MUSEUM MATTERS August 2010
The Newsletter of The Friends of The Canal Museum, Stoke Bruerne
See you all at Village at War 1st—3rd October
MUSEUM IS THE PEOPLE’S CHOICE AND VILLAGE AT WAR IS THE BEST EVENT Recognition by Northamptonshire Heritage Awards The Canal Museum and the Village at War weekend scooped top honours in two categories at the Northamptonshire Heritage Awards, winning Best Event and The People’s Choice Award. The awards, which are supported by Renaissance East Midlands, are a celebration of the work taking place in the county’s museums, heritage sites and historic houses. The winners were announced at a high profile ceremony at Kelmarsh House in July. As part of the awards, members of the public were invited to vote for their favourite museum, historic house or heritage centre, with the Canal Museum winning this coveted accolade. The Friends organised Village at War, our David Henderson, popular 40s themed period event, won the hotly seum and Stoke Bruerne.” Museum Manager contested Best Event award. (second row) and David Blagrove, Chairman of The Friends Louise Stockwin, Louise Stockwin, Assistant Museum Manager, of the Canal Museum said: “Winning two Assistant Museum said: “We are absolutely delighted to win these such prestigious awards is testimony to all Manager (front row) two awards. Winning the Peoples’ Choice the effort put in by volunteers and staff and at the prestigious ceremony at Award is especially rewarding as it is fantastic is especially welcome after gaining a runner Kelmarsh Hall. -up placing in the Community category of recognition of the hard work put in by both the Friends of the Museum and staff to making the the Waterways Renaissance Awards earlier See inside for full Canal Museum a lively, attractive and interest- this year. We are delighted that so many details of this year’s ing place to visit. We are so pleased that so people voted for the Museum, demonstratVillage at War many people have enjoyed their visit to the Mu- ing that it is indeed a popular visitor attrac(left) Friends volunteers admire the results of a morning’s hard labour. (below) The jungle in the side lock beforehand.
LOCK TIDY GETS THE THUMBS UP Visitors and locals passing by the original top lock on Saturday 24th July gave the “thumbs up” to green fingered Museum & Friends volunteers whose hard labour transformed the whole lock from a jungle into a well weeded backdrop for the BCN railway boat and the weighing machine artefacts which were fast disappearing from view. Thanks go to David Henderson, Laura Sturrock, Jenny & Peter Copeland, Lorna York, David Blagrove, Bill Mann, Roy Sears, Peter Oates, Sam Samuells and Lynda Payton.
Stoke Bruerne and Shutlanger in the Nineteenth Century Part 4: by David Blagrove The question of which village should relieve those inhabitants of Stoke Park who had come into the area and now claimed settlement had been settled in 1792, when it was decided that the amount raised by rating the Park should be equally split between the two villages, and all expenditure on relief for those settled in the Park should be borne equally by the two villages. This arrangement became fully legalised a century later when the two villages became separate civil parishes and the boundary between the two was drawn so as to bisect Stoke Park in a straight line. Whilst in many villages there was a great house or several in the near vicinity that provided employment for many locals, Stoke and Shutlanger remained, as did most other communities within the Wakefield Estate, devoid of such a facility. Stoke Park was the nearest that the two communities aspired to in the way of a great house, and the Census of 1901 shows that out of a fairly impressive staff of servants numbering 13 indoor servants and 5 outdoor ones, plus their families, which numbered 13 in all, only 10, all school children, had been born in Stoke parish. A scullery maid was born at Ashton, the second footman at Hartwell; the Hall boy came from Paulerspury, while two maids came from Northampton. All the other servants came from farther
Stoke Park c. 1700s as illustrated in Colen Campbell’s Vitruvius Brittanicus (reproduced from Wikipedia)
afield, including Dublin (the second housemaid) and Roxburghshire (the Butler). Even in the good times in the midcentury the larger farms employed few indoor servants. In 1851 Stoke Gap had one maid and one manservant living in, while Stoke Plain had three (two female, one male), Home Farm, as the Navigation Inn had become, employed three, two young girls and a boy, none born in Stoke, while Rookery Farm had four (three females, one young male, only the lad being born in Stoke) and Manor Farm had no servants living in. Fifty years later these numbers had declined. The figures respectively were: Stoke Gap one, Stoke Plain, Rookery and Manor Farms, none. Grove Farm, Shutlanger had a cook and a housemaid, only the latter being born locally, at Heathencote. This was in spite of the three Enclosure farms having commodious servants’ quarters and is indicative of the then current agricultural depression. The Rectory in 1851 had five servants, two ladies maids, a cook, and a housemaid plus a footman. Only the housemaid was locally born. Fifty years later the number of servants at the Rectory had declined to three, none locally born although the housemaid originated at Hanslope. Of 18 indoor servants employed at Easton Neston House in 1901, not one
