Calne heritage week programme 2017

Heritage Week 4th to 10th September 2017 Bringing Calne’s past to life with a week of open days, talks and guided walks.

Many events are FREE to enjoy.

PROGRAMME OF 27 EVENTS ©Anna Stowe/Bowood

Calne Our Place

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Two hours free parking Calne Heritage Quarter Car Park accessed from the A4

MONDAY 4th SEPTEMBER

TUESDAY 5th SEPTEMBER

Guided Walk - Calne Heritage Quarter

Dr Priestley: The Discovery of Oxygen

2pm to 3.30pm, meet at Calne Heritage Centre

Arrive at 11am for tea and coffee, tour approx. 60 minutes, Bowood House & Gardens

Calne Heritage Quarter is an area celebrated for its historic character and charm. Learn more about the quarter’s notable buildings, characters and areas such as Castlefields Park and The Green with historian Nick Baxter.

Places are FREE but limited, book at www.booking.calnewiltshire.com or call 01249 814000. Bookings close 11pm the day prior to this event. The walk may include steps, a level route can be found to accommodate accessibility needs.

Talk – The American Connection 7pm , Calne Heritage Centre Local historian Norman Beale will be uncovering Calne's links with American twin town Caln Township in Pennsylvania.

Learn more about the Calne Quakers who first went to Pennsylvania with William Penn, the state’s founder, in the 1680s.

FREE, no booking necessary

Priestley arrived at Bowood House in 1773 as a librarian and literary companion for the second Earl of Shelburne. Priestley devoted much of his free time to science and experiments and lived nearby in Calne. This is a fascinating tour of Bowood House with an insight into Priestley’s life and the journey to his identification of Oxygen.

Guests are welcome to enjoy the House & Gardens at leisure following the tour.

Discounted for Calne Heritage Week, £12.50 per person (normally £20 per person). To book please call Bowood House & Gardens on 01249 810961 or email houseandgardens@bowood.org Talk – The Saint and The Murderer: Stories From Calne’s Past 7pm, Calne Heritage Centre Historian Nick Baxter and Calne Heritage Centre Curator Sue Boddington reveal Calne’s notable and notorious characters such as St Edmund, the archbishop who loved Calne, and James Pownall, the local doctor with a homicidal urge.

FREE, no booking necessary

WEDNESDAY 6th SEPTEMBER Beekeeping Afternoon 2pm, Heritage Bed & Breakfast, 1 Kerry Crescent, SN11 0JH Originally built as a family home by Calne’s prosperous Harris family, enjoy Heritage B&B’s newly planted bee-friendly gardens. Learn about the bee cycle, see the bees at work and sample produce made using their honey. Guests can then choose to enjoy afternoon tea and honey cake for a small donation to Calne Heritage Centre.

Places are FREE but limited, book at www.booking.calnewiltshire.com or call 01249 814000. Bookings close 11pm the day prior to this event.

Not suitable for children under 9 or those with bee allergies.

Guided Walk Calne Heritage Quarter 6.30pm to 8pm , meet at Calne Heritage Centre Calne Heritage Quarter is an area celebrated for its historic character and charm. Learn more about the quarter’s notable buildings, characters and areas such as Castlefields Park and The Green with historian Nick Baxter.

Places are FREE but limited, book at www.booking.calnewiltshire.com or call 01249 814000. Bookings close 11pm the day prior to this event. The walk may include steps, a level route can be found.

Talk - ‘The Coaching Trade 1750 – 1850 Along the Great West Way’ 7pm, The Lansdowne Strand Hotel Graham Smith of Atwell-Wilson Motor Museum unlocks the history behind the coaching route that connected Calne to Bristol and London along today’s A4.

FREE, no booking necessary

THURSDAY 7th SEPTEMBER Ancestry for Beginners 2pm, Calne Community Hub & Library Always wanted to research your family tree? This session is the perfect place to start with expert tips to help use Ancestry on the library's computers.

Places are FREE but limited to four people, call the library on 01249 813128 to book.

Talk – David Dawson, Wiltshire Museum Director 7pm, Calne Heritage Centre Wiltshire Museum in Devizes attracts visitors from all over the world to view its collections, which include important finds associated with the World Heritage Sites of Avebury and Stonehenge.

Meet Director David Dawson to gain an insight into the museum’s work in tracing and sharing the history of people living in Wiltshire.

