A SPECIAL ‘Day School’ and Alan Petford Memorial Event will take place on Saturday, May 20 at Saddleworth Museum in Uppermill.
The event, organised by the Saddleworth Historical will open at 10am for a 10.30am start, with a half-hour break for coffee and one hour for lunch.
There will be four 30-minute lectures in the morning and another two in the afternoon, with the ‘Day School’ ending at 3pm.
Then at 3.30pm the launch of ‘History in the South Pennines’ will take place, including a tribute to the popular local historian and lecturer Alan Petford, who died in 2015.
There will be an introduction to the book, which has been published in his memory and is a collection of essays written by the students Alan helped to discover local history.
The book examines a thousand years of life in the upland communities of Saddleworth, Marsden and the Calder Valley, and delve into subjects Alan was particularly interested in, including the landscape, architecture and the textile industry.
T
hree essays are dedicated to Saddleworth, investigating the development of settlement in Saddleworth during the middle ages, the early linen industry, and Samuel Bottomley’s Greenfield, an eighteenth-century poem telling the tale of two mountain-dwelling giants, Alder and Alphin, and the nymph, Rimmon.
Alan was a former student of Hulme Grammar and a founder member of the Saddleworth Historical Society.
Having held teaching posts at Blackburn, Hipperholme and Lancaster Grammar Schools, he later became a regular lecturer for the Workers’ Educational Association, inspiring countless students from Saddleworth and beyond.
After the launch of the book, drinks will be served and books will be signed by the authors.
Historical Society members will receive registration forms for the day and non-members can obtain forms from Mike Buckley: call 01457 820015 or email mikebuckley@saddleworth.net or David Harrison: call 01457 875855 or email: david@djwharrison.plus.com
There is a charge of £15 per person for the day, including lunch. Any profits will go to the Alan Petford Memorial Fund. For more details about the book go online.
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