was born locally or in a neighbouring parish. Thus, contrary to common belief, local domestic service was not really an option for Stoke and Shutlanger people by the end of the nineteenth century. The need for some form of industrial employment was evident and during the midnineteenth century many villagers who were unable to find work at the Mill or brickyard, or on the canal, found employment as lace makers and outworkers for the Northampton boot and shoe trade in order to eke out earnings from agricultural labouring. A notable change in the aspect of the canal came about in 1835 with the threat of the London & Birmingham Railway resonating in the minds of the Canal Company directors. In order to speed up traffic the locks were duplicated and the two bridges over the flight of locks received duplicate arches. At the same time a further strip of land on the west side of the canal was obtained from the Grafton Estate for the purposes of building side ponds and a new towpath. Apart from the top and bottom locks the duplicates were all built on the east side of the canal. The bridge carrying the turnpike was later rebuilt by Northamptonshire County Council as a single span, but the one below the top lock (No. 14) remains in its 1835 condition, even though the duplicate locks did not last long. They seem to have been abandoned by 1851 and most of the duplicate locks were filled in. At top lock though the original chamber was abandoned and the present lock is the duplicate. Visitors may observe that Lock 15, on its original site, is directly aligned with the derelict lock chamber outside the Boat Inn. The differing styles of bridge construction may be observed by examining the two parallel arches. The 4th Duke of Grafton, along with his neighbour Sir William Wake of Courteenhall, opposed the building of the London & Birmingham Railway with vigour. His father, the 3rd Duke, had welcomed the canal, although defending the interests of his tenants against the Canal Company. Whilst the 4th Duke would have naturally been concerned over his interests in the Canal Company, he was evidently concerned also about the effect that the intruding railway would have on other matters. He was also Master of the Grafton Hunt and took a dim view of what a railway might do to his sport. Although the Railway Company overcame the objections to both landowners and built their line through Roade and Ashton, a persistent legend survived that the Grafton Hunt once put up a fox near Ashton and chased it the length of Roade Cutting, apparently without coming into contact with a train. Roade Cutting itself was a massive undertaking, paralleling Blisworth Tunnel. Between 1835 and 1838 up to 800
By 1851 most of the duplicate locks were filled in
men and boys were employed in digging it. Although no records have survived it is extremely likely that men from the two villages joined this mighty workforce. Robert Stephenson, son of the great George, was the chief engineer and he stated in evidence to a Parliamentary Committee on Railway Construction in 1846 that one of the problems encountered in building the London & Birmingham Railway was that the labouring men were wont to disappear for days at a time during the season of village harvests and feasts. The railway was opened throughout in September 1838, with stations at Roade and Blisworth. To start with a small number of men from Stoke found employment on the line, but in later years the works at Wolverton provided regular work for a number of men from both communities. After 1861 the London & North Western Railway Company (LNWR) concentrated its carriage building activities at Wolverton and special workman’s trains were run from Northampton, calling at Roade, daily. Building the Northampton Loop line near Roade, c 1882 (photo: Northampton Records Office)
■ To be continued
PIRATES STEAL THE SHOW AT GALA WEEKEND Our Gala Weekend in June raised around £1,500, not as much as last year, but a very creditable and useful amount in today’s tighten-your-belt economy and best of all, if the videos posted on YouTube are something to go by, everyone had an absolutely fantastic time! This year Tim Carter and his team of Pirates on Nb George excelled themselves and collected £350 in their buckets through gentle admonishments to the crowd “to produce some doubloons or pieces of eight to put in our pot or else ye’ll be walking the plank!” Tim’s expert use of pyrotechnics produced a spectacular show and fiddle player, Ryan Dimmock, frequently disappeared from view behind clouds of orange smoke. Luckily, the Pitsford Local Defence Volunteers were on hand to protect the village from marauding pirates and they took the opportunity to train up some new young recruits ready for our award winning Village at War event in October. Meanwhile visitors to the fun packed event were treated to the sight of well over 30 historic boats, could buy yummy cheese and fudge from the trade boats, visit canal society stands, craft stalls and enjoy live music. There were also model boats and trains, boat trips and a real ale bar, not to mention the opportunity of trying their hand at archery, visiting the museum and sipping champagne with strawberries. And, in the evening there was the usual live musical entertainment on Friday led by Braunston’s Ramshackle and the Prince of Wales Rattlers on Saturday, plus the fish and chip van and Bill and Liz’s superb grub!
