Richardson weresearched the Rev. S. N.Harrison in Crockfords andfound this entry, theimportant part being the“Redditch 1869-70”

So now we know he was inRedditch, although nochurch records documentthis.

Our next line of investigation is that of Hardman & Co whom we believe made the Lectern. Theircompany archives are in Birmingham Library so that’s our next stop.

Another query in by email is from Marcus Jellis and says “I wonder if you could help. I amenquiring to ask if you are aware if there are any old photos of Walkwood around 1983 - 1987showing when the housing estate was under construction/recently finished.” Can anyone helpMarcus?

Derek Coombes

Continuing our now regular feature where we seek your help on local historyquestions (and also give the answers)

WW1 Report - Women in WartimeThe coming of women into almost every sphere of industrialand social activity – one of the most notable of the manyphenomena of the war – has naturally roused the sociologistand the economist to many very important and exceedinglysignificant inquirers. “Where’s it all going to end?” is thequery of the plain man who, shouldering his patrioticresponsibilities and his rifle leaves his industrial post in theoccupation of a pretty woman. The exodus of hundreds ofthousands, nay, millions, of the male population, and theirconsiderable substitution by women, must leave problems ofboth immediate and future importance. What will happen“when the boys come marching home”? Will the girls begood and retire to domestic duties or will there be an attemptto perpetuate the temporary revolution which the warbrought about, involving a situation something like thatwhich Aristophanes so caustically satirised in his day andgeneration. This of course, is but one aspect of the matterone facet of the many sided question which asks whether thewhole phenomenon is coincident with war conditions andterminating with them, or whether it will mark the beginningof a social upheaval and a new stage in the industrial andcommercial – to say nothing of the political – co-operation ofmen and women.

Jillian Coombes

The Bromsgrove, Droitwich andRedditch Messenger – Saturday 21st

August 1915(www.bromsgrovebmsgh.co.uk))

Published by D. J Coombes, 26 Newton Close, Redditch, B98 7YR on behalf of the Redditch Local History Society Copyright © 2015

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4THE BROMSGROVE GUILD

OF APPLIED ARTSWhilst researching the history of St Stephen'sChurch in Redditch, we were surprised to findthere was little on the history of the Font andits decorative cover. A throw-away commentwas that the font cover was made by theBromsgrove Guild. So that set us on aninvestigation which revealed a remarkablestory of art and enterprise which is littleknown.

The Bromsgrove Guild Of Applied Arts wasfounded in 1898 by Walter Gilbert and soondeveloped into a thriving commercialenterprise. During the next seventy years theGuild achieved an international reputation forthe quality of its craftsmanship in metalwork,woodcarving, plasterwork, stained glass andother media. Celebrated contracts includedLiverpool's famous Liver Birds, ornatemetalwork on the great Cunard liners Lusitaniaand Queen Mary and the lead statue of Hygieawhich still stands in the garden of the PrimeMinister's country residence, Chequers. In1908 the Bromsgrove Guild completed theirmost memorable commission: the wrought irongates of Buckingham Palace.

In 1898 the Committee who managed theBromsgrove School of Arts welcomed theproposal to establish a commercial enterpriseto be called the 'Bromsgrove Guild of AppliedArts'. Financially, the Committee membershoped to capitalise on the contemporaryfashion for high quality workmanship in suchfields as metal-casting, wood-carving andembroidery. They also hoped to promote thestudy of art and design techniques and to teachthe young people of Bromsgrove to acquirethese skills through craft apprenticeships. In sodoing they hoped to generate exciting newemployment opportunities for the people of thetown, in contrast to those presented by thetown's bleak industrial past. Thus the dream ofthe Bromsgrove Guild was born. TheCommittee were fortunate to discover andappoint a man called Walter Gilbert who hadthe personal motivation and management skillsneeded to turn this idealistic vision into reality.During the next seventy years the BromsgroveGuild expanded and developed into a firm withan international reputation for both the rangeand the superb quality of its products. Indeed,by placing literally thousands of examples of

the Bromsgrove craftsman's skill in privatehomes, public buildings, shops, offices,churches and city streets across the length andbreadth of the country, the Guild helped putBromsgrove 'on the map'.

Close to home in Redditch there are threeexamples of the Guilds work.

The Bromsgrove Guild referred to their work inthe Plymouth Road Cemetery as the 'RedditchWar Memorial', but Arthur Mee's description isbetter: The Peace memorial in a Garden ofRemembrance.' The main feature is a largewhite stone edifice with a bronze laurel wreathon the front. Within an arch, a stone plinthsupports a splendid bronze bowl which holdsthe 'eternal flame'. The archway has beenenclosed for protection but the flame stillburns. On two sides of the memorial are bronzeRoman helmets and swords. The wordsinscribed are: 'To the Glory of God and inEverlasting Memory of Those of Redditch whoin the Great War faced Death for Freedom andpassed Out of Our Sight.'

