Pilton Village History Group

01/06/2026

“Croscombe's Outstanding Church – an illustrated tour” with Richard Raynsford

Our meeting this month will be on Monday 8th June at 7.30pm in Pilton Village Hall.
ALL WELCOME Members free, Visitors £4

Richard says...
“We are very fortunate in Somerset in having exceptional historic churches, which locally include Pilton (the subject of a previous talk) and Croscombe, which has one of the finest seventeenth century interiors in the country.”
Richard’s illustrated talk will cover both the furnishings and the exterior carvings of Croscombe Church, together with overlooked features such as the nave roof, whose bosses are carved with various images.

Richard has always had an interest in churches, particularly their historic and artistic qualities.
He has written a book on rural churches in England (which is now out of print) and is currently working on a study of medieval figurative images in Somerset churches.
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Poster shows pencil drawing from 1923 by Nathaniel Sparkes

05/05/2026

Hello all, hope you had a good Bank Holiday weekend and a fun day at the Pilton Jumble Trail!

Monday 11th May, 7.30pm at Pilton Village
ALL WELCOME Members free, Visitors £4

We are delighted to have what promises to be a fascinating talk from Stephen Clews.
THE CHEW VALLEY HOARD
The hoard of silver coins, found in the Chew Valley south of Bristol in January 2020, is one of the most spectacular finds of treasure to have been found in recent years, and there have been many.
This talk considers what treasure is, goes on to discuss some local finds and tells the story of the discovery and afterlife of what became the highest value treasure hoard ever found in Britain.
The talk is given by Stephen Clews, who prior to retirement, worked in field archaeology and museums, where he managed The Roman Baths for 32 years.
He is a Fellow of the Museums Association and is currently Chair of Radstock, Midsomer Norton & District Museum Society, Treasurer of the Association for the Study and Preservation of Roman Mosaics, trustee of the Bristol and Gloucestershire Archaeological Society and a volunteer for English Heritage.

Refreshments

21/04/2026

A lovely read...

Extracts from John Miles' diary - W I Concert at Village HallConcert drawing from John MIles' diaryConcert drawing from John MIles' diary numbered 1. Candace Fletcher / Bahooth 2. Andrew Kynaston 3. Joanna Benner, prev Kynaston, nee Miles 4. John Fletcher 5. Margaret Miles, nee TalbotJohn Miles diar...

21/04/2026

Advance notice...
Next meeting on 11th May
"The Chew Valley Hoard" with Stephen Clews

08/04/2026

"The Strawberry Line – from the steam age to its rebirth as a greenway", with Richard Jones

Monday April 13th, 2026 7:30 PM - 9:30 PM

As a campaign and as a multi-user path, the Strawberry Line is known to locals living anywhere between Shepton Mallet and Cheddar, and beyond.

This talk traces the origins of the railway route, from its Victorian beginnings to the Beeching closure in the 1960s, and its gradual redevelopment as a long-distance shared-use path.

Richard Jones is a trustee of the Strawberry Line Society, and volunteer coordinator for the section between Wells and Dulcote Hill.
ALL WELCOME
Members free, Visitors £4.

27/03/2026

Lovely memories of Pilton School from Hedley Lomas
Everyone in the photo is named in the link!

“I started at Pilton School on my 5th birthday – 5 January 1948. We were living at Woodburn House, Conduit Square. My mother ...

06/03/2026

'Sacred Geometry' with Tom Bree
‘John Michell, The Great Pyramid, Wells Cathedral and the Festival's Stage.’
Monday 9th March. 7.30pm Pilton Village Hall
ALL WELCOME Visitors £4, Members free
Refreshments
Full details in Roundabout or at www.piltonhistory.org.uk

05/02/2026

1976. Are these names correct, and who are the others?
1 Jackie Bruce, 2 Gill Eavis, 3 Marian (Billy) Wilson, 4 Anthony Barkle, 5 Polly Randall ?, 6 Mandy Bath, 7 ???, 8 Margaret Miles, 9 Rob Fear, 10 Clive Bath, 11 John Stacey, 12 John Barkle

04/02/2026

UPDATE 2 - now suggested that man on left is Reg (Reginald) J Carter b. 1897, one of Alice Carter's older brothers.

UPDATE - Now suggested as Ron Ward's sister Ruby and her husband Norman Cook
,
One to stretch your minds further back, or to ask anyone who might recognise them from family photos perhaps?
This is the wedding of Ron Ward and Alice Carter in 1929, but who are the other people on the photo?
Is the lady one of Alice's many sisters? She was youngest of 11 children of Sidney and Susan Carter (nee Osborne).
Photo outside Sidney and Susan's home, 1 Batch Cottages, Bread Street.

02/02/2026

“HISTORY IN THE NORTH SOMERSET LANDSCAPE”
Monday 9th Feb, 7.30pm. Pilton Village Hall
ALL WELCOME
Members free, Visitors £4
Refreshments
This will commence with our short AGM.
This will be followed by our talk ...
“Larry Cunningham will give an illustrated talk, following in the footsteps of Clare Balding, and revealing some of the fascinating history behind some intriguing features in the local landscape.
For walker, Larry, who has a keen interest in the history of his local area, many questions were raised as he encountered features such as spoil heaps, ruins and derelict buildings in the local landscape, when out walking with friends Sue Fraser and Peter Bradshaw.

The friends would go on to research and discover interesting information about the features they saw on their walks using various methods including, looking at the Bath and North East Somerset Historic Environment website, studying old Ordnance Survey and Tithe maps and visiting Somerset Coalfield Life at Radstock Museum, where they found sources of information and often old photographs.
Several local walks books by the three friends resulted from all this walking and researching. Each of the walks identified interesting historical features on the routes.
Having completed 100 walks, Clare Balding visited Timsbury to record an episode of her ‘Ramblings’ programme and walked with Larry, Sue and Peter exploring the history in the landscape in and around the village.”