The pirate ship (aka Nb George) approaches the festival site Photo: Lynda Payton Pirates come in all shapes and sizes—ahoy there me hearties, let’s be ‘aving some bounty fer our museum Photo: James Rudd
We would like to take the opportunity to thank all the volunteers, exhibitors, advertisers, businesses, villagers and local waterway organisations whose support made the festival possible. In particular we would like to thank The Boat Inn for setting up and organising our bar; Jay and Elaine at Topiary Gift Shop; Roy and Christine Sears for opening up their garden and putting on ‘Champagne and Strawberries’; all the staff at the Canal Museum for manning the phones and answering queries; Bill and Liz Mann for organising the catering; Peter Oates and Laura Sturrock for running the Tombola Stall; Sandie Morton, Helen Westlake, Sam Seamus-Brooks and Lynda Payton for children’s face painting; Chris Whitby and family and friends for the PA system and Pirate Attack; Dave Phelps for building the bar; Ramshackle, The Prince of Wales Rattlers and friends for the musical entertainment; the owners of the historic craft on display; James Griffin for model boats and the stall traders. Also, not forgetting Pitsford Home Guard; Northampton Model Railway Club; the Unofficial Stratford & Midland Junction Railway website; all our canal craft demonstrators; Design to Print, our printers; Mikron Theatre Co.; James Griffin for model boats; Seamus Lefroy-Brooks for organising military vehicles; Terry Richardson & Lynda Payton for publicity and programme; Alan & Grete Ricketts for doing cream teas at Canal House; Tim Carter for Pirate pyrotechnics and Nb George pirate ship; Roade Scouts and our volunteer car park supervisors, Rick Thake & John Alderson. Plus Mercia, Alison, The Museum, Stoke Bruerne PCC and Navigation pub for the use of their fields and car parks. If we have forgotten you - please forgive us, there are so many of you. You know who you are - a BIG THANK YOU TO YOU ALL.
David Blagrove, Chairman of the Friends, writes…
“Excitement builds as the Big One approaches” Once again excitement builds as “the Big One” approaches. By this of course I mean the “Village at War” weekend, which is beginning almost to develop a life of its own. Naturally such an event is heavily dependent upon the weather, but we are keeping our fingers crossed for some sort of Indian Summer at the beginning of October to reward the tremendous work that Jenny and her team are putting in to the event.
