HADDINGTON’S HISTORY SOCIETY

TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT TO THE
OFFICE OF THE SCOTTISH CHARITIES REGULATOR

for the year 1st APRIL 2009 to 31st MARCH 2010

Reference and Administration details:

                                       Charity Name: Haddington’s History Society

                                       Scottish Charity Number: SC 021070

 

Contact Address :  c/o Secretary : Mr David Elder, 20 Kennedy Court, Knox Place, Haddington, East Lothian EH41 4AZ

                                     

Current Trustees:

                             Maggie Beynon-Jones

                             David Elder (Secretary and Press Secretary)

                             Eric Glendinning

                             Jean McKinnon

                             Shirley Middlemass (Membership Secretary )

                             Bill Rarity (Hon. Treasurer)

                             John Richardson

                             Susan Robinson

                             Frances Scott (Convenor)

                             Jack Tully-Jackson

There were no other trustees during the period (eg, any who

might have resigned during the financial period).  

Structure, governance and management:

Governing Document: The Society is an unincorporated association the affairs of which are governed by a written constitution. Recruitment and appointment of trustees:  All of the Society’s trustees currently serve on the management committee of the Society. They are each appointed or reappointed by the members at the annual general meeting. The constitution of the Society also allows the co-option of committee members with specific knowledge or expertise or to fill casual vacancies. Such appointments have to be ratified by the membership at the annual general meeting.

Objectives and activities:

The Society’s charitable purposes and activities, as recorded in its constitution, are to:

• Foster interest in the history and archaeology of Haddington and its environs through its annual programme of meetings, visits and outings.
• Collect and hold on behalf of the local community significant items of local historical interest.
• Foster research into local history and to publish findings from time to time.
• Encourage awareness of the historic fabric of Haddington and the need to conserve and protect the same as well as supporting change that is compat-ible with the historic character of the Royal Burgh.

Activities and Achievements:

Meetings:

After the AGM last year we had an interesting and enthusiastic presentation from Davina Williams from Scotland’s People Centre who outlined the variety of records available and illustrated her talk with examples from East Lothian’s history.

The 2009/2010 Season opened with a very well attended meeting with a talk by Dr. Mike Challis on Whittingehame Farm School. The story of the Jewish child refugees at the school had been well recorded by Dr. Challis’s uncle, a teacher there but Dr. Challis had discovered even more and had traced many later histories.

In October, Ralph Moffat of Glasgow Museums talked to us about “ The Real Fighting Stuff: an introduction to the Arms and Armour at Glasgow Museums”. His well illustrated talk covered how the items had come into the collection, how they demonstrated the skill of the armourer and how they changed with technical advances in warfare.

The third talk in November, by David Anderson from East Lothian Museum Service,  covered East Lothian’s links with the slave trade. These were more extensive than had been thought and many local families owed their wealth to this trade.

In December the members’ night started with Jack Tully Jackson showing a DVD of the last train journey from Haddington to Longniddry followed by a sequence of aerial photographs, taken from a microlight, of views of the Bass Rock and East Lothian stately homes. After a break for refreshment (when there was also an opportunity to view a presentation of work carried out by members for Scotland’s Rural Past project) four members had produced a Call My Bluff of Scots words and phrases, which was much enjoyed by all present.Samuel Smiles was the subject of January’s lecture by David McClay, Curator of the John Murray Archive at the National Library of Scotland. He traced Smiles’s  career from relatively humble beginnings in Haddington through a career in medicine, business and (very successful) authorship.

In February, East Lothian Council’s Archaeology Officer, Biddy Simpson, gave us an update on archaeological developments in the county since 2007. She included a very interesting explanation of what her department does before any work can be carried out by a developer.

In March, Dr. Alison Sheridan, Curator of Early Prehistory at NMS fascinated the audience with “Supernatural Power Dressing in Bronze Age Britain and Ireland.” We learned what the jewellery and artefacts lost, buried or offered to the gods could tell us about our distant ancestors.

 After tonight’s AGM we will have a talk by Joy Dodd “19^th. century  North Berwick: the Goode Towne and the Nighbours”.

I would once again like to express my appreciation for the support and hard work of all committee members.

Other activities - outings , visits etc:

The Society’s Outing in May 2009 was to Gunsgreen House in Eyemouth. Although work on the house was not yet completed as had originally been  assumed, some 30 members very much enjoyed the privilege of being guided round the house by the knowledgeable and enthusiastic curator, Derek  Janes. Afterwards, most members stayed in Eyemouth for lunch and went on to visit the town’s museums. The outing planned for May 2010 is to Cramond and Lauriston Castle.

Community Involvement:

Once again Society members helped Jack Tully-Jackson with the exhibition he had produced for the Haddington  Festival. This had been very successful and £100 in donations had been given to St. Mary’s Church where the exhibition had been staged. It is planned to have another exhibition during the 2010 Festival on the Commonwealth War Graves in East Lothian.

A Committee member continues to attend HADAS committee meetings and reports back on any issues of particular interest. Burleigh’s Wa’s are still of concern to us but matters seem to be at a standstill there.

The Committee has had a meeting with Margaret O’Connor of East Lothian Council to discuss plans for the John Gray Centre and how Society members could be involved now and when the Centre opens. A further meeting is planned.

Eight members of the Society, under the direction of Eric Glendinning, participated in a nation- wide project backed by RCAHMS to record traces of Scotland’s vanishing rural settlements. Our target was Walden Farmhouse, a ruin near Gifford on the former Tweeddale estate. The ruin has now been surveyed and photographed and the history of the farm researched from its first mention in 1609 to the last record of its use in 1861. The project report will be filed with RCAHMS and a copy included in our next proceedings.

As reported last year, we decided not to participate in Doors Open Day but are considering taking part in East Lothian Archaeology Fortnight - perhaps an exhibition of the Walden Farmhouse project and a walk around Haddington.

Trustees’ Remuneration and Expenses:

The Trustees did not receive any remuneration during the year. The Convenor and Secretary received compensation for out of pocket expenditure on postage, stationery, copying costs, speakers’ expenses and similar items. Committee members also received direct compensation for their expenditure for the Members’ Night.

Frances Scott   Convenor           David Elder    Secretary

April 2010                                    Haddington