Tadley has its fair share of local folklore, including the “Tadley Treacle Mine” and the “Tadley God Help Us” episode. The story of the “Tadley Toad” is not primarily about a Toad but a sad tale of a particular person living in “Poor Tadley” in the late 18th […]

Settlements on the Burghclere and Kingsclere downs, beside east-west trade route, the Ridgeway. Local area is the centre of wool industry. Tumuli found at Wootton, and on south side of Wasing Wood.   Bronze and Iron Age Important trade and communications centre at Silchester, with pagan temple and […]

Union Street, also known locally as Smelly Alley, is a pedestrian alley in the centre of the English town of Reading. It is lined with small shops and other retail outlets, and connects Broad Street and Friar Street. The name Smelly Alley came about in the 1940s, as […]

A talk by Chris Broom As the title suggests, his talk “Humour in Genealogy” uses a number of light-hearted examples to demonstrate the advantages of scrutinising original documents in family-history research, many of which contain additional information not included in online records. Humour in Genealogy – A talk […]

During the Civil War Baughurst saw local skirmishes and suffered from plundering.  After this it became one of the biggest and wealthiest Quaker centres in Southern England.  Following a visit in 1657 to Basingstoke by George Fox, the Quaker founder, James Potter of Baughurst went to prison for […]

Blue Gown (1865) was a sweet-tempered, compact, short-legged,  bay colt that won the Derby in 1868. It was owned and  bred by Sir Joseph Hawley of  Hawley House in Tadley,  He sold the horse in  1869 to a French syndicate for 5,000 guineas.  Blue Gown  returned to England, […]

The Battle of the Somme: the blackest day in the history of the British Army Online talk by Phil Wood The first day of the battle remains the worst day in the history of the British Army, when it suffered 57,470 casulties, around 20,000 of whom were killed. After a series of attacks and counter...

For those who missed it, here is the 2020 TADS quiz. Grab a pencil and paper… there are four rounds. Each section has ten questions worth 1 point each. click for answers at the end of each round! Round 1 – General History 1. Which aerospace manufacturer constructed the […]

FREE ACCESS FOR TADS MEMBERS Members receive link by email 5 days before talk  “The remarkable story of our National chair”, an online talk by Stuart Linford This classic design was created in the Thames valley at the beginning of the 18th Century.  Windsor chairs are a large […]

TADS Zoom Talk on 18th November 2020 Poisons for Medicine  By Graham Harrison Who would use poisons as medicine? Well the Victorians certainly did as Graham told us in his amusing and interesting talk, seemingly in large quantities. But before we chuckle too much, we must not forget […]

On 6 June 1997 a plaque, dedicated to the people of Tadley, hosts to the USAAF during WW II, was erected at Blake’s Lane, on the south wall of the Toucan Travel building. This plaque was initiated and designed by Gordon Timmins, MOD police dog handler and local […]

Henry Ludlow (1577 – 1639) who lived locally in Tadley Place, was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons [1] between 1601 and 1611.    During the Speaker’s address Henry let out a resounding fart. The House erupted in laughter. And then, so it seems, […]

As a local history society we are interested in local folklore that includes oral traditions such as tales, proverbs and even jokes passed down through the generations.  Family stories have been an interesting source of  local history information over the years, When we hear a new one we  […]

  The image above is Sudbury Town Tube Station London. London Underground Piccadilly Line station designed by Charles Holden in a modern European style. 1931. The Grade II* listed building was described by Pevsner as “an outstanding example of how satisfying such unpretentious buildings can be, purely through […]

On  16th Sep 2020 Colin Oakes gave an online talk entitled “Never had it so good”   Colin Oakes is an archaeologist and a London guide who has significant knowledge of London’s history and  superb delivery skills. In the past he has talked about Dickens’ Childhood, The London […]