For the village to remain viable as a working village though, some concessions will need to be made for tourism. The Stoke Bruerne Partnership, of which the Friends are active members, has this in mind and one option being currently considered is the provision of some sort of all-weather facility that can double as, say, Before we began the series of “Village at War” events, the a picnic area at most times, but for major events can provide a biggest thing that we had to go on in Stoke Bruerne as a basis for a showground. precedent were the two commemorative events for Blis“Radical change for the better” worth Tunnel. The first was the re-opening as far back as 1984, when an estimated 5,000 people poured into the vil- Another matter exercising the Partnership’s collective minds is lage, and the next was the bi-centennial celebration in that of the Side Lock. Visitors will have noticed the current 2005, which was organised jointly with Blisworth and at- state of play, wrought by a recent concerted Saturday morning tracted nearly as many people. The only other comparable effort by the Museum and a few Friends. The overgrown vegeevents were held in the late 1980s as “Village Festivals” and tation has been removed; the old top lock sill has been cleared, just broke even, with a small amount of funds to distribute weeded and gravelled; a large amount of rubbish, weed and among village charities etc. Although we would have liked general gunge has been removed from the main body of the our Summer Gala Events to be as successful, they have not lock and it all looks a good deal tidier. However this is but a so far been on as large a scale, although they have raised start. The Curatorial Group is actively pursuing a plan for the relocation of some of the artefacts in the lock and, together useful amounts of money. with the Partnership, is working on ideas for a more lively and “By no means everyone’s cup of tea” integrated display centred on the original top lock. With a bit The basic problem with organising such events in a small of luck and a following wind, the next two years should see a space such as Stoke Bruerne presents is one of infrastruc- fairly radical change for the better round this central area. ture. Car parking is essential and, in order to maximise the potential revenue, the car parks must be continuously manned. Such a task is by no means everyone’s cup of tea, and long stints spent marshalling cars and collecting money are not made any more bearable by the attitude of some visitors who think that everything, including the use of private land, should be made free of charge. One lady who manned the Church field, which normally relies on an honesty box for contributions, told me after June’s Gala this year that one motorist visitor was really indignant at being caught for a parking fee, he having come here for years without paying! Another major problem that grows with the size of the events is the provision of loos. Hitherto we have relied upon the goodwill of the two pubs and the Museum for these, but as the event grows larger and expands into other areas these are simply not adequate, so Portaloos must be hired. And although most of our visitors are pretty scrupulous about the matter of litter, inevitably there is a need to dispose of rubbish. This is exacerbated by the provision of fast food outlets. Such outlets are excellent moneyearners, as our stalwart members Bill and Liz Mann have proved, but there have to be wrappers and serviettes and so forth. All these items need to be taken care of and once more there is a cost. This brings me to the point that, if we are to develop such events for the benefit of the Museum, the events must also be seen to benefit the community at large. The residents of Stoke Bruerne have proved remarkably patient so far and it has been shown that other village organisations do indeed benefit. What is important is that the goose that lays the golden eggs is not overworked. For at least fifty weeks of each year Stoke Bruerne is a quiet rural community on the banks of the Grand Union Canal, and that is part of its charm. It would be sad indeed were the village to become like some places in, say, the Cotswolds, where tourism is King and the place is merely a hollow shell of a community.
Unfortunately a long-standing plan for interpretation panels put forward by the Partnership for a grant this year has been kicked into touch by the funders. British Waterways, who led the application on the Partnership’s behalf, are understandably disappointed, but we are going to try again and in the meantime, our Council Member, Roy Sears has come up with a useful idea for a leaflet as a standby until the panels can be properly funded. This has still to be thrashed out, but hopefully we shall have some sort of useful pamphlets available by next summer. And finally, I have to report that, following a suggestion by Lorna York, my Deputy Chairman, we have made an approach to the University of Northampton with a view to establishing curriculum links and involving staff and students in the work of the Museum. As we go to press I can report that Lorna, Museum Manager David Henderson and I have been invited to the University for more detailed discussions later this month. So watch this space!
HELP THE WAR EFFORT! We need your bottles, any bottles, filled please with soft drinks, alcohol, beer, shampoo, bubble bath, olive oil, preserves, etc for our fundraising Tombola Stall at the Village at War. If you have 1940s themed bottles, packets or tins, like Camp Coffee, Bovril, evaporated milk, Spitfire or Lancaster Bomber beers or anything else you can come up with—we would be delighted, but quantity is what we need most! Please take them to the Museum or telephone 01327-340492 to arrange collection
“Put that light out!” “Don’t they know there’s a war on”! “Keep mum, she’s not so dumb”! 70 years ago, these were often heard phrases all over the UK. On 2nd and 3rd October 2010, these phrases will be heard again as the entire Village of Stoke Bruerne gets its CC41 utility clothing on in readiness for our Village at War. Our event is fast becoming a “must do” in the calendar of people who wish to remember and pay respect to the memory of those whose lives were changed forever during those fateful years. Our event is being expanded this year as we have kindly had a large field adjacent to the canal “donated” to the Friends of the Canal Museum to use for this prestigious award winning weekend.
