Articles
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Murder in Helmdon & Misadventure in Radstone
A deadly quarrel over a debt in Helmdon in 1297, and an accident at nearby Radstone, from medieval court records.
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Northamptonshire Village Book 1989 (Helmdon)
Helmdon's entry in the Northamptonshire Village Book of 1989, from Saxon times to the present.
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Northamptonshire Within Living Memory 1992
Memories of Helmdon from the book 'Northamptonshire Within Living Memory', 1992, including the Reading Room.
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Notes from Minute Books Of Helmdon WI
Louise Stothard: How the Helmdon Women's Institute was founded in 1921, and its first years, from the minute books.
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Notes on The Sharon Belle Research Album
Research: Derek Ratledge, presented by Audrey Forgham: Derek Ratledge's research album on the B-17 'Sharon Belle' that crashed at Astwell in 1943, given to the village.
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Off To School
NFWI: Memories of going to school in Helmdon from the 1870s to the 1940s, including the dame school that came before the village school.
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Old Photo WI Outing to Portsmouth
An old photograph of a Helmdon WI outing in the late 1930s, with the members named.
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Old Postcard Looking from the Nibble & Clink Bridge
An old postcard looking towards Church Street from the Nibble & Clink bridge, from before 1903.
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Over Fifty Years In The Village – A History
Of The Fellowship Audrey Forgham: A history of the Helmdon Fellowship from the 1950s to its closure in 2022, with the closing address.
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Population
Helmdon's population from the census, with figures for 2001 and 2011.
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Population Of Helmdon, including population graphs, census lists of family names, and details of occupations.
Valerie Moir: Helmdon's population from 1841 to 1941, with census lists of family names and occupations.
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Pryce Jones, Curate Of Helmdon
Robert Butler: Pryce Jones, curate of Helmdon for 36 years from 1819 to 1855, and his family.
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Re-dedication Of Helmdon Church Bells 1951
The service of 1951 at which Helmdon's church bells were re-dedicated.
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Reading Room (earlier trail page)
The Reading Room, given to the village by Charles Fairbrother in 1887, as described on the village trail.
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Reading Room (older trail page)
The Victorian Reading Room, given by Charles Fairbrother in 1887, with a sketch of the building.
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Shops in Helmdon
Ross Vicars: A history of Helmdon's village shops from the late 1800s to the present day.
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Shortgrove Wood Between The Wars – Mary Turnham
Mary Turnham's memories of Shortgrove Wood between the wars, and the people who lived and worked there.
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Snippet from Oxford Journal
A newspaper report of 1856 on the sudden death in Helmdon of Edward Wilcocks, a Sulgrave butcher.
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Snippet: Astwell Castle – The Countess of Huntingdon
Marjorie Watson: Selina, Countess of Huntingdon, born at Astwell Castle, founder of the Calvinistic Methodists known as Lady Huntingdon's Connexion.
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Snippet: John Fairbrother
A note on the death in 2019 of John Fairbrother, whose family gave the village its Reading Room.
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Snippets from Helmdon and Greatworth
Church News (magazine): Extracts from the Helmdon and Greatworth Church News of May 1967.
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Snippets from Helmdon’s Newsletter – Talkabout
Extracts from Talkabout, the village magazine that served Helmdon from 1984 to 2010, covering 2005–2010.
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Snippets from Helmdon’s Newsletter – Talkabout
Extracts from the village newsletter Talkabout, 1984–86, starting with its very first issue.
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Snippets from Helmdon’s Newsletter – Talkabout
Extracts from the village newsletter Talkabout, 1990–94.
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Snippets from Helmdon’s Newsletter – Talkabout
Extracts from the village newsletter Talkabout, 1987–89, including the Reading Room's centenary.
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Some Helmdon Textile Workers
Dr Andrew Ratledge: Helmdon weavers and other textile workers of 1683–1781, found in records by a former resident.
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Some Twenty Years In The Planning: A Re sumé Of The Origins Of The School Playing Field
Audrey Forgham: How Helmdon's school playing field came about, from the first letters in 1947 to its opening years later.
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Spotlight on Helmdon for Sulgrave on the Great Central Railway
Helmdon station on the Great Central Railway, as featured in British Railways Magazine in 1954.
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St Mary Magdalene Church Kneeler Project
Jenny Overson & Mary Nash: The 25th anniversary in 2017 of the church kneeler scheme, and the completion of the kneelers.
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That Territory Of The Dead – Article on the church yard and memorials
Val Moir: The churchyard and its memorials, the stories behind them, and links to the full list of inscriptions.
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The Bungalow Stores
The Bungalow Stores, known as 'Secky's', Helmdon's last surviving village shop.
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The Chequers
The Chequers, the pub opposite Helmdon School, with records going back to the 1760s.
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The Cock and Magpie
Joy and Richard Webb: Our cottage's past as a small pub called the Cock and Magpie, 1869–1909.
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The Cross
The Cross, the alehouse in the hands of the Cross family for much of the 1600s and 1700s.
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The Fairbrother Family
Audrey Forgham: The Fairbrother family, who gave Helmdon its Reading Room, traced from 1678 to the present.
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The Flag Fund
The Flag Fund, which raised money for charity by flying flags in Church Street from 2000 to 2002.
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The Foundation Of Oral History: Reminiscence
Jean Spendlove: Why oral history matters, and how memories of Helmdon have been collected and kept.
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The Friends of St Mary Magdalene: The First Twenty Five Years
Audrey Forgham: The first 25 years of the Friends of St Mary Magdalene, set up to help care for the church building.
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The Great Central Railway Through Helmdon – an article from Fielden’s Magazine Vol 2, 1900.
How the Great Central Railway was built through Helmdon, from Fielden's Magazine, 1900.
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The Gullivers of Helmdon
Alan Ryalls: The Gulliver family, who came to Hill Farm in 1903, and their place in village life since.