Programme 2026/2027

Venue: St Mary's Community Centre, Chipping (not November) Members Free, Visitors £4

 

September 15th  2026, 7.30pm

The Accrington Brick & Tile Company - Graham Topping

An enthusiastic presentation of the history of The Accrington Brick and Tile Company, whose trading name was “NORI”. Graham will talk about the Accrington brick industry in general. It will include photographs and visual aids along with a serious Public Health warning!

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October 20th 2026, 7.30pm 

The early photography of Roger Fenton through to contemporary Bowland landscape - Peter Laurence

 Peter is a locally born photographer and author, whose landscape projects have included the Forest of Bowland AONB. The photography pioneer Roger Fenton, of Rochdale, was well known for his northern landscapes and Crimean War work. Putting the old with the new shows how the area has evolved.

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November 25th 2026 - Anniversary Dinner 6pm, venue: Chipping Village Hall

Revival of Historic Houses in Great Britian - Robert Parker

Robert, owner of Browsholme Hall, is a Technical Adviser to the Historic Houses Foundation set up for the purposes of preserving historic buildings for the benefit of the nation.

This occasion is also a celebratory dinner to mark the 40th Anniversary of Chipping Local History Society to be held at Chipping Village Hall.

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December 8th 2026, 7.15pm - Jacob's Join

St. Annes Lifeboat Disaster - Andrew Walmsley

The disaster took place in the Ribble estuary in December 1886 and claimed the lives of 27 lifeboatmen when lifeboat crews from St Anne's, Lytham, and Southport went out to rescue the crew of the German barque, Mexico.

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January 19th 2027, 7.30pm

Gawthorpe Hall - Jessica Young

Gawthorpe Hall is the Elizabethan ancestral home of the Shuttleworth family. The talk will cover a range of topics from witchcraft accusations to championing vaccinations and explore how the Shuttleworth family (both men and women) influenced the politics and society of the UK for 400 years, all from a small hall secluded in the rural north of England.

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February 16th 2027, 7.30pm

Duchy of Lancaster - Graham Kemp

The Duchy of Lancaster traces its roots to 1265, when King Henry III granted lands confiscated from Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester, to his second son, Edmund Crouchback. Later that year, additional lands from Robert Ferrers, Earl of Derby, were added, forming the foundation of the Lancaster inheritance.

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March 16th 2027, 7.30pm

"The quest to Spin a Really Good Yarn" - Ian Gibson

The desire for means to spin yarn faster and better has been around for a great many years.  More minds were tackling the problem following John Kay's invention of the flying shuttle in 1733.  This talk explains some of the schemes being considered, and by whom.

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April 20th 2027, 7.30pm

Elizabeth Thomas, Chipping’s connection to a First Fleeter convict to Australia - Clive Thompson

Including the background of why Elizabeth was transported, the dramatic sea voyage and her life thereafter in Australia.