Prize of £50 The event now includes much of the Village, and villagers will be competing for a prize of £50 for the best dressed house, the school will be hosting the “Lyons Nippy Tea Rooms” and the Village Hall will host the Tea Dance. Get yourself an original outfit from the best of vintage clothes stalls, enjoy the 40s inspired foods on offer, remember how those spam fritters tasted (those Americans got everywhere), watch as the Home Guard units are put through their paces. We have historic and trading narrowboats, “don’t forget the cheese, mother!” WOW will be entertaining the kids with their wartime activities. We are delighted this year to be able to offer the chance of climbing into a Spitfire, starting the engine and firing the guns! Who can resist? Once again we shall be welcoming the lovely Lola Lamour and her delightful voice taking us back to the era. Come along and see how washing day was done in the 40s, delight in the memory of the forgotten range of goods in our wartime shop (the Co-ops would love to talk to you). Who can forget those Land Army Girls, so reminiscent of our own Idle Women, and the Lumber Jills. Come and talk, listen and learn about their stories of “doing their bit”. This year we also have a vintage Fayre with Dodgems and, subject to the weather, a Helter Skelter (additional cost). We have the traditional display by the Sea Hurricane from the Shuttleworth flight thrilling us again on the Sunday and we hope, on the Sunday morning, a service with the men and women of the Roade Royal British Legion and Greens Norton Royal British Legion as well as the re-enactors. Do join us at 11am to pay our lasting respects to those who gave their lives for us. Lastly, get on those dancing shoes, come along to Roade Village Hall and dance, listen and be enthralled with Sticky Wicket and his band accompanied by Serena Douglas–Howard on Saturday night. Dance tickets £15 including supper. Truly a great night! If you enjoyed last year’s Village at War, we would be delighted to see you again. But if you could not get to us, why not come along this year where the sights and sounds of the 1940s will be reverberating once again over Stoke Bruerne. Day tickets cost £5 per person (includes free parking), children under 16 accompanied by an adult free. Advance tickets, booking forms and all the information you need is on our website www.friendsofcanalmuseum.org.uk/ village-at-war By Jenny Copeland, Minister of Entertainment
CASH BOOST FOR SCULPTOR APPEAL Braunston Historic Narrowboat Rally donation makes a huge difference to the fund (left to right) Chris Catterall (Canals & Rivers), Cllr. David Griffin, David Blagrove and Lorna York (Friends of The Canal Museum) and Tim Coghlan (Braunston Marina)
A record-breaking 94 historic narrowboats attended the Braunston Historic Narrowboat Rally at the end of June, making this the largest attendance of such narrowboats at any rally since the end of the working days on the canals. The Rally was formally opened by David Blagrove, who was there with Sculptor crewed by Lorna York. David said: “The Rally is fast becoming one of the iconic events of the waterways calendar and to my mind more significant and closer to the spirit of the waterways than any other event. The proof of this is the number of exboat people who turn up and somehow inveigle themselves onto the boats.” All profits, which exceeded £6,000, were donated as usual to canal causes, including £1,000 to ‘The Friends’. We are very grateful for Tim Coghlan’s continued support which, along with donations of £847 made in memory of David Prior, have boosted the Sculptor Appeal Fund to £12,000, making it possible to put in an application to Prism for match funding. (See Mike Constable’s update)
Lorna recounts her trip to Braunston We set off with Sculptor for Braunston just before 7.00am on Friday 25th of June as we had been told that Blisworth tunnel was due to be shut to traffic at 8.00am due to a wide boat passing through. The journey to the Buckby flight was uneventful the only problem we had was as the day progressed it got hotter and hotter. At the bottom lock we breasted up with Nb Jubilee and proceeded up the flight, singling out at the top lock. By now it was very hot and I was glad to get into Braunston Tunnel and the cool. Jubilee was waiting at the top lock of the Braunston flight and we breasted up to go down the flight. Coming out of the bottom lock was a sight to behold. The canal was full of working boats as far as the eye could see. I already had a mooring booked in the Marina so I gently made my way past the moored boats, sometimes four and five abreast across the canal. The banks and bridges were full of people walking, talking and enjoying the sights, many comments being made from friends on their boats. I eventually arrived at the Marina entrance to be met by the Harbour Master in his hi-viz jacket to be told you’ve got to back her in! The Marina basin was already full to my eyes and my mooring was right at the far end so my comment was “I don’t do backing especially when there is a crowd of about thirty people standing watching”. I made one attempt and under normal circumstances I would have made it but there were hire boats and an audience. My dear friend Ron Withey came to my rescue and backed us in a blink of an eye. The weekend passed in a haze of heat and talking to people. Tim Coghlan, proprietor of Braunston Marina, presented Sculptor with a cheque for £1000 which was gratefully received.