In St. Stephen's Church there is a BromsgroveGuild font cover. This is in dark oak made inthe shape of a spire which has 'crocketing' onit. Crocketing is the carving of small ornamentson the inclined sides of pinnacles, pedimentsetc., as in Gothic architecture. On this fontcover the crockets are in the form of buds andcurled leaves. There are crenellations on thebase and four brass handles.

Inside St. Luke's Church, Headless Cross, thereis a brass wall tablet in memory of SydneyBaber. He was rector of the parish for thirteenyears, and buried on Good Friday, 1914 atPershore. The tablet was erected by a gratefulcongregation.

Ask an inhabitant of Bromsgrove or thesurrounding area today about the BromsgroveGuild and their knowledge will possibly extendas far as the gates of Buckingham Palace.Some may have heard of Walter Gilbert but asmaller number will be able to direct you to alocal example of Guild workmanship. This isvery sad, when you consider that theBromsgrove Guild was probably the mostimportant commercial enterprise ever

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Published by D. J Coombes, 26 Newton Close, Redditch, B98 7YR on behalf of the Redditch Local History Society Copyright © 2015

THE BROMSGROVE GUILDOF APPLIED ARTS5

associated with the town. Moreover, during itssixty-eight year history, the Guild made thename of Bromsgrove famous throughout thewhole world for the high quality of itscraftsmanship and artistic endeavour.

Perhaps this ignorance of the Guild's gloriouspast should come as no great surprise, fortangible evidence of the firm's former existenceis now limited. The original Guild workshops onthe north-eastern side of Station Street, whichwere regarded by many as an ugly eye-sore,were demolished in 1996. Likewise, theexternal appearance of the remaining buildingson the opposite side of the road give no clue toindicate the international success achieved bythe products once made there. Even the smalladjacent lane, called 'Guild Road', has had itsstreet name stolen! Most of the other Guildsites have been demolished or converted forother uses. Only at Puddle Wharf, Stoke Heath,does Terry Simons continue to trade under thename 'Bromsgrove Guild'. Here he sellsconcrete garden products, some of which havebeen made using the original Guild moulds heobtained, along with the company name,during the 1970s.

The expanding leisure interest in antiques hasnot yet discovered the Guild's past. Theresearch for this book has revealed that veryfew books about twentieth century arts andcrafts or ornamental metalwork even mentionthe Bromsgrove Guild. Clearly, this is a serioushistorical omission, and one we hope this bookwill soon correct. In concluding our work wefeel it is important to review the story of theBromsgrove Guild, but at the same time avoidthe obvious nostalgic, or basically negative,retrospective.

According to Robert Pancheri, the story of theGuild was divided into three parts. The firmreached the 'apogee of its rocket-like ascent' in1907, then started a 'scintillating decline'before meeting its 'nemesis' when WalterGilbert departed after the Great War. It wouldbe hard not to concur with Pancheri s view thatthe Guild was a business with an extremelyrapid.

The Guild's decline was more protracted andgradual than Pancheri believed. Once the firm

failed to consolidate its early, meteoric,expansion there followed a steady 'demise'which lasted over fifty years. This decline canbe attributed to a number of factors both withinand beyond the control of the Guild's managingdirectors. There appears to have beenweakness in the area of financial managementas well as a certain inflexibility of approachtowards artistic styles and the use of 'new'materials. The success of the Bromsgrove Guildwas also more seriously undermined by theeffects of the two world wars, the majoreconomic crises between them and the periodof austerity which followed victory in 1945. TheBromsgrove Guild was a business whose raisond'etre was to recreate the traditional qualitiesof classical art and design. The firm's greatestsuccesses had occurred when Great Britain hadthe national wealth to sustain such anexpensive luxury market. By the time GeorgeWhewell took the decision to end commercialactivities in the 1960s, this market no longerexisted and the Guild had failed to adapt to thechanged economic environment. Thus, like somany other once successful British enterprises,the Bromsgrove Guild had become acommercial dinosaur whose extinction was verysad but nonetheless inevitable.

The main purpose of this conclusion is,however, to look forward to the continuingstory of the Bromsgrove Guild, anddemonstrate that this story is not over yet!Although the firm no longer exists, the Guildlives on through the thousands of artistic piecesit produced. New information about Guildproducts is being uncovered almost every dayand this growing body of knowledge generatesrenewed interest in the organisation as well asensuring that a new history will have to hewritten at some point in the future.

Derek CoombesThe RLHS acknowledges

the copyright of theseextract to the BromsgroveSociety. First published in

Great Britain in 1999 bythe Bromsgrove Society

ISBN 0 9509471 6 4

Published by D. J Coombes, 26 Newton Close, Redditch, B98 7YR on behalf of the Redditch Local History Society Copyright © 2015

www.redditchhistorysociety.org.uk

6The 2015 Exhibition

Who have influenced the growth or reputation ofthe town or who have served the community.

We are making good progress in investigatingand documenting those people nominated forinclusion in the 2015 Exhibition.

However, there are still quite a few to do, so ifyou have nominated someone, or havevolunteered to investigate a nominee, weneed your input as soon as possible.

Please send it, in word format if possible toeither Tony Green or myself.

