Week beginning August 26th 2002

Museum's Treasures : Hedon Museum may be small and tucked-away, but it is most definitely well worth a visit! I dropped in on Wednesday morning and was pleasantly surprised to find not one but THREE exhibitions taking place, all very different but equally interesting. In the downstairs galleries are displays of the history of the Hedon Road, told in maps and pictures, and the exhibition of the "Baxtergate Treasure" - not a hoard of gold and jewels as you might expect, but the story behind a perfectly-preserved 13th century earthenware pitcher dug out of the clay in a trench in Hedon only recently. When I think how easily I break cups, plates etc., it is amazing that this ancient piece of pottery has survived unscathed and I found the whole display fascinating. The real gems of the museum's current displays, however, are to be seen in the upstairs gallery, where students from South Holderness Technology College are exhibiting some of their A-level work in textiles. I expected to see work that looked as if it had been done by schoolchildren; instead I saw a breathtaking display of exquisite needlework and fabric art, with wall-hangings and soft furnishings which would be worthy of exhibition in any major gallery. I would highly recommend everyone to try and visit the museum, which is reached from Watmough's Arcade, off St. Augustine's Gate, and is signposted - the door is down a passage between the shops and houses. The museum is open on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 10am until 4pm. Admission is free, and refreshments are available for visitors.

Charity fund-raising event : A coffee morning is to be held in the Allison Hall, St. Augustine's Gate, Hedon, on Saturday August 31st from 9.30am until 12 noon. Coffee and home-made biscuits will cost just 50p, and there will be a cake stall and a raffle. All proceeds from this event are for the Guide Dogs For The Blind Association.

Fort Paull weekend event : On Sunday September 1st Fort Paull will be visited by the "Guard Imperial," another display featuring action and "life and times" from the Napoleonic Wars. This is a particularly appropriate era to show at Paull, as the Fort is Yorkshire's only surviving Napoleonic Fort and one of only a few left in the UK. The Fort can be reached from the Hull direction by driving along Back Lane and turning right just past the residential home, into Battery Road; ample parking is available.

A chance to reminisce! Paull Parish Council are holding another slide show in the Village Hall, at the junction of Main Street and Town End Road (opposite the lighthouse) on Tuesday September 3rd, starting at 7p.m. The Council owns a large collection of old slides of the village, mostly dating from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Although some of them have been shown before, this is an opportunity to see some of the other slides, and perhaps you will be able to put a name to faces or events depicted! Admission to the slide show is free, although donations will be gratefully accepted, there will be a raffle and refreshments will be provided

Fun and Fund-raising : The Round Table are organising a Fancy Dress Wheelbarrow Race in aid of the Dove House Hospice. The race will tour the public houses of Hedon - the Queen's Head, the Shakespeare Inn, the Station Hotel, the Kingstown Hotel, the British Legion Club and the King's Head - on Sunday September 8th. The entry fee is £5 per team and the race will start from the car park at Church View : teams must register there at 11.30am for a 12 noon PROMPT start. There will be prizes for the winners, best wheelbarrow and best fancy dress etc., to be presented at the Station Hotel, Baxtergate, at 2pm, and which will be followed by a barbecue. For more details contact Keith on 07802932690 or Gary on 07771855853, or just turn up at the car park on the day!

Vicar's farewell to Paull : On Sunday September 8th the Revd. James Hargreave will conduct his last service at Paull before taking up his new appointment as Chaplain to The Wolds Prison, Everthorpe. This service will take place at St. Andrew's church at 6.30pm. The Parochial Church Council welcomes all parishioners to this service, which will be followed by refreshments.

Calling all budding photographers : Just a reminder to all you aspiring photographers out there : if you have a digital camera, there is still time to enter the digital photography competition, open to anyone living in Holderness, on the theme "Transportation." The closing date for entries is September 11th, but you must notify your intention to enter by August 31st at the latest - either email ChickGen@compuserve.com or call in or drop a line to one of the sponsors : D-Tec, Holderness Gazette, or Hedon Museum. There is no entry fee and generous cash prizes will be awarded in senior and junior classes, with extra prizes for pupils in South Holderness schools. In the schools category, the best entry from each school will also be awarded a cash prize.