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We are delighted to share our Autumn/Winter programme of illustrated talks about history, heritage and culture. Plus an afternoon history course with Dr David Peacock ‘2,000 Years Around Newbury’ starting in January 2022.
 Wednesday 17 November | 1 - 2pm | Free (donations welcomed)
Gertrude Bacon grew up in Cold Ash and was educated by her father, Rev. John M. Bacon, supporting him on many of his balloon adventures. Aged only 26, she began travelling the country lecturing to large audiences and wrote for numerous periodicals, such as Strand Magazine. Find out more about this fascinating woman at this talk by Fred Davison, who is an active member of the Cold Ash Heritage Group.
 Wednesday 17 November | 7-8pm | £5 per household | Online (Zoom)
This online talk by Eleanor Ghey will explore the stories behind local coin hoards from the Iron Age and Roman period, some of which can be seen in West Berkshire Museum’s Hoards – New Treasure special exhibition. Recent discoveries have helped us learn more about coinage in the past and the reasons why hoards were lost or hidden and not recovered.
Eleanor Ghey is a curator in the British Museum Department of Coins and Medals. She works on Iron Age and Roman coin hoards reported through the Treasure Act.
 Wednesday 19 January | 7-8pm | £5 per household | Online (Zoom)
Hungerford is one of the few modern place-names in western Berkshire not recorded in Domesday, though it can be traced back to shortly after this time. Hungerford had a market and fair in the medieval period, and had become an important market town by the 17th century. Find out more and meet members of West Berkshire Council’s Archaeology team (Beth Asbury and Philip Smither) as they delve into the parish’s historic environment and share some of the fascinating artefacts found there by members of the public.
Beth Asbury is West Berkshire Council’s Assistant Archaeologist with responsibility for the district’s Historic Environment Record and outreach.
Philip Smither is the Portable Antiquities Scheme’s Find Liaison Officer for all of Berkshire.
This talk ties-in with the special exhibition ‘Focus on Hungerford’.
 Wednesday 16 February | 7-8pm | £5 per person
There is no brewery in Newbury today, but there was a time when the production of beer was a major local industry. The talk will look at many of the breweries that operated in the town, some small, some large, some struggling on for a few years, some flourishing for a few centuries. What traces have they left? Come along and find out.
The speaker Phil Wood is a retired engineer with a passionate interest in history – he’s also quite fond of beer and pubs! He has served as President of the Newbury District Field Club (Newbury’s 150 year-old local history society), he represents the Field Club on Newbury Town Council’s Heritage Working Group, and is on the West Berkshire Heritage Forum.
 Wednesday 16 February | 1-2pm | Free (donations welcomed)
A light hearted ramble through the history of pubs, beer and brewing, from the days of the Assyrians, to the present day, with a particular focus in the modern day on West Berkshire's wide range of local and micro- breweries, local pubs, skittle alleys and more. Sadly, samples of local beer will not be on offer!
Speaker Sue Ellis moved to West Berkshire in the 1980's and has utilised her history and archaeology knowledge as a member of several local historical societies and committees for a number of years.
These two talks tie-in with the special exhibition ‘Barrels and Bottles’:
 Tutor: Dr David Peacock | £85 (8 week course)
8 weeks from Tuesday 18 January - Tuesday 15 March 2022 | 1.30pm-3.30pm (not including Tuesday 22 February, half-term school holiday)
Tutor David Peacock presents an introduction to the history of the Newbury area over 2,000 years, covering a different period each week. It includes major events, people and architecture from the Romans to the Victorians, with examples from local towns and villages. The course also provides details of the wide range of sources available to those studying the history of the area.
David Peacock has researched, written about and taught the history of West Berkshire and the Newbury area for many years. He is the author of the 2011 edition of The Story of Newbury; his Ph.D. investigated Jack of Newbury and the Tudor cloth industry.
Please note: Places for these events are limited as the Museum’s Long Room will be set up to provide social distance between attendees. We request that attendees also wear a face covering inside the Museum.
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