The Penistone History Group
The Penistone History Group have been holding regular meetings and presentations since 1986.
The talks are interesting, informative and most all, enjoyable. They cover old, local and modern history plus some by sessions by collectors and enthusiasts, many with local connections. Most are supported by a video screen presentation.
Meetings are held on the 1st and 3rd Wednesdays of every month except August.
We have to make a small charge to cover expenses (hire of room, cost of speakers etc). Our current charges are:
Annual Subscription: £12.00 | Single Meeting: £2. | Visitors: £3.
Include refreshments.
Entry / registration: 1.45pm | Meetings start: 2.00pm
If you would like to join or would like more information please use the form on the contact page or call in either on the Wednesday or the regular Thursday Archive session. Unfortunately we are not currently able to provide a contact phone number.
The programme for 2025 can be seen below.
You can also download a PDF copy and save to your computer or other device here >>
Please note that the Penistone History Group will continue to be held at St John’s Community Centre on Church Street for the foreseeable future. This is due to planned works to the building being on hold at the moment.
Location
The Neville Roebuck Room,
St. John’s Community Centre,
Church St,
Penistone,
Sheffield,
S36 9NP.
Penistone History Archive
History Group Programme 2025
| Date | Subject | Info | Speaker |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15 January 2025 | Arthur! | All about King Arthur and did he actually exist? Andrew investigates! | Andrew Green |
| 5 February 2025 | The Suitcase of Secrets - A Story of Love Amid Displacement in WW2 | The Suitcase of Secrets is a thrilling compassionate story of love, heartbreak and redemption in post war England and is partly based on actual events in Northern England in 1946 when Roman a Polish refugee determined to build a new life arrives in West Yorkshire and continues his search for his missing family whom he last saw in 1940's Warsaw. However he is also hiding something when he meets and falls in love with Irish fiery Bridget... | Julie Fearn |
| 19 February 2025 | The History of Water - The Sheffield Reflection | Water, an essential ingredient for life has a fascinating and rather turbulent history. In the early years the industrial town of Sheffield expanded quickly and became victim to severe overcrowding putting pressure on supplies of drinking water and general cleanliness, resulting in various diseases and consequently high mortality rates. It took 22 years for Sheffield's leaders to respond to the situation with sewers and further reservoirs. As well as this timeline the talk will cover the history of the toilet and that of our local fifteen reservoirs. | Dr Jennifer Stephenson |
| 5 March 2025 | Pus and Prejudice! Immunisation & Lady Mary Montague Wortley | The focus of the presentation is on how Mary took on both deadly smallpox and the 'medical establishment' to introduce immunisation to our shores 300 years ago, pushing the boundaries of what was considered 'feminine behaviour' at the time! A short AGM will also be held at this meeting. | Jennifer Rudd |
| 19 March 2025 | Wentworth School and the Links to the Fitzwilliam Family | The talk looks at Victorian education through primary sources and explores the 'Fitzwilliams' and the 'big house' (Wentworth Woodhouse) connections. | Susan Green |
| 2 April 2025 | The History of the Lord Lieutenant's Role | HM Lord-Lieutenant, Professor Dame Hilary Chapman is His Majesty King Charles III's personal representative in the County of South Yorkshire. She will talk briefly about the history of the role as it is today covering the diversity and changes over the last few years. | HM Lord Lieutenant Chapman |
| 16 April 2025 | The History of the Humble Fork | Paul's talk starts with a fun quiz followed by exploring how, why and when the eating fork was introduced into the British Isles and its evolution from 2 to 3 to 4 prongs, spanning the period from medieval to modern times with quotes and examples from historic records. The presentation concludes with the audience being asked to identify the more unusual cutlery items made in Sheffield. | Paul Iseard |
| 7 May 2025 | The Making of the Film The 1920's Sheffield Gang Wars | This is a story of the Sheffield Gang Wars of the 1920's involving gangs such as The Mooney Gang and The Park Brigade and the subsequent creation by the Chief Constable of Sheffield John Hall-Dalwood of the Special Duty Squad commonly known as the Flying Squad and their deployment. | Martin Rowley |
| 21 May 2025 | Fools and Horses -The Victorian Circus | The history of The Victorian Circus is one of high success and dreadful failure, of fires, falls and fabulous feats. Of horses, equilibrist, aerial acts and clowns, and the men (and women) who rode, tumbled, swung and gagged. Of 'Lord' George Sanger whose circus was pitched at Windsor Castle to perform for Queen Victoria and Charlie Keith who invented the first iron circus. The talk provides a fascinating insight into this little known aspect of Victorian entertainment. | Anne Featherstone |
| 4 June 2025 | Beyond The Blue Horizon -The Golden Years of Air Travel | A modest tribute to the Golden Age of Air Travel. Covering the years from the dawn of air travel to the 1950's, this talk looks at this unique period when air travel went from being uncomfortable, unreliable and very expensive to being stylish, luxurious and glamorous (and still very expensive). | Mike Ogden |
| 18 June 2025 | A Saucy Tale -The History of Henderson's Relish | Henderson's Relish or Hendo's is a Sheffield phenomenon. Eulogised by Sheffielders often to the bemusement of others who have never heard of it. Its also a remarkable survival of a Victorian product produced on a relatively small scale by a family business that has a varied and interesting history. | Mark Dawson |
| 2 July 2025 | RNLI Timeline. | Roy covers the reasons for the formation of the organisation and its history up to the present day, including the story of Grace Darling and describes the sort of jobs carried out today. | Roy Meakin |
| 16 July 2025 | “My Life” | Cynthia talks about her years working for the NCB and her time as a JP, a role she performed for 20 years, a period which included the Miners’ Strike of 1984/5. | Cynthia Shaw |
| 3 September 2025 | “Tellin’ t’ Tale” | Rod gives us background information about the Yorkshire dialect and the Yorkshire Dialect Society and entertains us with humorous poems and tales. | Rod Dimbleby |
| 17 September 2025 | The Denby Witchcraft Case of 1674 | David has written a book entitled “A Most Gross and Groundless Prosecution: the Denby Witchcraft Case of 1674”. This book is based around the content of original court documents, concerning the case and, in particular, a petition of over 50 local residents of the parish of Penistone. | David Hinchliffe |
| 1 October 2025 | Unmentionable Foundations Part 2 | This is a return visit for Janet and this time she is talking about the history of ladies’ undergarments. Bras, stays, bustles and crinolines, all are included. It promises to be a laugh! | Janet Stain |
| 15 October 2025 | Home is Where the Hearth is 1750-1900 Part 2 | This is a return visit for Julie, and this time she covers the history of the development of our homes and how we use them, right up to the beginning of the last century. | Julie Banham |
| 5 November 2025 | The Gunpowder Plot | Eric will tell us about the events on this famous date in history and its consequences. | Eric Jackson |
| 19 November 2025 | January 1916 The Night the Zeppelins Came | On the 31st January, one of the largest Zeppelin fleets raided Britain. Losing their way, they wandered over the Midlands causing death and destruction. | Stephen Flinders |
| 3 December 2025 | Traditional Christmas | Bob will recount to us the story of how things we do at Christmas came about and why. | Bob Massey |