A Society is Born
The Woodford Historical Society began in August 1931 with an article in a weekly
newspaper,The Woodford Times. The article featured old photographs of Woodford with
contemporary views to illustrate changes that had taken place over time. This aroused
so much interest that The Woodford Antiquarian Society, later named The Woodford
Historical Society, was formed in March, 1932 to foster interest and pride in the history
of the area. Mr. Roebuck from the Walthamstow Antiquarian Society gave the feature
address and suggested that the aims of the society should be to
• “publish from the outset”
• establish a “sessional programme of well-chosen lectures”
• organise “visits to places of antiquarian interest”
It can safely be said that the Society has fulfilled these objectives over the years, surpassing
them in one important respect, namely the development of the archive collection currently
housed At the Central Library Ilford under the care of the dedicated staff.
The Woodford Historical Society began in August 1931 with an article in a weekly
newspaper,The Woodford Times. The article featured old photographs of Woodford with
contemporary views to illustrate changes that had taken place over time. This aroused
so much interest that The Woodford Antiquarian Society, later named The Woodford
Historical Society, was formed in March, 1932 to foster interest and pride in the history
of the area. Mr. Roebuck from the Walthamstow Antiquarian Society gave the feature
address and suggested that the aims of the society should be to
• “publish from the outset”
• establish a “sessional programme of well-
It can safely be said that the Society has fulfilled these objectives over the years, surpassing
them in one important respect, namely the development of the archive collection currently
housed At the Central Library Ilford under the care of the dedicated staff.
Anniversary Celebrations
On March 19th 2007 we celebrated our Society’s 75th anniversary.
We’ve come a long way since the first meeting at the Wilfred Lawson
Temperence Hotel in March 1932, when the talk at that meeting was
entitled quite simply “Woodford”.
We celebrated this anniversary with a special exhibition of the Society’s
archive collection. We were joined by the Mayor of Redbridge and
other dignitaries. On sale at a token cost of £1 to members was an
updated reprint of our most successful publication “Woodford -
Village to Suburb”, first printed in 1982
On March 19th 2007 we celebrated our Society’s 75th anniversary.
We’ve come a long way since the first meeting at the Wilfred Lawson
Temperence Hotel in March 1932, when the talk at that meeting was
entitled quite simply “Woodford”.
We celebrated this anniversary with a special exhibition of the Society’s
archive collection. We were joined by the Mayor of Redbridge and
other dignitaries. On sale at a token cost of £1 to members was an
updated reprint of our most successful publication “Woodford -
Peter Lawrence
Chairman
Chairman
