AGM

Chair Jane Lee stepped down.
Pauline Allen proposed and Ann Hallett seconded Jon Nichol for the new chair and he was elected.
The other committee members are:
Pauline Allen: School liaison
Tom Reeves: Archivist
Monica Lang: Projects
Refreshments were kindly provided by the PTFA
Everyone brought in a raffle prize, and £25 was raised.
This website was projected onto the wall. Many thanks to James Lee for doing this.

Andrew Cadbury presented his research into the Starcross Businesses. The details will be published on this weblog.

Retired Traditional Boatbuilder,  Malcolm Fairweather, brought in the one-twelfth scale model of The Swan of the Exe which will take him a few more months to complete. Malcolm explained that he had been unable to locate the plans. The Swan of the Exe was built in Dixon's Yard, Exmouth. Malcolm only has a few drawings from which to work, so he has built this replica the way he believes that the original boat was built: as a Dory, which was a type of flat-bottomed, barge-like, working boat.
The group was delighted to be able to see the birth of such a beautifully crafted artecfact which will be a tangible reminder of a remarkable piece of Starcross History.

Jon Nichol asked everyone to discuss with their neighbours what they would like the history group to do, and what areas interested  them. Suggestions included:

•  a history trail which will be part of The Dawlish Walking Festival in 2021
• Oral History. 
• visits to other places 
• more visits to the Devon Heritage Centre in Sowton, which is accessible via the railway
•  to invite Peter Halmkin from  The Dawlish Stamp Club to talk about the Starcross postmarks

 Further  research into:

•  Devon violets, 
•  Starcross school, 
•  the docks and quayside,
• Buses
•  the railway

To follow up the Villages in Action Unearth project with work in the Devon Film Archive.

Many thanks to the Starcross Primary School for giving Starcross History such a warm welcome.