The Marple Local History Society was formed in 1951 as The Marple Antiquarian Society and changed to its present title in 1990. More than 80 members meet on the third Monday in the month from September to April at the Evangelical Church on Queen Street, Marple.

The meetings invite speakers on various subjects of local interest or from further afield. Recent talks have included Girl Power - Manchester Style, Ellen Turner - Local Girl in National Scandal, Life in Longdendale, Underground Stockport, 10,000 years in Mellor, The John Rylands Library and its collections and "Fire in the Summit Tunnel". The Society also has close links with the Mellor Heritage Project and the Iron Bridge Restoration Group.

In July there is a Cheese and Wine evening at Mellor, which includes a guided tour of the archaeological excavations. During the summer two or three coach tours are organised to places of interest where specialist guides meet us. Past visits have included Gorton Monastery, Tissington Hall and Longnor, Port Sunlight and Ness Gardens, Llangollen, followed by a canal boat trip over the Ponte Cysyllte Aqueduct, Chesterfield and Hardwick Hall, Liverpool Cathedrals, and Shibden Hall.

The Society holds extensive archives of local and regional interest and is constantly adding to them. Many of these are donated by local people but some arrive from as far away as the U.S.A. The archives are presently stored at Mellor but the committee hope to move them to Marple and is actively looking for suitable accommodation.

Annual subscription for the Society is £10 and visitors may attend talks for £3. New members are always welcome and further information can be obtained from Hilary Atkinson on 0161 427 3802 or

The Society members enjoyed a varied and stimulating series of talks this season which opened with Emily Orford’s talk about following in the footsteps of Joseph Watson, gamekeeper at Lyme Park in the 1700s. Continuing the local theme, our Treasurer, Ruth Hargreaves, talked about the people who have lived in her house and Warwick Burton brought back memories of the railways and Marple Station. A little further afield, Derek Brumhead gave a fascinating talk about the Millennium Walkway in the Torrs, then Fred Broadhurst informed and entertained us with his talk of Marple 300 million years ago.

We are fortunate to have Judith Wilshaw as our visits organiser. Judith’s enthusiasm for local history is evident in the care and preparation she puts into arranging the visits. This year’s visits have had a distinctly local and urban theme, but every one has been quite different and they have complemented one another well and show what a rich heritage we have in the north of England.

In November we went to Tameside, starting at the Moravian Settlement. The Society has been here before, but it’s so long ago that no one remembers. Everyone was enchanted by this lovely little haven of peace and tranquility, just off the main Ashton-under-Lyne to Manchester main road. We then went by narrow boat to Portland Basin where the Ashton, Peak Forest and Huddersfield Narrow Canals meet. This very interesting museum of Tameside life and industry, all of 8 miles from Marple, was a revelation to many who hadn’t known of its existence before our visit.

In February, Fred Broadhurst took us on his legendary field walk to look at the geological attributes of the buildings of central Manchester, as a sequel to the very interesting talk which he gave in November about the geology of the area. Those who came along now view Manchester from a totally different perspective!

In May we went to Buxton. We toured the Devonshire Hospital with its huge dome, marvellous architecturally and beautifully restored now as part of the University of Derby.

Then we looked at the Regency heart of Buxton with the Royal Crescent, Pavilion Gardens, Pump Rooms, Theatre Royal and the Old Hall Hotel.

The final outing, in July, took us a little further afield, to Skipton. We were lucky to have a warm sunny day and Skipton was busy, cheerful and pleasant.

We enjoyed a tour of the wonderful castle, market day, cruise on the Leeds Liverpool Canal and time just to stroll round the town.

As always, the Christmas party food was plentiful and David Burridge’s Christmas Quiz was a great success, so much so that we will be having part 2 of the Quiz at this year’s Christmas party.

 In July, 30 members enjoyed the Cheese and Wine evening at The Old Vicarage - this year the weather was kind and we were able to walk in Ann’s garden and enjoy the amazing views.

This year, the Society had a stand at the Locks Heritage Festival in the Park which attracted quite a lot of interest and resulted in book sales of more than £90 – so a very successful day.

Mellor Dig : Last chance to see the excavations at The Old Vicarage
The start of the twelfth excavation season is here. The drive between the house and the church has had the surface removed ready for excavation. It is the only part of the garden left for ‘digging’! The Open Days are Saturday the 5th and Sunday the 6th of September.

The find of the year was a collection of 80 amber beads, spacers and pendants from the Bronze Age Shaw Cairn above Cobden Edge. The 4,000 year old necklace is the only one found between Orkney and Wessex! Mellor has hit the archaeological ‘jackpot’.

Several months ago a bridge arrived and was placed over the section of the Iron Age ditch at the entrance to the garden. Work is now taking place to put in walls, paths, display panels and a Roman garden. Then the area will be given to Stockport with open access at all times.

The society's money is used for publishing books, mounting exhibitions, acquiring and keeping archives. Meetings are advertised locally. Anyone can attend one meeting as a visitor or join the society. Many people hear of the society through seeing one of the exhibitions. The subscription is £10 and there are currently one hundred and four members. The local library holds an index to the society's archives and passes on questions from the general public.

FOR MORE INFORMATION contact
Hilary Atkinson on 0161 427 3802 or

LOCAL HISTORY PUBLICATIONS

Marple Local History Society publications

• Brabyns Hall £ 2.50
• Festival Programmes £ 0.10
• History of Marple £ 3.95
• Hollins Mill £ 2.50
• It happened 500 years ago £ 0 .50
• Marple Hall £ 2.50
• Marple Hall postcards £ 0.10
• Marple Rose Hill House £ 2.50
• Marple C19 Failure £ 1.50
• Oldknow Mill postcards £ 0.10
• Samuel Oldknow £ 1.75
• What did they leave £ 1.00
• The Wallers £ 2.50
• Marple Bridges and Turnpikes £ 2.50

Local books published by others

• The Kitchen Gardener £ 2.50
• Mellor Church £ 2.00

Local books published by Mellor Archeological Trust

• Mellor Heritage Map and Walks booklet in a clear plastic folder £5.00
• Ten thousand years in Mellor (2007) £ 3.00
• Ten thousand years in Mellor (2008 Update) £ 1.00
• Ten thousand years in Mellor (2009 Update) £ 2.00
• All three above together £5.00
• Living on the Edge monograph £10.00
• Historic Landscapes of Mellor by Ron Weston £ 3.50
• A Natural History of Mellor and Ludworth by Tony Smith and Ron Weston £4.50