Forncett History Group

The History Group meets six times a year, and meetings, which are normally held at St. Edmund's church in Forncett End, are open to everyone. There is a meeting fee of £3 which includes refreshments. In addition, we occasionally organise local visits to places of historical interest. A record of our past visits can be seen here.

2024 Meetings Programme

If you would like to be added to our mailing list please Contact us. You will then receive emails about additions to this website, information on meetings and other notes about local history events.

Forncett History Group was set up by John Webster in 2009 to promote interest in the history of the parish from the very earliest records up to the present day. The Group's logo is an Iceni coin that was part of the Forncett Hoard discovered in the Tas Vally in 1997. The coin was very kindly presented to the Group by the hoard's discoverer, Paul Thrower.

John Webster was Chairman of the Group from its inception until May 2024 when he stepped down for personal reasons. The current officers of the Group are:

Chairman                                Richard Ball

Treasurer                                Philip Yull

Secretary and Webmaster     Mike Merrick

From the early 2000s John Webster set out to collect a range of materials (photos, documents and other items) to document the history of Forncett. These were collected, donated or copied from local parishioners and they constitute the present Forncett Archive which has provided much of the material that now appears on our web site, including the Archive Notes that provided some of the original text. We are always keen to hear of any material or information that might be added to the Forncett Archive so if you think you have anything that might be of interest to us please Contact us through this web site.

The Group undertakes research into a variety of aspects of Forncett history. In the past these projects have included:

• The Great War - research into all those Forncett men who gave their lives in the Great War
• The 1939 Register - documentation of all those living in Forncett in September 1939
• The History of Austhorpe House
• Muriel's Story - memories of growing up in Forncett End and Long Stratton (1914-1947).
• Air crashes in Forncett during World War II