Sculptor Appeal Update by Mike Constable Following the decision by the Museum Trustees to rebottom Sculptor using a suitable timber, elm not being available any more, a revised Grant Application has been submitted to the PRISM Fund. Until the result of this application is known there will be little to report, but in any case there will be a need to continue to raise further funding for the project as even with a successful application there is currently insufficient money to allow for any unforeseen extras. Any boat owners among you will understand the need for contingency funds and owners of historic craft will certainly be aware of this problem. A major job like replacing the whole bottom of a boat is likely to reveal previously un-noticed areas of concern which will need to be addressed before the boat goes back in the water. It was necessary to submit an application now to secure a place in the boat yard of choice as retrospective applications are not permitted. Any grant awarded has to have matched funding attached so an application has been made to suit the level of funding held now.
Curatorial Update By Mike Constable The winter programme for the volunteer Curatorial Team has not yet been finalised by the Curatorial Group. This will happen at the September meeting and work will start in November.
It is hoped that further improvements to the first floor dis‐ plays will form the basis of the winter programme and if it can be financed, a further new display case will be ac‐ quired.
The success of the Stoke Bruerne Volunteers has led TWT to consider using volunteers in various capacities at their Mu‐ seums in Gloucester and Ellesmere Port. If you haven't been in the Museum recently perhaps you could pop in during this year’s Village at War event. Mike and Sue will unfortu‐ nately be AWOL this year, as they are on a secret mission to the home of the German National Socialist Party, *I left Sculptor at Braunston until 11th July before returning to Stoke (Nuremberg) in advance of the American raid. Two other Bruerne, as I didn’t have a day free from work until then. Friends will be with them.
