Southam Heritage Collection
Southam Heritage Collection
Basement, Vivian House,
21 Market Hill
Southam
Warwickshire
CV47 0HF
England
Website
cardallcollection@hotmail.co.uk
Telephone
Chairman, Bernard Cadogan
01926 613503
The Southam Heritage Collection (previously know as Southam's Cardall Collection) contains over 4,500 documents and items relating to the history of Southam and the surrounding villages. In addition it houses the Alan Griffin photographic archive consisting of over 1,000 unique local photographs plus 450 glass plate negatives from the early 20th century.
Venue Type:
Museum, Archive, Association or society
WW1 Humour and Sentiment
- 6 January — 5 May 2015 *on now
Southam Heritage Collection has an original set of 36 humorous postcards that for decades hung on the wall of Billy and Maude Stephens’ barbers shop on Market Hill. These cards, by Fergus Mackain, are fondly remembered by many of the older generation who would view them each time they returned for a haircut.
The drawings in Winnie Tolley’s autograph book, kindly donated to the Collection by local resident Mary Williams, show that some lads had many talents - they drew snappy pictures to impress maybe! This book also gives clues about the names of some of the soldiers who spent time at the VAD Hospital.
The Exhibition also contains an outstanding display of richly embroidered cards and other artefacts that soldiers could buy. These pretty things, laden with sentimental messages, they sent home to their loved ones. Most of the trench art, cards and gift items are on loan to the Exhibition.
Suitable for
- Family friendly
Admission
Free for the exhibition, although donations to help with the upkeep of the Collection would be much appreciated.
Illustrated talks are available for a small fee.
Bandages and Fresh Air
- 1 January 2015 — 31 December 2016 *on now
'Bandages and Fresh Air' is an illustrated talk lasting approximately 45 minutes and is based on a very successful exhibition about Southam's VAD Hospital and the nurses who managed it at the Southam Heritage Collection during 2014. It is a story that typifies the work of over 90,000 Volunteers in more than 3,000 hospitals nationwide.
Suitable for
- Family friendly
Admission
There is a fee for the talk plus travel costs depending on distance from Southam. Contact Val Brodie on 01926 812179 or val.brodie@zen.co.uk for further details and bookings.
WW1 Centenary Archive
- 5 January 2015 — 19 December 2017 *on now
If you either currently live in Southam or the surrounding villages, or you have a family member who used to live here during the WW1 period, we would love to hear from you about any memories or artefacts you may have.
As a result of the success of our previous exhibition focussing on "Southam Women in WW1" we have had many visitors come to share their memories and we would like to extend this invitation to others. We are aiming to collate information over the next few years with the objective of designing another exhibition for the end of the centenary period to display much more material which we believe may never have been seen before.
Please bring your memories and artefacts along on any Tuesday morning between 10 and 12:00 to share them with us.
Suitable for
- Family friendly
Admission
Free admission
Dear Mother!
- 22 January 2015 — 31 December 2016 *on now
Whether it was having a laugh, pouring out feelings in letters, opening parcels from home, or sending a fancy card to a sweetheart or a cartoon to Dear Mother – all these human expressions helped to keep body and soul together amidst the toil and repetitive work behind the lines, and in the devastating carnage of battle. This presentation is packed with both humour and emotion, it is richly illustrated and seeks to draw you through letters, poems, cards, music, and comedy into the anxieties of lives at home, and spirit of the young men facing terror abroad.
Suitable for
- Family friendly
Admission
There is a fee for the talk plus travel costs depending on distance from Southam. Contact Val Brodie on 01926 812179 or val.brodie@zen.co.uk for further details and bookings.
The Shaping of Southam
- 22 January 2015 — 31 December 2016 *on now
This illustrated talk covers some of the people and events from the past 1,000 years that have helped make Southam the town it is. It attempts to show how Southam became an important market town and a major hub for South Warwickshire before Leamington Spa hardly existed. It also traces some of the reasons for Southam's relative decline.
Suitable for
- Family friendly
Admission
A small fee is required for the illustrated talk plus expense to cover travel from Southam.
Contact Bernard Cadogan at cardallcollection@Hotmail.co.uk or 01926 613503 for further details and bookings.
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