The Formation of Bramley History Society

Jill Bryant

In 1994 when the Parish Council was celebrating its centenary, it was decided to write a book on the village, both ancient and modern.  The Bramley Village Society had previously published a booklet on the village in 1977, to commemorate the Queens Silver Jubilee.

Articles and photographs were sought from the villagers towards the new book.  Many of the people asked were eager to help the project, and wished for a Society to record the findings.  The Village Society had also gathered quite an amount of material over the years.

The Parish Clerk David Morley roped in a group, to stage an exhibition to gauge the interest of the village which was very well attended and soon after a committee of volunteers was formed and wrote the constitution for  Bramley History Society.

Its first Chairman was Joss Nangle of East Manor, and the first newsletter was published in December 1994.  Evelyn Nash, Patricia Pratt and Jill Bryant were the Editorial staff, with Evelyn acting as Editor.

The parish council extended the Village Hall in 1999 to celebrate the Millennium, and provision was made for the History Society to have a permanent storage room for its archives.