FREE, no booking necessary

FRIDAY 8th SEPTEMBER Guided Walk - The History of the Cherhill Down Landscape

Bell Ringing Taster Sessions at St Mary’s Church

2pm to 4.30pm

7 to 7.30pm and 7.30 to 8pm

Meeting place: east end of Cherhill village opposite turning to Park Lane

St Mary’s Church is the only Grade I listed building in Calne and stands on the site of an earlier Saxon Minster.

Parking: A4 lay-bys or Cherhill village where not obstructing access

Enjoy far-reaching views of rolling valleys and hills and join National Trust Ranger Keith Steggall for a 3 mile walk exploring the history of Cherhill Down and Oldbury Castle.

Discover signs in the landscape that reveal its past use from the Bronze Age to more recent history with old drove roads and the White Horse.

Places are FREE but limited, book at www.booking.calnewiltshire.com or call 01249 814000. Bookings close 11pm the day prior to this event.

The 3 mile walk involves some hills and uneven ground. Please wear good footwear and be prepared for the British weather.

Talk - The Derry Hill Story: a Child of Studley and Stanley 7pm, Lansdowne Hall, Derry Hill Discover the history of Derry Hill village’s places and people with this illustrated talk by local author and historian John Baumber.

FREE, no booking necessary

A mighty 17th century north transept tower houses St Mary’s eight bells, known as a 'ring of 8'.

The oldest is the 'sanctus' bell which is approximately 500 years old and is rung just before services.

The second two oldest bells are the treble and 5th, which were cast in 1707.

The Bellringers at St Mary’s meet every Friday evening and Sunday morning. Participants on these two sessions will learn how a church bell works and have the opportunity to ring a bell with assistance and supervision.

Places are FREE but limited to 10 per session, please book at www.booking.calnewiltshire.com or call 01249 814000. Bookings close 11pm the day prior to this event.

Please note there are 70 steps to the bell tower.

SATURDAY 9th SEPTEMBER Calne Open Doors Day, free entry Step inside Calne’s most intriguing historic buildings and meet the people who look after them. Calne Heritage Centre will be open 10am to 4pm and is free to visit.

Calne Free Church 10am to 4pm

Morris Dancing from 1.30pm

This deceptively big church was built in 1867 by Westbury architect W.J. Stent. Meet the people, hear about the history and discover why it’s called the ‘Free’ Church. Free tea, coffee and cakes will be served throughout the day.

Enjoy performances by Chippenham Morris throughout the afternoon on The Strand outside Calne Library.

St Edmund’s Church 10am to 4pm View St Edmund’s notable collection of work by internationally renowned sculptor Sean Crampton, who became a parishioner in 1977 and produced a range of pieces for the Catholic Church including the Stations of the Cross.

Calne Town Hall Council Chamber 12pm to 3pm The wood panelled Council Chamber represents the history and traditions of Calne Town Council and conveys the town’s achievements since the Town Hall was opened in 1886.

Family Wise 10am to 4pm

Zion Baptist Chapel 10am to 5pm A historically significant Chapel in Phelps Parade. View photographs and information about the history of this restored Chapel, built in 1836.

Bevirs Solicitors 10am to 1pm This late 17th century house benefits from interesting features including a 17th century stone Robert Adam fireplace, which was rescued from a wing of nearby Castle House when it was demolished in 1974.

Calne Almshouses 2pm to 5pm A rare opportunity to step inside Calne’s intriguing 17th century Almshouses. Visitors can also see the residents’ beautifully tended gardens whilst enjoying homemade cake.

Calne Methodist Church 10am to 4pm

Book a free 20 minute session to discuss Methodism came to Calne in 1808, family history projects with genealogy meeting at a cottage in Curzon Street specialists Family Wise, or drop in to and then a former weaving shop near find out more about their work.

Anchor Road. In 1867 Lord Lansdowne Contact info@family-wise.co.uk or provided land where the church stands 01249 476777 to book a session. today on Silver Street. www.family-wise.co.uk

SATURDAY continued….

SATURDAY 9th SEPTEMBER

SUNDAY

Calligraphy Demonstration with Caroline Keevil

Guided Walk - Wiltshire Wildlife Trust at Morgan’s Hill

2pm to 4pm, Calne Heritage Centre

Two walks at 10.30am and 2.30pm, approx. 1.5/2 hours duration

Caroline Keevil is a Wiltshire based Lettering Artist. Her demonstration will start with early script styles and show their development over time.

