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If you are a NWKFHS member, please login, if not, please join today.

Aug
27

Standing in Granny’s footsteps.

Have you ever visited a place and stood on the same spot as one of your ancestors. You look around yourself and either its as they would have seen it or as in my case its now totally disfigured. Three generations of my family were costermongers/fishmongers on Beresford Square, Woolwich. Recently I visited Woolwich and from memory and old photograph...

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Jun
07

Enquiry on Royal Arsenal Woolwich Foundry and proof marks.

A visitor to our web site is doing research and asked "I wonder if you can point me in the direction of records for Woolwich Arsenal for the 1700s please. A friend in the USA has a cannon which was on the HMS St Lawrence and then Diana in 1775... and we are trying to trace it back as to when it was made and despatched to the ships off Boston". Than...

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Mar
29

Look what you missed.

The 'come and talk FH' zoom today (29-3-2023) had topics that varied from the usual Zoom talks getting to know you pre-chat, RAW people with changing names, Migration into Woolwich, Plaistow Bike shop, Hobbs, Wireman, assisted passage in 17th c, drawing up time lines, 1780 Clerkenwell records, How DNA could show up on matches when there was possibl...

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Aug
01

The Royal Arsenal Woolwich Workshop 3rd August 2022

Please note the workshop starts at 2.30 pm (14.30 hrs) and NOT at 10.30 am. Sorry for the misunderstanding. To book a place in this workshop contact workshop.booking@nwkfhs.org.uk. If you cannot attend this workshop but would like it re-run please contact the workshop coordinator to ask if it can be run on another day at perhaps another time. All w...

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Jul
21

How good a researcher are you?

Bring your research talents and know how to our 'People' and 'Place' Workshop on the 3rd August 2022. Ray Fordham left a number of documents and databases to the Society that he had rescued from the Royal Arsenal Woolwich when it closed. Among the files are WW2 lists of names without source or exact date, but they give addresses within the Arsenal ...

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Jul
21

Late Ray Fordham expert on Royal Arsenal Woolwich.

 Ray Fordham worked at the RAW when it closed and among the documents and photographs that were being thrown away he saved some of those that related to local history and family history. He had over his retirement been recording the details into a number of databases, some of which are already on our web site. Now the Society has been given th...

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Feb
16

King of the Costers, Frank Russell.

 The 1917 Daily Mirror had pictures of military figures mentioning their exploits with a picture entitled 'King of the Costers' of Frank Russell who had died, He was a stall-holder on Beresford Square Market, Woolwich and lived in Salutation Alley, a convenient location to store his barrows and move them into the market. He had resided in Wool...

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May
06

Blog request of the Library – East Street, Plumstead in 1891 Census

 Query 6 May 2020 Can I ask please, have you ever heard of EAST STREET, PLUMSTEAD, or possibly LAST STREET? It appears on the 1891 Census. Answer 7 May 2020 One of our researchers wrote. If memory serves me well East Street was down near Siemens Factory (which became AEI where he had spent his apprenticeship) and this area is now an industrial...

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