NEWS
NEW DATA TO SEARCH
A large number of non-conformist registers have been uploaded to our site along with a few more cemetery records. Please keep an eye out as more are going on all the time - Methodist, Independent, Baptist, etc. Amazing what can be found. At the moment it is just baptisms, but they are from all over Derbyshire such as Alfreton, Melbourne, South Derbyshire etc. More will continue to be added over the coming weeks.
NEWS
Probate Register 1901-1935
Work on this has been completed
After many years of work by volunteers the index of Derbyshire probates has been completed and is being made available to members online. Extracted form the National Probate Register it lists the names, addresses and dated of death for people in Derbyshire and Burton on Trent from 1901 to 1935. In addition, the place of death if it was away from home is given and the date of probate with the office concerned.
MEETING
The History of the Bennerley Viaduct - Peter Harris
Wednesday 19th March 2025. 2.00pm. - 4.00pm
Museum of Making Silk Mill Lane Derby DE1 3AF
Zoom Codes available to Members only
This talk on Bennerley Viaduct, which was completed by the Great Northern Railway in 1877, covers the history, the construction, the Derby designers, builders and manufacturers and what the Friends of Bennerley Viaduct have achieved in re-opening the viaduct.
MEETING
The Royal British Legion and the history of Remembrance - Gareth Howell
Wednesday 16th April 2025. 2.00pm. - 4.00pm
Museum of Making Silk Mill Lane Derby DE1 3AF
Zoom Codes available to Members only
The talk will examine why the Legion was created and why its work was and is still important. We start with a background to the fears and possibility of revolution, as country after country fails to deal with the grievances of veterans returning home before the work of unions and Field Marshall Haig combine to avoid a tragedy in the UK, and to work for long term improvement of veteran care.
MEETING
Dr Samuel Johnson Literary Titan Connections to Derby and Derbyshire - James Simister
Wednesday 21st May 2025. 2.00pm. - 4.00pm
Museum of Making Silk Mill Lane Derby DE1 3AF
Zoom Codes available to Members only
Samuel Johnson, essayist, lexicographer, poet, editor, critic, and famous talker, is reputed to be the second most quoted person in the English language, after Shakespeare. He was born, brought up, and educated in Lichfield for which he retained a strong affection.
Derby and Derbyshire were also important for much of his life: he married in Derby; and one of his deepest and most enduring friendships was with a doctor in Ashbourne.
James Simister, who regularly gives talks on cruise ships and on land, will explain Dr Johnson's links with Derby and Derbyshire, and include some short readings from his works.
MEETING
Framework Knitters of the East Midlands. - Jane Whitaker
Wednesday 18th June 2025. 2.00pm. - 4.00pm
Museum of Making Silk Mill Lane Derby DE1 3AF
Zoom Codes available to members only
Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire were the centre for the framework knitting industry in the 18th and early 19th centuries. Join Jane Whitaker from Strutt's North Mill in Belper, as she traces the industry from the years of plenty, to the downturn in prosperity in the face of new machines, and the Luddite struggle for improvement in working conditions and better pay.
MEETING
19th Century Policing in Derbyshire - Robert Mee
Wednesday 17th September 2025. 2.00pm. - 4.00pm
Museum of Making Silk Mill Lane Derby DE1 3AF
Zoom Codes available to members only
Robert Mee returns to talk to us about Policing in 19th Century, Derbyshire. He will tell us about the establishment and early days of the County and Borough police forces, along with what came before them.
MEETING
Anthony Babington and the Babington Plot - Danielle Burton
Wednesday 15th October 2025. 2.00pm. 4.00pm
Museum of Making Silk Mill Lane Derby DE1 3AF
Zoom Codes available to members only
Anthony Babington and the Babington Plot- In the 1580s, Anthony Babington became embroiled in a plot to overthrow, and possibly kill, Elizabeth I and replace her with Mary Queen of Scots. This is the story of the young Derbyshire nobleman and the plot named after him.
Danielle Burton is a Derbyshire based historian, author, heritage worker and history blogger. She has a First in History and an MA in Public History and Heritage, both from the University of Derby. Her first history book, a biography on Anthony Woodville, brother-in-law of Edward IV, entitled Anthony Woodville: Sophisticate or Schemer was published in February 2024. She specialises in little-known stories from history from the fifteenth to late nineteenth centuries.
MEETING
A. I. Coffin Doctor or Quack. - Gay Evans
Wednesday 19th November 2025. 2.00pm. - 4.00pm
Museum of Making Silk Mill Lane Derby DE1 3AF
Zoom Codes available to members only
Gay Evans presents the life and work of Albert Isaiah Coffin. He portrayed himself as a Professor of Medical Botany, an M.D., a Physician, and a Herbalist. He was born in America and arrived in England between 1832-1838. Throughout the country, he delivered a series of lectures, published numerous books and leaflets, and actively recruited agents and members for his friendly societies. Frequently called upon as a witness at inquests and trials, his practices drew the scrutiny of Dr. Henry Letheby, a Professor of Chemistry and Toxicology, who viewed Coffin as a perilous figure. The question remains: did his remedies lead to healing or harm? How will you assess his legacy?
