2019 Farmery Gathering

[Canterbury Police dated (courtesy of the West Family) - though I am reliably informed this is the retirement of John William Farmery, seated in the middle of the front row, in 1907]

Saturday October 5th 2019 will see the nineteenth international Farmery gathering, once again in the village hall at Bracebridge Heath, near Lincoln (LN4 2LB).

Anyone with a connection to the surname Farmery or an interest in the programme is welcome to attend.

•10.00am Registration and Coffee

•10.30am Welcome and Introductions [Alan Moorhouse]

•10.45am "Comedy of Errors" [Anne Cole]

•11.45am DNA update [Alan Moorhouse]

•12.00pm Open/workshop session

•12.30pm Lunch (at leisure)

•1.45pm Afternoon session commences

•2.00pm "Choosing a Chief Constable - a county and a borough" [John Wilson]

•4.00pm Group photograph

•4.15pm Tea

•4.30pm Close

Anne Cole is a founder member of Lincolnshire Family History Society and was their President until this year when stood down in order to again directly help the society as their secretary.  She has her own one-name study for her maiden name of Duncalfe and was the person who first introduced me to the concept of a one-name study and encouraged to join the Guild.  Having spoken at our very first Farmery gathering back in 2000 she returns to tell us about the error in mistranscriptions, probable assumptions and downright lies told in official documents.

John Wilson was formerly archivist for North East Lincolnshire Archives in Grimsby and is now a freelance researcher and speaker.  In his talk he will look at three successive Chief Constables for Grimsby 1930-1936, based on the Town Clerk's recruitment papers and application forms, and Charles Bunn's memoirs - quite an insight into social attitudes and the police of the time, and crime of the time, and all the amusements that job interviews provide.

A number of Farmerys served as police constables, including a murder and a drunken brawl, and two rose to high rank, William Farmery (1772-1849) as Chief Constable of Leeds and John William Farmery (1861-1938), superintendent (1896) and Chief Constable of Canterbury (1903 to retirement in 1907).  The book Police Gallantry Medals was written by J Peter Farmery.

On the day amongst other documents that I have available will be print outs of every Farmery family in the 1939 Register, which was taken in order to issue identity cards and ration books, so you will be able to see where your Farmery relations were living at the outbreak of the 2nd World War!

For those wanting to make a weekend of it I and a number of other attendees will be staying at the Premier Inn Lincoln Canwick on Friday and Saturday night and there will be the options of an informal gathering for dinner at the adjacent Beefeater restaurant at 8.00pm on Friday evening, a more formal dinner in Lincoln on Saturday evening and a local visit on Sunday morning.

This is non-profit making event and for the day there is a nominal charge of £8.00 to cover hire of the hall, speakers and refreshments.  There are a number of pubs adjacent to the village hall or you are welcome to bring a packed lunch and eat it there.

For more information or to advise that you plan to attend the gathering please email me.


[The provisional date for next year is Saturday September 26th 2020]