About Us
The village of Langford is situated in North Somerset some 12 miles south west of Bristol and close to the Mendip Hills. It has a well established local history group which was started in 2000 by Jo Fryer. The group meets on the second Thursday of each month at Langford House, the home of Bristol University’s Veterinary School. Meetings usually start at 7.30 pm.
Our meetings cover a wide range of subjects: the environment, family history, trades and professions, architecture, archaeology, social and political matters, transport, and notable events, usually with a local historical bias. Talks by visiting speakers take place in an informal and relaxed atmosphere. There are visits to sites and houses of local interest, and occasional trips to the Somerset Heritage Centre inTaunton.
In addition the Group has built up an archive of records, maps, and documents which enables members to carry out research on families and houses in the area. Some of these documents date back to the reign of Henry VI, allowing us a glimpse into Medieval Langford!
As a result of our book sales, we have been able to make donations to the Langford Trust, to the Somersetand Bristol Record Offices, and to local charities such as Farm Link. Please see the Gallery for photographs. As funds from additional book sales permit, we hope to be able to continue to make donations to worthy local causes .
Membership of the Group is £10 annually, and allows free access to all the meetings and access to the records. Visitors are more than welcome to individual meetings for a nominal fee of £2 to cover speaker’s costs. The Annual General Meeting and election of officers and a committee usually take place in April or May each year. Following his move to Wells, Alex Kolombos stood down as Chairman in 2011 and was succeeded by John Gowar. Fortunately, Alex remains Vice-Chairman and his predecessor, the Group’s founder, Jo Fryer, also remains on the committee to guide the Group.
New members are always welcome and you can find out more about our activities either by contacting Jo Fryer (01934 862812), Jane Dixon (01934 862248), Alex Kolombos (01749 836020), or John Gowar (01934 862021).
Our 2011 meetings have included talks on the remarkable Bristol artist, Paule Vezeley, and on the famous 18th century Wrington authoress, Hannah More. John Alvis reminisced on the ways farming in the Vale of Wrington have changed over the years and we heard about British piers and the history of ballooning. At the AGM, our retiring chairman debunked some local myths about the Bloody Assizes and in June he organized a fascinating guided tour of Wells Cathedral and its Library.
