| Status: | Active, not currently accepting new members |
| Leader: | |
| When: | Monthly on Friday mornings 10:00 am 3rd Friday of each month |
| Venue: | The Waterloo Room at The Elms |
| Cost: | £15 subscription per year from September |
This group aims to be a friendly, fun and informative exploring local history using members within u3a groups with local knowledge and inviting experienced speakers along during the year.
Talks tend to be about the local area but not exclusively so. We aim to include at least two outside visits to places within easy reach.
How is the group organised?
A small team organise an annual programme which is planned in advance with suggestions and requests from members during the year.
Whether born and bred in the local area or more recently settled here, we all have an interest in what has created the place that we live in – its buildings and its landscape, its people and their industries, successes and tragedies.
We have a varied programme with sessions suggested and led by group members. We have heard talks about Havant Workhouse, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, The Portsmouth Pals and the Development of Paulsgrove and Wymering; visited Uppark, Portchester Castle, the St Cross Almshouses in Winchester, the Map Room at Southwick House and Winchester College and taken part in History Quiz Walks in Havant and Old Portsmouth.
Where possible car sharing is encouraged with a donation for petrol. Occasionally an invitation is extended to the other members of Havant u3a.
A charge is made in September to cover the cost of hall hire and speakers for the year.
A Risk Assessment is available for this group on request from the Secretary (click on this link to send a message).
Programme for 2025 - 2026
- 19th September The Portsdown Hill Forts - Palmerston's Follies Ian Mountifield
- 17th October Sarah Siddons Geoff Watts
- 21st November Late Victorian Temperance Steve Doe
- 12th December Christmas Traditions - Untangling Christmas - or a Lot of Old Ball balls Nigel Gossop
- 2026
- 16th January Combined Operations Pilotage Parties Richard Swaine
- 20th February Southampton – Water, Slaughter and Trade (1700-1914) Andrew Negus
- 20th March Hampshire and D-Day John Marshallsay
- 17th April The Swing Riots in Warblington and Emsworth (17th - 19th November 1830) Neil Spurgeon
- 15th May A Walk Around Old Westbourne Westbourne Local History Group
- 19th June The House Across the Road Gillian Peskett
- 17th July Members meeting (10 mins talks from a selection of members)
- August No Meeting
- 18th September Netley Abbey Geoff Watts
- 16th October Portsmouth People and Trafalgar Diana Grigg
- 20th November Langstone village Polly Chapman
To look at the group's photographs archive click here on photos (please specify)
To look at a list of previous meeting click here on previous meetings.
Visit to Portsmouth Guildhall, May 2025
