'The Poplars' - 1914

It was felt that the museum would be best managed by a group of volunteers rather than the Town Council and a public meeting was called to gauge support. It was a successful meeting and the Burton Latimer Heritage Society was formed. In October that year the Heritage Museum opened with its first exhibition and since then has continued to mount three themed exhibitions each year. The museum is ‘under the umbrella’ of Kettering Manor House Museum , which provides professional advice and the necessary insurance cover. A peppercorn rent is paid to Kettering Borough Council for the use of the room and its lighting and heating, but the Society is responsible for security.

The Society issues four newsletters a year to its members; they carry news of the Society’s activities and articles of historical interest about the town and its past inhabitants. Because the museum is on the first floor and not easily reached by people with disabilities, an annual ‘Afternoon to Remember’ is held at a ground floor venue to enable them to see some of the photographs displayed at previous exhibitions; copies of photographs from all the previous exhibitions are contained in a series of folders that are taken to these gatherings and they can also be seen when the museum is open. Other activities include visits to local museums, conducted walks, themed ‘living history’ days and speakers. The recent acquisition of a projector will mean that regular audio visual presentations of ‘old Burton ’ photographs, discontinued following the death of Douglas Ashby in 2002, can now resume.

Douglas Ashby

The Society was granted charitable status in 2002 and has an executive committee of twelve trustees. The 2008-9 officers are: John Cutmore, chairman; John Meads, secretary; Ian Watson, treasurer. Other trustees are: John and Judy Clipstone, Trevor Cooper, Ivan Cox, Ian Hebden, Anita Marks, Janet Meads and John Peck. Councillors Peter Bettles and Ruth Groome are Town Council representatives.

The Heritage Room Museum is open on Thursdays and Saturdays from 10am to 1pm , except when exhibitions are being changed. Out-of-town visitors should phone the secretary on 01536 722722 before travelling any distance to check if this is taking place. The museum can be opened at other times by arrangement.

Questionnaire

Later this year Burton Latimer Heritage Society will be moving its museum to new ground floor premises in the former Health Centre in High Street. This will be far more convenient and accessible for some elderly or disabled people and parents with young families who are unable to negotiate the stairs to reach the present museum.

We would be interested in your views on what we could provide in our new premises so that we can consider any suitable suggestions and incorporate them in our future plans. To that end, we have prepared a questionnaire for you to have a say in the future role of the Society.

Click here to download the questionnaire. It is in rtf format, which should be readable and usable by all systems. Complete your replies and return the form as an e-mail attachment to John Meads at johnandjan.meads@btopenworld.com

Exhibition

The Society's first exhibition of 2010 opens on Saturday March 6th and is entitled "At Your (Public) Service". The theme is local government and the services it has provided for the town since the Parish Council started its work in 1895. The display cabinets show reminders of slum clearnaces, road widening schemes, council house building and elections, as well as an assortment of nearly a hundred photographs showing other aspects of the work done on the town's behalf by local authorities. The exhibition is open from 10.00 am to 1.00 pm on Saturdays and Thursdays until early summer.

Other arrangements for opening the museum for visitors from afar can be made by phoning the secretary John Meads on 01536 722722 or emailing him at johnandjan.meads@btopenworld.com

For those wishing to join, membership of the Society costs £3.00 per year.
The treasurer’s address is 9 Church View , Burton Latimer , NN15 5 LG