Sixty First Annual Report 2009-2010 Annual Report 2009-10 20/8/10 8:45 Am Page 2
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Annual Report 2009-10 20/8/10 8:45 am Page 1 The Friends of Colchester Museums Sixty First Annual Report 2009-2010 Annual Report 2009-10 20/8/10 8:45 am Page 2 The Friends of Colchester Museums OFFICERS President Her Worship the Mayor Vice Presidents MRS JEAN BAKER MRS BARBARA NAPPER MARK DAVIES LEN DRINKELL ANDREW PHILLIPS PAUL SPENDLOVE Honorary Members MRS R J BRISTOW LEN DRINKELL Honorary Treasurer PETER EVANS 5 Grimston Road Colchester CO2 7RN Telephone 01206 540990 Email [email protected] Honorary Secretary PATRICK DENNEY 247 Old Heath Road Colchester CO3 8BN Telephone 01206 796822 Email [email protected] Honorary Auditor ROY ANDERSON Committee MARK DAVIES (Chairman) MRS JEAN BLOWERS MRS JANE REES HARRY CARLO PETER CONSTABLE PATRICK DENNEY LEN DRINKELL PETER EVANS ANDREW MILLAR ANDREW PHILLIPS Ex Officio PETER BERRIDGE (General Manager, Colchester and Ipswich Museum Service) TOM HODGSON (Community History Manager) PHILIP WISE (Heritage Manager) Museum Office Museus Resource Centre 14 Ryegate Road Colchester CO1 1YG Annual Report 2009-10 20/8/10 8:45 am Page 3 Sixty First Annual Report 2009-2010 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 2010. Please do not miss this very special The Annual General Meeting took place opportunity to support Colchester’s Museums. on Tuesday 29th June at Lion Walk Church. MARK DAVIES Chairman The Mayor of Colchester, Councillor Sonia Lewis, took the chair.The audited accounts, see TREASURER’S TOPICS pages 8 and 9, were presented and approved. Subscriptions for 2010 became due on 1st Afterwards, PHILIP CRUMMY and two January - single £7.50, couple £12 and family colleagues presented The Puzzle of Mr H G £18. Please check that you are paying the Polley, Draper of St Botolph’s Street, when the correct amount if you pay by Standing Order audience was asked to Hear the Evidence,Weigh and make the necessary adjustments with your Up the Facts and Decide if H G Wells was bank if required. Please contact the Treasurer, involved. A fascinating evening ensued. Peter Evans on 01206 540990 if you are not sure of the status of your membership. OPEN EVENING AT THE CASTLE Besides our activities for members – Gift Aid including another series of well-attended Money continues to be raised from Gift lectures and some enjoyable outings – the Aid, with the claim for 2009-2010 in the Friends have been able to support our Museum region of £1,500 currently being prepared for Service in acquiring several important items for the year ended 31st March 2010. The claim the collections during the past year. Reports on will be with HM Customs and Revenue within all of these are included among the following a few weeks. If you have yet to complete a Gift pages.What is more, members will be able to Aid form, please do so as soon as possible. see these items at a special Open Evening to be The form can be backdated to cover any held by kind invitation of the Colchester and contributions made since 2000 or the date that Ipswich Museum Service on Monday, 27th you joined.You need to be a UK taxpayer but September, 2010, at the Castle. there are no other qualifications.The Friends This date is particularly significant in that retain your authority and use this to claim back it marks to the very day the 150th Anniversary Gift Aid on all contributions and subscriptions, of the opening of the Castle Museum in 1860. even donations are claimable. In addition to the recent acquisitions, there will PETER EVANS Hon Treasurer be an opportunity to view the spectacular temporary exhibition on ‘The Medieval Mind’ MEMBERSHIP UPDATE and an informative update will be given on the As at July 2010, our membership has seen major project to re-develop the Castle, to a small increase over the past year with 710 which the enclosed questionnaire relates. signed up members compared with 695 last Hopefully as many Friends as possible will year.As this figure is made up of single, couple be able to join in celebrating this occasion and and family memberships the total number of perhaps they would like to bring an interested individuals associated with our group is around friend or two.There will be a small charge to 1400. Please keep spreading the word among cover wine or soft drinks and light refreshments your friends and associates about the benefits of and booking forms need to be in the joining the Friends as we would like our Secretary’s hands by Tuesday, 21st September membership to grow even larger. Page 1 Annual Report 2009-10 20/8/10 8:45 am Page 4 VISIT TO THE BRITISH MUSEUM venue by Assistant Curator of