FREE, no booking necessary East Tytherton Church & Burial Ground 10am to 2pm and 2.30pm to 4pm East Tytherton, SN15 4LU Preacher John Cennick bought a house in East Tytherton in 1742, after which a Moravian community was founded in 1745. Meet members of the East Tytherton Heritage Project and enjoy a tour around the Moravian burial ground and church in this scenic rural setting.

FREE, no booking necessary Talk - The Ground Beneath Your Feet: a Potted History of Derry Hill and Studley

2pm, 84 Studley Lane, Studley, SN11 9NH (turn off A4 opposite Derry Hill turning, first house in lane) A talk by local author and historian Stephen Cox. Guests can then enjoy a guided tour of Stephen’s garden: a natural haven with features including eleven fountains, life-size statues and 30 specially commissioned slate plaques of verses and wise words.

FREE, no booking necessary

Morgan’s Hill Nature Reserve, near Calne, SN11 8PZ Meeting place: Small Grain Picnic Area car park or mini bus offered from Calne Heritage Quarter car park accessed from the A4 (please confirm option upon booking) Join Wiltshire Wildlife Trust for a guided walk on the stunning chalk grassland reserve at Morgan’s Hill.

Reserve warden Nick Self will lead you on a journey through time, from the first settlements of the Celts and Romans all the way up to the current day, bringing the history of the reserve to life whilst enjoying its current state as prime wildflower chalk grassland. Refreshments will be available at the reserve for a donation. £3 suggested donation to the trust Booking essential. Please call Tamsin to book on 01380 725670 (ext. 273). Bookings will also be available on Wiltshire Wildlife Trust’s website.

Access: not suitable for pushchairs or wheelchairs.

Dogs on leads and families welcome. Please note reserve can be steep and uneven in places.

SUNDAY 10th SEPTEMBER St Mary’s Church Open Afternoon with Tower Tours

Bowood House & Gardens 2 for 1 Entry (with voucher)

2pm to 5pm

11am to 6pm, last admission 5pm

Built on the site of a Saxon Minster, St Mary’s Church is the only Grade I listed building in Calne with some parts of the building dating back to the 12th century. The church is known locally as the ‘Cathedral of North Wilts’.

Enjoy discounted entry to one of the area’s premier historic visitor attractions (2 for 1, cheapest free).

Friendly Church Watch guides will be on hand to help you discover the objects and stories that make the church an important part of Calne’s Heritage Quarter.

St Mary’s Bellringers will be giving tower tours throughout the afternoon (approximately 70 steps).

FREE, no booking necessary

Bowood truly has something for all the family, with picturesque grounds of over 100 acres of ‘Capability’ Brown designed parkland, the beautiful Georgian House with a wealth of art and a unique antique collection, as well as the adrenalin fuelled Adventure Playground and Tractor Ted Little Farm.

To claim this offer: cut out the voucher below or visit www.booking.calnewiltshire.com to download and print voucher.

Terms & conditions: One free admission with a full paying adult. Last admission 5pm. Cheapest ticket goes free. Present this voucher at the entrance. Unable to use in conjunction with any other offer.

VOUCHER Bowood House & Gardens 2 for 1 Entry On Sunday 10th September, 11am to 6pm (last admission 5pm) Terms & conditions: One free admission with a full paying adult. Last admission 5pm. Cheapest ticket goes free. Present this voucher at the entrance. Unable to use in conjunction with any other offer. ©Anna Stowe/Bowood

In association with Calne Heritage Week

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TOWN CENTRE 10

1 - Calne Heritage Centre 2 - Heritage Bed & Breakfast 3 - St Mary’s Church

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4 - Calne Almshouses

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5 - Calne Free Church

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6 - Calne Town Hall 7 - Community Hub & Library 3

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8 - Lansdowne Strand Hotel 9 - Bevirs Solicitors

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10 - Zion Baptist Chapel 11 - St Edmund’s Catholic Church, Oxford Road

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12 - Family Wise

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13 - Calne Methodist Church, Silver Street 17

SURROUNDING AREA 14 - Bowood House & Gardens, Derry Hill, SN11 9PQ 15 - Lansdowne Hall, Derry Hill, SN11 9QY

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16 - 84 Studley Lane, SN11 9NH 17 - East Tytherton Church & Burial Ground, SN15 4LU

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18 - Cherhill village, SN11 8UU 19 - Morgan’s Hill Nature Reserve, SN11 8PZ