'Oakridge a History' - The Book
The Story of 'Oakridge a History', the beautiful book on the History of Oakridge and its Inhabitants as told by Pat Carrick in 2005
For many years I compiled issues of What's On (village magazine), and was always especially fascinated by the contributions of the older villagers. I felt this was an area that justified much closer examination, indeed the whole history of Oakridge and its surrounding hamlets was worthy of research, so to write a book on the subject became a major ambition.
The Oakridge history project was lucky enough to be awarded a Heritage Lottery Fund grant and the Oakridge Historical Research Group was formed as a result. We have now established an Oakridge History Group, open to anyone interested, which meets regularly to discuss and share memories and hear speakers on subjects of historical interest. The archive of material on local history has been enhanced by discussions and information gained from these meetings. I have undertaken to keep the archive material in the village, appropriately stored, for ten years.
Memories related to us by past and present inhabitants have provided some of the richest and most rewarding material for the book. Inevitably, the passage of time and the different perspectives of the narrators mean that sometimes recollections are not identical. This is a pattern historians at both local and world level have learned to recognise. If your memories are somewhat different about a situation or you can add information about a topic, get in touch with me and I will include them in the archive to enrich the picture for future generations.
Juliet Shipman and Kay Rhodes have brought their energies and enthusiasm to realising this project Alison Miles has given great support in editing the chapters and David Playne has co-ordinated the design and printing of this book.
Since its publication in 2005 copies have gone out all over the world to those with connections to the area and others interested in the fascinating history of this corner of England.The above is an extract
from 'Oakridge a History' by Pat Carrick, Kay Rhodes and Juliet Shipman is available from Oakridge History Group, price £15 through the ‘Contact Us’ page or from the Oakridge Village Shop.