AT HOME WITH THE ANCESTORS

A day exploring the history of six historic houses
at
the Weald & Downland Open Air Museum
Friday 27 April 2007

A fascinating look into the homes and daily lives of our rural ancestors is planned during a new one-day course at the Weald & Downland Open Air Museum, at Singleton, near Chichester, West Sussex. The course is entitled ‘From Hangleton to Poplar’, featuring the history of six of the Museum’s houses, from the tiny flint Hangleton cottage dating from the 13th century, to the 17th century timber framed Poplar cottage.

The Weald & Downland Open Air Museum is England’s leading museum of historic buildings and traditional rural life. The new course is the latest addition to a comprehensive adult learning programme, which features courses in a variety of traditional rural trades and crafts, as well as many aspects of historic building conservation. ‘From Hangleton to Poplar’ will appeal to all those interested in social history or a love of rural heritage, exploring the history of each house, its inhabitants and their community, offering a fascinating insight into the daily lives of the rural people of south east England over a 400 year period. The houses will be placed in their social and economic context, offering a chance to understand the social status and household structure of their earliest inhabitants.

The course will be predominantly classroom based but will also include visits to each of the houses, all set in beautiful parkland on the Museum’s downland site. Participants are advised to bring suitable footwear and warm clothing! The six houses included in the course are Hangleton, a flint cottage from the downland village of Hangleton in East Sussex, thought to date from the late 13th to the early 14th centuries; Boarhunt, a timber framed hall house from Boarhunt in Hampshire, thought to date from the late 14th century; Bayleaf, a Wealden hall house from Chiddingstone in Kent, built in two stages between the early 15th and early 16th centuries; Pendean, a timber framed house with a brick chimney from Midhurst in West Sussex, dated to the early 17th century; Walderton, a 17th century flint and brick house from Walderton in West Sussex containing the remains of a fifteenth century timber framed hall house; and Poplar, a 17th century timber framed landless labourer’s cottage from Washington in West Sussex.

The course is presented by Dr. Danae Tankard who is currently working as a history associate on a Knowledge Transfer Partnership project run jointly by the Weald and Downland Open Air Museum and the University of Reading. Her remit for the project, which began in October 2005, is to research and write the social and economic history of ten of the museum’s houses. During the course Dr. Tankard will also consider the types of evidence that exist for reconstructing the domestic, social and economic lives of our ancestors - documentary, architectural, archaeological, literary and visual - and some of the challenges they present to the history enthusiast, both amateur and professional.

‘From Hangleton to Poplar’ will take place on Friday 27 April from 9.30am –4.30pm. The cost is £60 per person including a refreshments and a light lunch. Places may be booked by calling Rebecca Osborne on 01243 811931.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

The award-winning Weald & Downland Open Air Museum has over 45 historic building exhibits and is designated by the Government for the outstanding importance of its collections. Exhibits include a medieval farmstead; a working watermill producing wholemeal stoneground flour; exhibitions focusing on traditional building techniques and agriculture; historic gardens, farm livestock and a working Tudor kitchen. The Museum runs a well-established programme of courses in building conservation and rural crafts.  There is a café which uses the Museum’s own flour and a shop with gifts and books on countryside and buildings themes.  The modern Downland Gridshell houses the Museum’s building conservation centre and artefact collection. There is a daily tour at 1.30pm when the Museum is open, and an appointments system for visits to the collections for research purposes.

NOTE TO EDITORS

Reporters and photographers are welcome at the Museum. For further information call the Museum information line on 01243 811348 or contact Cathy Clark, Marketing Officer

Tel: 01243 811014.
Fax: 01243 811475
Email: marketing@wealddown.co.uk.

Full details about the Museum and its activities can be found at www.wealddown.co.uk 

[Back to News Archive]