Oral History, AND BRITISH LIBRARY Mary Stewart, we were free to tour the various On Tuesday 15th June we joined forces galleries and to inspect some of the priceless with the members of the Colchester Recalled manuscripts and maps on display. Oral History Group, for an exciting visit to the The visit concluded with tea and British Museum and British Library. refreshments and a presentation by Mary on the Our first port of call was the British work and progress being made by the Library's Museum where members were free to explore sound archive department. the various exhibits at their leisure before boarding the coach after lunch for the short VISIT TO LAVENHAM transfer to the British Library. Our second excursion for the year took After being cordially welcomed to the place on Tuesday, 22nd June when we were treated to an evening’s entertainment at Lavenham. Upon arrival we made our way to the Guildhall for an introductory talk given by the Guildhall Manager, Jane Gosling, before dividing into three groups to enjoy a range of activities for the rest of the evening. These included a short walking tour of the town led by Blue Badge Guides, Jim Robinson LEFT: One of the many sculptures taken from the frieze of the Parthenon in Greece by Lord Elgin in the early 1800s and transferred to the British Museum BELOW: Members arriving at the British Library Page 2 Annual Report 2009-10 20/8/10 8:45 am Page 5 and Gill Templeman,a visit to the nearby ABOVE: Medieval Little Hall and, of course, the chance Introductory talk in Guildhall by Jane Gosling, who to browse the exhibits of the Guildhall itself. is standing in the doorway The evening concluded with some light BELOW: refreshments and the chance to browse the well Walking tour led by Gill Templeman, pictured in stocked gift shop. front of the Little Hall Page 3 Annual Report 2009-10 20/8/10 8:45 am Page 6 VISIT TO AUDLEY END HOUSE AND GARDENS Our final excursion for 2010 took us to ABOVE: Audley End House and Gardens for a day long The rear view of Audley End House and gardens visit on Wednesday, 14th July.There was much to see in both the house and extensive grounds BELOW: and the weather was fairly kind to us, albeit at Deryck Johnson, demonstrating the art of bee-keeping times a little breezy and overcast. to a group of members in the grounds of Audley End As an extra attraction on the day of our visit there was a demonstration on bee keeping Outing reports and photography by and the chance to purchase some locally made PATRICK DENNEY Hon Secretary honey and beeswax etc. Page 4 Annual Report 2009-10 20/8/10 8:45 am Page 7 ST BOTOLPH’S HISTORY FAIR AN INTERESTING FACT ABOUT THE The Friends had a stall at the History Fair POPULATION OF COLCHESTER at St Botolph’s Church on Saturday 17th July, I understand that the population of the where we signed up some new members and Colchester district is now 170,000 or more. also accepted a subscription renewal. An old history book I have just come This was an interesting day and we were across gives the population of British towns able to explain our aims to a number of with populations of over 20,000 two hundred visitors. Our site allowed us to listen to the years ago. Colchester did not appear in the list. three different talks given by John Ashdown Had we had 170,000 people in 1811, we Hill (a member) on medieval Colchester. would have been the second largest town after If you can help the Committee by staffing London. the stall at the History Fair or the Museum PETER EVANS Hon.Treasurer Christmas Open Evening, please let us know. Know Your Colchester? Friends who know Colchester are invited to enter this competition to provide the answers asked about each photograph. Send your answers to Peter Constable, 12 Claremont Heights, Colchester CO1 1ZU. Email: [email protected] to arrive by Friday 17th September. The prize will be free admission to the rest of this year’s lectures for the first correct answer to all three pictures. A B C A. Where is this town centre view? B. Where is this old tram situated? C. Which of the town’s old medieval churches is this?' Page 5 Annual Report 2009-10 20/8/10 8:45 am Page 8 Museum News COLCHESTER CASTLE Anne Millman was appointed as the REDEVELOPMENT PROJECT audience development consultant on 30 April On 27 November 2009 the Heritage 2010. She is consulting a wide range of people, Lottery Fund (HLF) awarded the Museum including a number of Friends of the Museum, Service to gain, in £265,300 detail, for the their views project to on the redevelop current Colchester displays Castle.We and their welcomed input Loraine on the Donnelly as proposed the Project new Assistant on displays 15th March and 2010 to facilities.