Message from the Museum Manager David Henderson brings us up to date Financial The Museum has achieved financial targets for every month dur‐ ing the first four months and we are close to achieving a tough target in August. It will all depend on the weather during the Bank Holiday August weekend. Visitors Visitor numbers are very similar to April to July 2009 and there is a small increase in total visitors in 2010. Health and Safety There were no accidents or incidents reported in this period of time. Both Louise and I attended a First Aid Course organised by the Museum on Sat 10th July. We are now qualified for a three year period. I have now received the documentation to undertake CRB checks for volunteers interested in working with children. July 2010
Museum Forum I am now an active committee member of the Northamptonshire Museum Forum and am involved in the production of a Forum booklet with the Head of Libraries (Northampton CC ) and the Manager of Sulgrave Manor. I have also joined a working group led by the Head of Marketing for Northampton Enterprise Ltd to look at initiatives to attract visitors to Northamptonshire linked to their ancestry. This initiative is associ‐ ated with the Northampton Record Office and the intention is to encourage visitors to return to their birth places or where their par‐ ents and grandparents lived. Matt Smith (the new Doctor Who) at‐ tended school in Northampton – there could be a following. I was a representative of the Northamptonshire Forum at an East
Actual
Budget
Last Year
Budget
Last Year
Visitors (people)
1843
2050
2030
(10%)
(9%)
Admissions (£)
11007
10400
10506
1%
5%
Café (£)
8258
7500
7423
10%
11%
Retail (£)
10002
11000
10606
(9%)
(6%)
TOTAL
29267
28900
28535
1%
3%
Overview Events and promotions The Museum endeavours to encourage visitors with 2‐for‐1 vouch‐ ers advertised in different media. The latest two promotions are with The Times Newspaper and Pizza Hut at no cost to the Mu‐ seum. In August we organised a pirate weekend with Wild Over Waterways. Both events were quite successful despite the weather not being that good. A pirate inflatable had to be can‐ celled on the Saturday due to rain but was very popular with the children on the Sunday. In July in conjunction with Gnu, we produced a promotional film that is now on YouTube. It was commissioned to attract a younger family audience. The video has been entered into the Northamp‐ tonshire Film Festival by Gnu as they are very proud of the produc‐ tion. The Canal Museum now has a new website in its own right be‐ cause we are no longer a National Waterways Museum. Check out the new website and promotional video at: www.stokebruernecanalmuseum.org.uk Curatorial Flagship MLA ( Museums, Libraries and Archives ) Course The Museum has received a grant of £700 to attract young volun‐ teers. The money is to pay for posters and leaflets. I have recently attended a meeting accompanied by David Blagrove and Lorna York with The Centre for Volunteer for Com‐ munity Volunteering at The University of Northampton. We have agreed to have a stand on the campus on Thurs 14th October. Survive and Thrive I attended a Business Planning Course on July 29th. This was very useful as it provides me with the opportunity to network with other organisations and learn from their experiences. I think we have now survived the difficult times and are in a position to start taking advantage of opportunities that may come our way, espe‐ cially if we can secure funding.
Midlands MLA Forum meeting. At this meeting I was informed that MLA will cease to exist in 2012 after the cutbacks of the new coali‐ tion government. I believe being involved with the Northampton‐ shire Forum now gives The Canal Museum a higher profile in the County and in the East Midlands Curatorial The curatorial team have produced a Museum Guide. This was nec‐ essary to improve the product and give the visitor better value for money. It will be available to purchase in the shop for £1 for visitors wanting a souvenir but available free for adult and concession pay‐ ing customers. The Canal Linocut temporary exhibition was taken down on the 28th June and replaced with a Quilt display linked to the canals for the summer period. At the Northamptonshire Renaissance Awards in July the Museum won Best Event for the Village at War and the People’s Choice award. I was interviewed on BBC Radio Northampton on both the Friday and Saturday. I accepted the award on behalf of the Friends of The Museum who have organised this event in the last two years. I am Chair of the present VAW committee and we believe the event in 2010 could be bigger and better. We also realise that the success is very dependent on kind weather in October. I have been invited to give a short presentation on the success of the Awards at a NEL ( Northampton Enterprise Ltd ) seminar in September Actions for the winter The costume case is to be replaced; the cost is estimated at £4k New graphic panels for Canals at War The first floor displays would be themed on boats, boating and the people of the boats; the second floor displays on engineering, main‐ tenance and the workforce connected therewith. Issues outstanding Sculptor: The curatorial group will be seeking match funding from PRISM to make up a total of £26k, which figure would Continued overleaf...