A5 Flyers and poster are now available to thedesign below to advertise the exhibition.

If you belong to other clubs or societies pleasetake a few along with you and post on noticeboards etc wherever you go. We needvisitors.

Watch out in the local press for full detailsand don’t forget to tell your family andfriends.

Key Exhibition DatesThe exhibition runs fromThursday 29th October to Sunday22nd of November.

There will be an openingceremony at 11:00 on Thursdaythe 29th and we are hoping anumber of the “Redditch People”will be present so please makeevery effort to attend.

On the 4th, 11th and the 18th

there will be Drop-in Days.Wednesdays are free forRedditch Residents and we willhave additional material ondisplay including Mike Johnsonvideo interviews.

The 11th November will be aspecial John Bonham Day, againwith members of the groupraising money for a permanentmemorial present.

We are putting a lot of effort intothis exhibition, please supportus.

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Published by D. J Coombes, 26 Newton Close, Redditch, B98 7YR on behalf of the Redditch Local History Society Copyright © 2015

We hope that this programme is attractive and interesting to you and you will supportthese events. If it’s not, please ensure your thoughts on what should be in theprogramme are made known to the committee so they can be actioned next year.

Monthly MeetingsMeetings begin at 2.00 pm and last for approximately 2 hours; the presentation lasts about one

hour and this is followed by refreshments and Society business and project reports.Non-members will be charged £2 entrance (refundable against membership fee)

The venue for the meetings is Redditch Library.

Please help us to grow the Society and contribute to the organisation, promotion and running of our events.Please speak with any committee members for details of how you can help.

We are also always keen to hear from members who would like to get involved with project research activities,Contact Tony Green or Derek Coombes for more details.

Below is the programme of events for the remainder of 2015.

Date Meeting Contact

5th October The Wilson's and the Redditch Fairs Tom Bough

2ndNovember

Keep the Home Fires Burning: Life in Redditch1914 to 1918 Sue Tatlow

7th December Members Christmas Social. Everyone!

2015 Meetings andEvents

Other Events DateRedditch Bandstand Festival Saturday - 19th SeptemberHeritage Open Day’ Sunday 13th SeptemberHeadless Cross Apple Day Saturday 3rd October.RLHS Forge Mill Exhibition -Redditch People

Thursday 29th October - Sunday 22ndNovember

Drop-in SessionsThe Drop-in sessions are informal get together's to discuss projects research andRedditch history in general They are from 10:00 to 12 noon on the following dates.

18th Sep, 16th Oct, 20th Nov and 18th Dec 2015

7

Next Years meetings will be on the SECOND MONDAY of each month.Please note in you diary.

Newsletter ContentWell folks, the barrel is just about dry of articles and information to publish so we

need your input.Have you got a pet topic you can write about, a research project that you want to

boast about or a memory of old Redditch you would like to share?If so please send it in and we’ll publish it in a forthcoming Newsletter.

Derek Coombes

Published by D. J Coombes, 26 Newton Close, Redditch, B98 7YR on behalf of the Redditch Local History Society Copyright © 2015

www.redditchhistorysociety.org.uk

8

Redditch Local History Society Related Web sites…

www.redditchhistorysociety.org.uk The Redditch Local History Society’s principle web site.

www.redditchhistory.comThis site is to give a brief introduction to the various aspectsof the town’s history but essentially to be a portal to the thevarious sites which encompass the history of Redditch

www.redditchwalks.org.uk The aim of the site is to develop walks related to Redditchhistory and existing historical artefacts and buildings

www.forum.redditchhistorysociety.org.uk The Redditch Local History Forum is our on-line site dedicat-ed to the discussion of Redditch History & Heritage.

www.forgemill.org.uk Forge Mill National Needle Museum and Bordesley AbbeyVisitors Centre

www.redditchheritage.org.uk/sites/RHP-Heritage-Sites.htm

Redditch Local History Society's project to investigate,document and publish details of the historic sites thatremain in Redditch today.

www.redditchheritage.org.uk The home of the Remembering Lost Redditch project.

For details of the RLHS activities contacts Anthony Green - 01527 61434or visit: www.redditchhistorysociety.org.uk - contact@redditchhistory.org.uk

Comments, feedback and contributions...If you have any feedback or comments on the topics reported on this newsletter, or wish tocontribute material, please contact us:

The deadline for contributions is the date of the monthly meeting.

And finally……

The Library Book Club

The Library Book Club meets on Fridays afternoonson the Third Friday of each month at 2 pm in thelibrary cellar and its completely free.

It's run by ex-librarian Denise Bonham, some peoplemay remember her. It’s only a small group, anythingfrom five to fifteen members so they are keen onattracting new members.

They each take it in turns to talk about the book(s)they have read since the last meeting. Denisesuggests a topic, such as 'Humour' or 'Travel' but ifyou want to read something else, that's fine.

If you are interested contact Anne Bradford or theLibrary

Sara Fraser is the pen name of Roy Clews. Roy has an interesting history and isone of the Redditch People nominated in our exhibition.