Project

Living through WW1 in three Norfolk Broadland Villages

Our project, undertaken by the Neatishead, Irstead and Barton Turf Community Heritage Group over two years, and funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund – First World War: then and now  –  commenced in February 2014 and has researched local families whose relatives served in the armed forces during the First World War, who died or lived through it; and explored village life in Neatishead, Irstead and Barton Turf during this time. Local artefacts, documents, records, photographs, recollections and oral histories appertaining to this research have been collected and collated.

Our research has been used to create a new memorial to all those from our villages who served during WW1, a living history day at Neatishead Primary School, individual exhibitions over nine days during August 2014 in the five village churches, each focussing on the particular parish or church community, and collectively over Remembrance Weekend in November 2015 at the New Victory Hall, Neatishead – the village hall for the three villages.  All the material will be made available as a permanent resource and via this dedicated website. 

Members who attended a local creative writing group were able to provide input into a script based on the villages’ wartime experiences written by a relative of a local family especially for the project entitled “When I Come Home” and was performed by the local drama group, NABS (Neatishead and Barton Society) at our event in November 2015.