Posts related to the history of our village
I talked in the last entry about the importance of school attendance in the functioning of a Victorian village school. Part of the annual grant was based upon attendance, and successive heads assiduously plotted weekly averages in the log book. Any cause of widespread pupil absence was therefore also noted.
Continue reading Staying off school-more reflections on school life in Haslingfield, 1875-1900
Taking over from the redoubtable and late lamented Howard Stringer as village archivist, one of my first tasks has been to complete a transcription of the School Log Book entries for 1875 to 1900. This has been a formidable task, copying nearly 200 pages of copper-plate writing. It is, however, done. I’ve paused at 1900 for rest as much as the convenience provided by the end of the Victorian era, and if anyone would like a copy in Word please do contact me at jf.beresford@ntlworld.com. Be warned, however – it is a hefty document of 272 pages.
I have been reading book by John Morris called the “Age of Arthur” (1973) which constructs a highly readable account of the history of the British Isles from 350-650AD. To my surprise I saw that Haslingfield is mentioned several times in the book and for interesting reasons. Reading on Wikipedia I see that the book has been strongly criticised probably because of the debatable narrative that it has strung together from the few reliable facts available.
I remember being told several times in the village that Haslingfield is a Saxon name for the field of the Haslingers or the people who follow Hasle. But who were these people and why were they here?