Speaker: Richard Dudding
Until commercial gravel extraction began after World War II, the area known today as the Radley Lakes was farmland. Richard, Club archivist and secretary of the Radley Lakes Trust, describes the history of the area from the Iron Age to 2000.

Many thousands of years ago,  a very different River Thames deposited gravel in the Radley Lakes area, making it attractive for early human settlement.  Following World War Two this same gravel was extracted, but before then the area was mainly agricultural. Richard’s talk charts this history, starting before the Romans arrived and finishing around 2000, just before the Save Radley Lakes campaign. Along the way, it describes fisheries for Abingdon Abbey, the growth and decline of the settlement at Thrupp, changing land ownership, the impact of the railways, and the transition from farming to gravel workings.  It ends with pictures of the Lakes area today, showing how some familiar landscapes have been shaped by past events.

Richard Dudding is secretary of the Radley Lakes Trust and formerly chair of Radley History Club where he is now archivist. His talk offers a preview of the history chapter of a forthcoming book on the Radley Lakes story.

Non-members welcome – a donation of £2.50 towards the meeting costs would be appreciated.

Doors open at 7 pm