Welcome to the Worthys Local History Group

We aim to discover the past, record the present and inform the future. The Worthys Local History Group is based in the Worthys which lie just to the north of Winchester close to the valley of the River Itchen. We serve the people of Abbots Worthy, Headbourne Worthy, Kings Worthy and Martyr Worthy which together make up the Worthy villages. A mixed community of residential, semi-rural and rural areas the Worthys have a long and interesting history which we are there to uncover and present in an exciting and absorbing way. We have an interesting programme of talks, outings and other events and we are proud to publish Worthy History which includes a selection of specially written articles on local historic topics, both recent and not so recent. We believe that our programme and publications help to provide a small part of that social cement that gives our villages a special sense of social cohesion and community. During the season we generally hold our meetings one Thursday evening a month at the Church Rooms, St Mary’s Church, Kings Worthy. There is an interesting programme of talks covering local Worthy History or topics felt to be of interest to our members. From time to time in the summer we hold outings to local places of historical interest, historic houses and churches, museums and landscapes, trusting all the time that the weather will stay fine! And around Christmas we hold our annual party, giving members a good chance to collar the committee or more likely to spend a congenial evening together with good food and conversation. We have recently digitised the extensive photographic and document collection gathered by our members over the past 26 years for research and for general interest, and we now have over 12,000 pages of material. There is also a growing collection of oral history recordings gathered during interviews with elderly residents. Items from our records are available for research by our members. Our next meeting will be Saturday July 11th for a morning visit to Romsey and Romsey Abbey. Members should contact the secretary for details. New or intending members can contact us by email via our Mail Form. See our Links page for contacts to local organisations, and Meeting Reviews for news of our recent meetings.