So much of our history is lost. We may know about the big events but it is also our everyday activities that shape our society and these are, all too often, forgotten and never recorded. As part of the Habitats and Hillforts project we would like to capture those memories.
“I remember picking bilberries at Maiden Castle. We sold them to a company in Chester….”
“The third hole at Helsby Golf Club (the 1920’s one) near to the Iron Age fort always caused me trouble.”
“I was stationed with the ??? Regiment during the war and we trained at Woodhouse Hillfort.”
“We sat on Helsby Hillfort and watched the blitz over Liverpool. The sky was…….”
“Our animals grazed the land around Maiden Castle until ??? but when we stopped the trees and scrub started to cover the land.”
The Iron Age Hillforts of Cheshire have acted as a focal point for so many activities for hundreds of years. Their dominant positions have drawn people to work, play or simply sit and stare for generations. But, little of this has been recorded.
We would like to trace photographs that your parents/grandparents/friends took around the hillforts and to talk to you, and document, the memories of things you did. Our aim is to keep our social history alive for future generations. If you have any such memorabilia or would be happy to talk to us, please contact:
David Joyce or Barbara Foxwell (via Ellie)
We would be delighted to hear from you or meet you over the next year to bring together local finds, photographs, maps, farm records, antiques etc that increase our knowledge of the heritage of the area. The research may lead to the publication of a further booklet about the history of the area as well as displays in village halls