By Monica Chard
It was 1950 when Terrick Fitzhugh started a couple of projects. His hobby was historical research and he had decided to write a history of Shepperton, at the same time as considering starting a magazine for fellow history enthusiasts. It was while he was mulling these projects over, that the idea of a history group started to take shape.
His research started amongst fellow history buffs, sounding them out as to their interest in such a group and was very encouraged by the response. One respondent, a Major Tapp, offered his large living room in Ivy House, French Street, Sunbury, as a venue for an initial meeting and 18 people attended. Sitting comfortably in armchairs and sofas, the group decided that there was enough interest to get a group going. A follow-up meeting was held on February 8th 1951, where a constitution was ratified and rules set and the Sunbury & Shepperton Local History Society was duly born.
There were a number of venues used in the early days, members ideally wanting to alternate be-tween Sunbury and Shepperton as an all-inclusive approach. Shepperton Rectory was used, as was Sunbury Conservative Club. The Upper Halliford Welfare Centre offered a halfway house between the two villages but was ultimately impractical for everyone. So finally the Society began regular meetings at the newly built Sunbury Grammar School (now Sunbury Manor). Thus it remained for some years before moving to Sunbury Library. For the past 35 years, meetings have been held at Halliford School in the smart auditorium which lends itself perfectly to the burgeoning group.
The committee, with Fitzhugh as Chairman and Major Tapp as Vice-Chair, put together a pro-gramme of talks during winter months, with visiting speakers. In the summer months, outings were organised to places of historical interest. During the year a few exhibitions were put on and the group started producing a regular journal for members. A relatively young member remembers being invited to join the committee in the early 1960s. He had been a member since he was 16 and was now of interest to the committee because he had access to a van, which was needed to help with transportation of exhibition boards. That young man was Colin Squire, who is the longest-serving member of the Society and who remains its President to this day.
In the third journal produced (in 1967), Terrick Fitzhugh remarked: “may the Society and the journal continue to go from strength to strength”. Well, if he could see the group now, he would be delighted with his legacy. Under normal circumstances, society talks can attract 150-200 people. The range of subjects and the quality of speakers is outstanding. The last speaker before the lockdown was Andy Robertshaw, technical advisor to the film ‘1917’, which drew a huge audience. Another recent success was the WW1 Centenary event at Kempton Park. Under the leadership of Nick Pollard and his team of tireless and enthusiastic committee members, the society is a vibrant group indeed. Visiting speakers often start their talks with “It’s so good to see such a large crowd tonight”.
If you have not yet attended the talks, then you can look forward to them resuming in due course. Even during the pandemic, however, technology has come to the rescue and there are regularly 60 attending the Zoom talks. See the Society’s website www.sslhs.org.uk for details of how to join.