From Axtell to Zacharias: the Men who built Oxford
Radley Church Church Road, Radley, Abingdon, OxfordshireSpeaker: Liz Woolley The talk examines some of the characters involved in the city’s enormous expansion during the Victorian period including builders, architects, property developers and landlords. Fortunes were made, reputations were lost, regulations were ignored, and political careers were boosted. Liz is a local historian specialising in aspects of Oxford and Oxfordshire, with a particular interest […]
The History of the Railway from Didcot to Oxford
Radley Church Church Road, Radley, Abingdon, OxfordshireSpeaker: Laurence Waters Laurence draws on his extensive knowledge of local railway lines to tell us the history of the railway from Didcot to Oxford. Laurence has written several books about the Great Western Railway, the latest being Railways of Oxford: A Transport Hub that Links Britain. He is the Photo Archivist of the Great […]
Thames Bridges between Oxford and Abingdon
Radley Church Church Road, Radley, Abingdon, OxfordshireSpeaker: Keith Parry After the Norman conquest major bridges across the Thames were established at Oxford, Abingdon and Wallingford, initially as wooden structures and later as stone. Keith’s talk focuses on the older road bridges, particularly those in Oxford, Grandpont and Oseney, and Abingdon. Keith is a voluntary researcher at the Maidenhead Heritage Centre and […]
The History of the Radley Lakes area up to 2000
Radley Church Church Road, Radley, Abingdon, OxfordshireSpeaker: 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 […]
The History of Oxford University
Radley Church Church Road, Radley, Abingdon, OxfordshireSpeaker: Alastair Lack Alastair read modern history at University College Oxford. After a career working for the BBC, he now lives in Oxford where he is a Green Badge Guide. Alastair is thus well-placed to present what might be called a ‘whistlestop stop tour’ of the history of Oxford University. Non-members welcome – a donation […]