Events and Activities
Deanshanger Village Heritage Society was a partner in the Great War MK project, organised by Arts and Heritage Alliance-MK and funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund. A grant enabled us to research the history of the village and the effect war had on the men, women and children of the Parish and use the findings in a variety of ways.
DVHS ran a series of exhibitions entitled Serving King and Country 1913 - 1919, The effects of the First World War on the Parish of Passenham. These were also collecting events inviting people to bring along their own family history - 151 people visited our main September 2014 event in 4 hours and brought along artefacts, documents and ? stories were added to the archive.
Great War family memories were digitally recorded in interviews undertaken by the DVHS Memories Group which also investigated the histories of the men listed on the Deanshanger War Memorial located in the grounds of Holy Trinity Church, Deanshanger.
The Archive Team visited the Northampton County Records Office, researched local newspapers, online documents and local museums; trade directories and the Census helped identify village social history, industrial life and population changes. The Schools Admission Registers for the period have been transcribed, as have the Absentee Voters Lists for the 1918 and 1919 elections which proved useful in identifying the many who served and returned from the war.
The DVHS project finale Great War Activity Day, held July 2015, displayed our findings in an exhibition alongside running a host of activities. Aimed at children and families, it included making poppies, constructing trench periscopes and handling authentic period artefacts (including a Vickers Machine Gun) were just a few activities amongst many others and of course the Primary School art project outputs were once again available to view.
If you have any further information, memories or images that you would like to contribute please contact us: info@deanshangerheritage.org.uk