Welcome to the Dartmouth History Research Group

Welcome to the Dartmouth History Research Group

The Dartmouth History Research Group is a small voluntary and community group, founded in 1991. We research the history of Dartmouth and surrounding villages and make it available to the general public through publications, events and this website, to promote public understanding of local history and heritage. The “Dartmouth Archives” section provides resources enabling you to explore the rich and fascinating history of Dartmouth and the local area, and discover more about local people and places. It contains an extensive collection of documents and records, built up by members of the Group over several years and still growing. Other sections of the website tell you more about us and about what we do.

Our next meeting

Monday 7 April 2025

10:00 am to 12:00 noon

Our next meeting will be on Monday 7 April 2025 at our usual venue. It will be a “Business with Biscuits” meeting when we review current plans and activities.

Everyone is welcome. If you are new to the group and plan to come, it would be helpful if you could email us by clicking this link so that we have some idea of numbers. We look forward to seeing you!

Join Us

Membership of DHRG is free and open to all and everyone is welcome at any of our meetings. We usually meet on the first Monday of each month in the Church Hall, Baptist Church, Carey Road, Townstal, 10.00 – 12.00 noon (see the “Contact” page for more details). As arrangements may change at short notice, please let us know if you plan to come to any of our meetings.

Our Books

The DHRG has published many books and booklets about aspects of the history of Dartmouth and surrounding villages. Books and booklets are sold at a price sufficient to cover our costs. Please go to the “DHRG Books” section of the website to see what’s available and for information about how to purchase our current titles. Out of print titles are free to download as PDFs from this website.

Latest DHRG News

15th January 2024          Latest Additions to this Website

The programme for the Group’s event “A History of Dartmouth in Four Houses” at the Flavel on 18 November 2023 can be found here.  As part of the preparation for this event, a detailed guidance note has been produced on how to research the history of a house in Dartmouth.  To access it, please visit our Guidance and FAQs page.

Following the sad death on 19 September 2023 of Ray Freeman, a founder and first Chair of the DHRG in 1991, we have published a page dedicated to her memory, giving an account of her life and work.

One of our publications – “A Wrens-Eye View of Wartime Dartmouth” compiled by Ray Freeman – is no longer in print and is now available as a free-of-charge download from our Books page.

Several items have been added to the Archive, including

  • cine films showing Dartmouth taken in 1947 and 1950 kindly made available by the Arnold family
  • the 1831 and 1868 reports on the proposed boundary of the borough of Dartmouth as a parliamentary constituency, taking account of population, including maps.

 

DHRG on Facebook

Dartmouth History Research Group

2 weeks ago

Dartmouth History Research Group
Here’s a question on International Women’s Day. How many women are remembered in Dartmouth’s street names? If we discount Britannia Avenue, named (presumably) for HMS Britannia, the answer seems to be only one - Queen Victoria. She visited Dartmouth on several occasions, the first time as a girl, in 1833. When she became Queen in 1837, Victoria Place, newly built at the time, was named for her accession.Ten years later she and her husband Prince Albert paid a brief call in the Royal Yacht Victoria and Albert; and in 1846 they stopped overnight in the harbour due to bad weather. Victoria wrote in her journal that Dartmouth reminded her of “the beautiful Rhine”, a phrase much used afterwards to promote the town to visitors. Her fourth visit was in August 1856, again in the yacht. After an official reception, the Royal Party toured choice coastal viewpoints by carriage. The Royal Yacht remained overnight, with all the houses illuminated by candlelight. Dartmouth Regatta was due to start so she donated a prize of £25; and from then on, it was the Royal Regatta. The whole visit was front page news in the Dartmouth Chronicle. But it was not until her Diamond Jubilee, in 1897, that the New Road (completed in 1826) was renamed Victoria Road, in her honour. #dartmouth #localhistory #internationalwomensdayPhoto left, the listed street name on the old medical centre marks Victoria Place, and photo right, Victoria Road, looking east towards the town centre. ... See MoreSee Less

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Dartmouth History Research Group

1 month ago

Dartmouth History Research Group
In medieval tradition, Valentine’s Day marked the onset of spring, when birds chose their mates. In the 1600s, friends met on the evening of 13 February to draw valentines in lotteries, and exchange messages and gifts.The modern practice of sending valentine cards developed in the 1790s, when many new types of paper goods were invented, including greetings cards. By the mid-1800s thousands of cards were sent every year through the post. In 1869, the Western Times reported that, in Dartmouth, “more than 500 valentines were delivered by the postmen on Sunday morning.” Advertisements in the Dartmouth Chronicle (which you can see on our website) show that, at Cranford’s Library (now Kendrick’s Restaurant) you could find “a large, elegant and carefully selected stock”. Children sent “floral and fairy valentines” and those less romantically inclined could buy comic ones. Every year Cranford advertised fashionable new stock prominently in his newspaper. In 1884 his offering included “Prang’s American” valentines. Louis Prang was an American lithographer who became well known for high quality greetings cards. The example illustrated is from the New York Public Library. Wishing you all a very Happy Valentine’s Day tomorrow!#dartmouth #localhistory ... See MoreSee Less

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Dartmouth History Research Group

3 months ago

Dartmouth History Research Group
New Year, New Resolutions, New Discoveries! Calling all those who want to find out more about the history of their house, or about our beautiful and historic town and the people who've lived and worked here, making it what it is today. The Dartmouth History Research Group will be in Dartmouth Library at The Flavel, Flavel Place, on Friday 10 January from 10 am until 12 noon, to answer questions about our local history and about what we do. Come and pay us a visit - we'd love to #dartmouth##localhistoryc#dartmouthlibraryukh#TheFlavel#TheFlavel ... See MoreSee Less

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Dartmouth History Research Group

3 months ago

Dartmouth History Research Group
A century ago, Christmas was a time of cautious optimism. Interviewed by the Western Morning News in December 1924, the Deputy Mayor, Alderman Seccombe said: “the borough of Dartmouth has gone through a period of depression and bad trade, but I am confident the signs point to a revival ahead. The Town Council have ... several schemes for the relief of employment and for beautifying the town, and ... other big works in prospect.” Old property in Higher Street was being demolished to provide new housing, and shipbuilders Philip & Son had launched the second of three tankers they were building for an oil company. The weather was mild but stormy, with strong gales in the Atlantic. In Fairview Road, two large trees fell on a house, damaging the roof and chimney, but nobody was hurt. The Royal Mail steamer Sarthe limped into Dartmouth with a broken engine, mooring alongside her sister steamer Radnorshire, laid up in the harbour a few days before. An engine cylinder was transferred from Radnorshire to Sarthe so she could complete her journey to Southampton.For last-minute Christmas greetings, the Dartmouth Post Office was open on Christmas Day from 9-10.30am for telegrams and stamps. Church and chapel services were well-attended, and “the usual spirit of gaiety pervaded the Cottage Hospital.”We hope the usual spirit of gaiety pervades your festive season too. Thanks to all those who have followed us this year - we look forward to researching more of Dartmouth’s history in 2025.#localhistory #dartmouth ... See MoreSee Less

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Dartmouth History Research Group

5 months ago

Dartmouth History Research Group
If you're in Dartmouth, come and see us tomorrow for a local history chat, Friday 8 November 2024, between 10am and 12 noon, at Dartmouth Library, in the Flavel Centre. We'll be there to answer your questions about our rich and fascinating local history, about how to get started on doing your own research, and about what we do as a local group. We look forward to meeting you.A big thank you to Dartmouth Library for ho#dartmouth##localhistoryc#dartmouthlibraryu#flavelry #flavel ... See MoreSee Less

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