Zoom
On the Internet
Co-ordinator: Jane Thomas
Email: zoom@wsfhs.orgThere is no set day in the month for meetings. We fit around the terrestrial centres.
These meetings are for Members only; if you wish to join the Society, please go to the Membership page above.
You will need to book for the Zoom meetings. To access the Zoom page in the Members Area, click here.
From the above page, you may also be able to watch a recording of the meeting (see below for an indication of whether a recording is available).
'Doors' open 30 mins before the talk starts on the hour.
There will be a short introduction and explanation of how the meeting will work.
Anyone arriving after the talk has commenced may be denied entry.
2026
| Date | Doors Open | Start Time | Title | Speaker | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wed | 16 Sep | 12.30 pm | 1.00 pm | “What’s That Job?” | Sophie Kay |
| Tue | 13 Oct | 7.30 pm | 7.50 pm | ‘Elizabeth Garrett Anderson: First Woman Doctor’ | Ian Porter |
| Wed | 4 Nov | 7.30 pm | 7.50 pm | ‘Lives Interrupted: ten young officers in the Great War” | Frances Hurd |
| Tue | 1 Dec | 7.30 pm | 7.50 pm | ‘Women Astronomers’ | Martin Lunn |
2027
| Date | Doors Open | Start Time | Title | Speaker | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wed | 6 Jan | 7.30 pm | 7.50 pm | ‘Manorial Court records’ | Nick Barratt |
| Wed | 3 Feb | 10.30 am | 10.50 am | Great Aunt Constance and The Burma Trek, | Jenny Mallin |
| Wed | 3 Mar | 7.30 pm | 7.50 pm | ‘Maps for Local History | Paul Hindle |
Forthcoming Meetings
September 16 2026
Sophie Kay - “What’s That Job?”Sept 16 Wednesday 12.30 pm for 1.00 pm Dr. Sophie Kay is a professional genealogist at Khronicle (www.khronicle.co.uk).
Butcher, baker, candlestick maker: some occupational terms are an instantly recognisable part of our social fabric. Far more than a mere cross-checking point between record sets, occupations yield rich insights into an ancestor’s daily existence, social status, and role within their local community. In this talk, we’ll delve into a range of resources and strategies for demystifying unfamiliar occupations. We’ll see how sound occupational research is about more than just understanding a job title – and how it can bring an evocative picture of ancestral life and fascinating research leads along the way!
October 13
Ian Porter - ‘Elizabeth Garrett Anderson: First Woman Doctor’Ian Porter is an historian, public speaker, walk guide and historical novel author. He’s a Londoner (Greenwich), whose enthusiasm for telling people about history is evident in all his talks.
The talk mentions three woman who it can be claimed were Britain's first woman doctors: James Barry, Elizabeth Blackwell and Elizabeth Garrett. The first two are covered breifly before most of the talk is on Garrett.
November 4
Frances Hurd - ‘Lives Interrupted: ten young officers in the Great War”Dr Frances Hurd, who has a PhD in history, has worked in publishing, academia and the heritage sector. She is researching the social and emotional impact of the Great War on servicemen and their families.
At the outbreak of war in September 1914 the Royal Military College at Sandhurst quickly organised the first of a series of wartime training courses. Ten young men from all corners of the British Isles were amongst those who signed on. Their differing fates over the course of the conflict reflect those of all servicemen, whatever their rank.
December 1
Martin Lunn - ‘Women Astronomers’Martin has a degree in astrophysics. For over 30 years he educated children about astronomy in York Museum and with a mobile planetarium. He is on the Council of the Royal Astronomical Society and presents lectures both on cruise ships and to various clubs and societies at home, together with a weekly local radio show and a monthly newspaper article on the night sky over the Yorkshire Dales.
Few people realise just how much women have contributed to astronomy. Over the last 4,000 years women have made many of the most important discoveries in astronomy - only for men to take all the credit! This is the women’s story.
January 6 2027
Nick Barratt - ‘Manorial Court records’Dr Nick Barratt is an author, broadcaster and historian best known for his work on Who Do You Think You Are. Nick’s most recent publication, The Restless Kings, tells the story of Henry II and his troublesome family.
The talk provides an introduction to manorial court records, a little-used but rich source of information for family historians. A legacy of the Norman Conquest in the 11th century, manorial administration survived into the 1920s and generated many different sorts of records. that contain details of the lives of our ancestors in their communities.
February 3
Jenny Mallin - Great Aunt Constance and The Burma Trek,Pre war Rangoon and the great trek
Jenny has given 1000s of talks both on cruise ships and to U3As, WIs and Family History Groups. Jenny's talks are based on the five generations of her family who lived during the days of the British Raj in India.
Her great aunt Constance was a wife of a British official who was living in Rangoon throughout its heyday of the 1930s with a charmed life, one that was filled with opulence, bon viveur and style. In 1942 Rangoon fell to the Japanese forces who caused the civilians to trek across some of the world's most treacherous terrain, dealing with monsoon climatic rivers, jungles and steep mountain ranges and dangerous wildlife. Constance left her own record of these contrasting sections of her life.
March 3
Paul Hindle - ‘Maps for Local HistoryTBA