COUNCIL 2010/11 Chairman David Blagrove 01604-862174 Vice-Chairman Lorna York Treasurer Laura Sturrock Minutes Secretary Denis Atkinson Membership Secretary Sandie Morton membership@friendsofcanalmuseum.org.uk Publicity, Newsletter, Talks & Website Lynda Payton 01604-861205 publicity@friendsofcanalmuseum.org.uk Museums Management Board Representative Roy Sears Volunteer Co-ordinator: Vacant Other David Henderson (ex-officio seat), David Griffin, Jenny Copeland, Bill Mann, John Alderson, Brian Collings Events Sub-Committees Dennis Atkinson, David Blagrove, Bill Mann, David Henderson, Barbara Everest, Jennifer Chybalski, Lynda Payton (occasional), John Alderson, Rick Thake, Roy Sears, Tim Carter (occasional), Laura Sturrock, Jenny Copeland and Michael Butler Non-Committee Posts Roger Hasdell - Joint Newsletter Editor Terry Richardson - Assistant Publicity Officer
www.friendsofcanalmuseum.org.uk DIARY DATES
Regular Friends talks meetings take place throughout the winter, normally on the third Thursday of the month in the schoolroom at the rear of the Museum. More details are published on our website and in newsletters. A donation is appreciated to help cover expenses. Please put the following dates in your diaries:
Thursday 16th September at 8pm Talk by David Blagrove, Saving the K&A - 1945 to 1962, in the Museum schoolroom. Saturday 18th — Sunday 19th September Introduction to Traditional Canal Painting Techniques course. Advance booking essential. £85 per person. 10am-4pm
each day. Telephone Museum 01604 862229
Friday 1st — Sunday 3rd October Dust off your gas masks for a repeat of our successful Village at War Weekend. See page 5 for more details Thursday 14th October at 8pm Liam D’arcy-Brown talking about the Grand Canal of China, in the Museum schoolroom. Friday 29th October at 7.30pm Auction of Promises, The Boat Inn PH, Stoke Bruerne. Can you promise to do something or give something which can be auctioned to raise funds to help the Museum? Thursday 18th November at 8pm Talk to be arranged. Please check website.
Saturday 11th December from 5pm onwards Illuminated Boats & Carol Singing Hot food and beverages, lantern procession, carol singinclude contingencies and other unknown factors. It has been ing on the Museum Green with the children of Stoke Bruerne Primary School, illuminated boats and village gift decided to replace the bottom with wood. shops open for your last minute Christmas presents. Weighing Machine Discussions are in progress with The Stoke Bruerne Canal Part‐ Prize awarded to best illuminated boat. nership regarding proposals to ensure the future of the weigh‐ ing machine given concerns about its current condition and well ‐being. Full consultation will take place when more information is available. Can you help? Village at War is 2nd/3rd Oct. Are you able to offer a few hours either day to help the committee? Please contact me at the Museum if you are interested in being a part of the Best Event in Northamptonshire. Thanks for your support.
AUCTION OF PROMISES Friday 29th October at 7.30pm at The Boat Inn PH Begins with a light buffet (funded by raffle!), followed by a ‘mock’ fun antiques auction to get you in the mood (will you be the one to correctly guess the sale price?). Then the Auction of Promises itself with valuable lots such as a holiday villa in Thailand, a week in a trulli in Puglia (Italy), a day’s hire of a canal boat, one-to-one pottery tuition, a family photography session...and much much more—all up for grabs to the highest bidder. Can you make a promise which can be auctioned to raise funds to help the Museum? Contact Bill Mann 07860 619143
Thursday 16th December at 8pm No talk this month. Thursday 13th January at 8pm Tim Coghlan talks about “Evelyn’s War” (as serialised in Canals & Rivers magazine).
FINANCIAL UPDATE Reported by Friends’ Treasurer Laura Sturrock The Sculptor restoration fund now stands at £12,000. This includes recent donations of £1,000 from Braunston Marina Ltd and £847 given in memory of Dave Prior. We also have a donation of a new set of top planks from the Historic Narrowboat Owners Club The Gala weekend made a surplus of £1,500 this year which is about £200 less than raised last year. The Pirates were a huge success earning £350 in donations in their collecting buckets. Bill’s burgers and bacon continue to increase in popularity with the income up again this year but the evening meals did not attract so much custom.
The Friends of The Canal Museum at Stoke Bruerne may not agree with opinions expressed in this newsletter, but encourages publication as a matter of interest. Nothing printed may be construed as policy or an official statement unless so stated. The Friends of The Canal Museum accept no liability for any matter, errors or omissions contained within this newsletter. We will, however, gladly publish corrections if notified. The editors reserve the right to shorten or modify articles published in the interests of clarity or space.