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Olney History – The Society was founded in 1997 by a group of like-minded people determined to keep Olney history alive for all generations of people in the town and those who have since moved away.

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Introducing a new complementary website to ODHS  – June 2023

OLNEY HISTORY HIGHLIGHTS WEBSITE

If you are a relative newcomer to Olney history and primarily use a smartphone to access the internet, you may wish to try out the ‘Olney History Highlights’ (OHH) website, as per this Link.  

The OHH website is complementary to this main ODHS website and is specifically designed to accommodate the display contraints of smartphones. To this end the OHH website adopts a high image-to-text ratio with which smartphone users are familiar. It includes a selection of the more popular Olney history topics that through the years have interested ODHS users. 

 

OLNEY IN THE POST WW2 PERIOD 1945 – 1960 (Revised Aug 2022)

What was Olney like immediately after WW2

 This subject is featured as a major article accessed via the following links to its two parts:

Part 1 ELEMENTS OF OLNEY LIFE

Part 2 OLNEY’S LEISURE PURSUITS

An annex to Part 1 is added to indicate some of the significant national influences on Olney life during that period.

 

THE OLNEY FLORAL FIESTA 1965 – 2006

Olney’s Fiesta Floral Fiesta was conceived in 1965 and the first procession took place in the same year. It soon developed into a popular annual event and proudly celebrated its Silver Jubilee in 1989. The last Floral Fiesta was held in 2006. Be sure to check out the extensive gallery of photos.

 

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A SELECTION OF OLNEY POSTCARDS

The selection  is drawn from a private collection of post cards. The postcards were collected over many years, the majority of which, have survived the rigours of Royal Mail.  The dates superimposed on each image are those on the post mark, and not necessarily the dates when the cards were originally printed.

 

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THE APRIL 2021 OLNEY MARKET PLACE (AUDIO) HERITAGE  TRAIL 

No. 32 Market Place – c. Spring 1889

This trail features:
a light introduction to the history of Olney Market Place for the period from 1800 to the present,
a superior set of voiceovers addressing the Market Place and a selection of the surrounding buildings and their residents,
a presentation optimised for smartphones which works well for tablets and laptops,
image collections that can be viewed enlarged whilst listening to the audio presentations,
minimal walking and may be suitable for people with limited mobility (it can even be viewed in your home of course).

This Olney Market Place trail should be considered as complementary to the Olney High Street trail launched in September 2020 as it possesses similar features. (See immediately below.)

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THE SEPTEMBER 2020 OLNEY HIGH STREET (AUDIO) HERITAGE TRAIL 

Olney High Street – Heritage Trail (Smartphone/Audio Version)

This Olney Heritage trail has all the attributes of the Olney Market Place (audio) Heritage trail. (See immediately above.) It also has a superior set of audio voiceovers.

After presenting a light history of Olney’s notoriously wide High Street stretching from the Market Place in the south to the Knoll at its north end, the trail continues by addressing a selection of the surrounding buildings and their residents.

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OTHER SIGNIFICANT LATEST ADDITIONS 

Chronolological History of Olney

Click this link for a ‘potted’ or summary of Olney’s history followed by a more detailed chronological history of Olney in six sections. 

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Are you aware of the ‘Coat of Arms’, ‘Badge’ or ‘Crest’ of the town of Olney? 

Check out their status using this link.

 

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.Click (or tap) any image in the ‘slider’ below for a direct link to the feature or article.

  • MARKET PLACE TOUR - covers the Market Place and surrounding buildings from 1800s to 1950s.

Link to Family History Guidance

Popular features on Olney’s History

Each of the following three features (a feature usually comprises several web pages) can be accessed directly by clicking the text or images below:

Link to full content of Features

Popular articles on Olney’s History

Each of the following nine articles can be accessed directly by clicking the text or images below:

Link to the full set of Articles

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ODHS is a member of the

Users please note that this website is now considered complete and no further articles are planned to be published. However this extensive website covering many facets of Olney’s history will continue to be maintained by the ODHS Webmaster, noting that ultimately it will be under the care of Milton Keynes Heritage Association. 

Copyright © Statement: Unless acknowledged otherwise, text and images used on this site are the copyright of Olney & District Historical Society. Permission is granted to reproduce for personal and educational use only, but the Society reserves all rights with regard to commercial reproduction. 

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Site last reviewed: September 2023

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