Welsh Journals

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In the last year two new local history societies have been formed, and the Council hopes to see their representatives at future meet- ings. The Caldicot and District Historical and Archaeological Society was founded last July based at Caldicot Castle. The Chair- man is Mr. John Evans, 65 Park Road, Caldicot, and meetings are held on the first Wednesday of every month, and may be either a lecture or an excursion. The Abergavenny History Society first met in January 1978, subsequently meeting on the third Thursday of every month. The Chairman is Mr. Gwyn Jones, 6 Belmont Cresc., Abergavenny, and the Society hopes to meet at the Red Cross Pavilion, Fairfield. Meetings in the winter take the form of lectures, and in the summer excursions. Both societies hope to carry out useful research into the history of their own areas, on such topics as placenames, markets etc. Many entries were received by the end of June for the annual competition which is run in conjunction with the South Wales Argus. This year's title is "A Walk about in History", either in a rural setting or an urban one. An encouraging number are from schools, showing that much interesting work on local history is nowadays on the schools' curriculum. The Editorial Board would be pleased to receive news of any work on local history done in schools, especially original studies (e.g. on grandparents' schooldays). Abertillery Town Trail In conjunction with the Gwent County Council, the Abertillery and District Museum Society have produced a very informative Town Trail. There is a large map with a number of viewpoints marked on two different routes, a key pointing out particular places of interest, and a general history section. The trail costs 5 pence. The Committee to Review Local History This independent committee is being chaired by the historian Lord Blake, Provost of the Queen's College, Oxford, and has been set up "To make an assessment of the pattern of interest, activity, and of study, in local history in England and Wales; and to make recommendations for meeting any needs revealed by amateur and professional local historians for support and services". Individuals, groups, education bodies and establishments actively involved in local history have all been invited to submit information and ideas in accordance with the stated terms of reference. Meetings have been held in different parts of the country and the final report should be a most interesting and useful one. JANE PEARSON.