Daniel
The past has always held a fascination for me ever since I was a child.
I found my first fossil when I was 4 years old, in a beach scattered with scree I found an ammonite in a stony nook: ever since I’ve been hooked.
There’s something quite wonderful about finding hidden stories, of following threads to the point of stumbling into a tale and turning that tale into something more, something palpable, educational, elucidatory: real.
Experience
Lessons from Auschwitz Ambassador
Volunteer, Guildford Museum
Production Assistant, Bookham in WWII film
Genealogist, Dorking Museum
Volunteer, Haslemere Museum
Honorary Member for Life, Effingham Local History Society
Volunteer, The Lightbox
Member, The Surrey Archaeological Society
Publications, plays and seminars
Dwarfism in Ancient Greece and Comedy and Disability in the Greco-Roman World
WWI Centenary Soldiers Profiles, Dorking Museum
‘Beyond Common: The Death and Possible Life of Jimmy Drew’
‘The Other Howards of Effingham’
‘Effingham La Leigh’
‘Coin of Tiberius’
‘Dancing to Rough Music: The Curious Assault of Mr. Wakefield’
‘The Silliad’ – An epic retelling of the trojan war
Gem
I was first drawn to history after spending a week off sick as a 6-year-old. My mother and I studied the Roman pantheon to try to keep me distracted, as I was quite a terrible patient and refused to sit still. I found their foibles and eccentric personalities engrossing; particularly as they each had a humanising trait.
After that I developed a love of social history, and in fact any form of history with humanity at its heart. This love was fed by TV shows and books, like The 1900 House, and anything with Ruth Goodman. My passion for historical fiction never wavered, even after becoming increasingly annoyed with the inaccuracies.
Institutional History has become more than a hobby, it’s now a large part of my life and I have no doubt that the stories we tell, and the truths that we can share will impact many. It will hopefully encourage everyone to question, understand, and not repeat mistakes made, but learn from them.
Our first project, Woking Convict Invalid Prison, has inmates from every walk of life, the poor and wealthy, the educated and ignorant, the robust and frail, and one of the most fascinating to me, the congenitally mentally ill. I look forward to uncovering their truths, and for me fulfilling this will be a life well spent.
Special Thanks To
Rosemary and Richard Christopher – For setting us on this journey and leading us through the historical mire with illuminating insight
The Lightbox – For continued support
The Heritage Committee (The Lightbox)
Woking News and Mail
Maria Jackson – For her absolutely stellar transcriptions
The Brookwood Cemetery Society
Barry Devonshire – For his fascinating walks, talks and emails
Brooklands Radio
Mary Tobin
Volunteers
Lydia Cauldwell-Ball
I can’t remember when exactly it was that i realised I was really passionate about ‘the past’, perhaps spending summer holidays being dragged around National Trust properties with my parents started it off. All I used to look forward to was the gift shop- a usually traumatic experience for my parents as my brother and I raced around grabbing at sweets and historical replicas…
John Rosser
I’m a freelance TV editor and I decided to volunteer for the Institutional History Society when the COVID crisis left a large gap in my diary between contracts. I needed something to do to keep my brain engaged, ideally that could be done from home on my laptop….
Danielle Yates
History has been a passion of mine for as long as I can remember. Throughout my entire academic life, it was my favourite subject, from primary school right up until now as I go into my final year of an English and History degree at the University of Warwick...
Jessica Ruddick
Growing up as a military child I was literally surrounded by history. My dad took every chance he could (and still does) to teach me something new about anything to do with the Army, although the only parts I really paid attention to were tanks and guns. Instead, as I grew up I took more of an interest in mythology, historical crime and eventually the history of psychology.
Karen Swaley
History has always been an escape for me.
As a child, though never seen to be academically gifted, I was a closeted bookworm; setting up my very own reading nook in my parents boiler cupboard, I would sit in there for hours, poring over Greek and Egyptian Mythology like it was going out of fashion…
Freya Buxton
I think history has interested me for most of my life, if only from a tendency to romanticise. As a small child my imagination lived in the past, taking every train journey as an evacuee escaping blitzed London...