2019 is the 80th anniversary of the start of the Second World War and the Museum of Enfield has put on an exhibition to show some aspects of the Borough during this period.

In addition we are running a number of special events related to the exhibition.

In partnership with the Enfield Society we would like to invite you to our World War Two Day Conference, Saturday 14th September in the Dugdale Centre.

This event brings together local historians, actors, poets and staff to showcase the history and impact of WWII in Enfield (see full programme below)

Cost: £15 for members of The Enfield Society and includes tea and coffee and lunch. £17 for non-members.

Booking:

Tickets can be booked 3 ways:

Online – www.dugdalecentre.co.uk

Telephone – Call 020 8807 6680 for card bookings; Mon-Sat 10am-5pm

In person – Cash, cheque or card at Millfield Theatre, Dugdale Centre or Forty Hall

We look forward to seeing you on what promises to be a fascinating day.

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World War Two Day Conference Programme

Saturday 14th September 2019, 9.30am-4.15pm

Museum of Enfield – Dugdale Centre Theatre

Programme:

From 9.30am:	Registration in Dugdale Centre Foyer/Tea and Coffee in Theatre
10.00:	Introduction by Museum of Enfield’s Museum Officer, Jan Metcalfe
10.00-11.00:	Talk: Ian Jones – Save and Protect: The Work of the ARP in Enfield
11.00-11.15:	Tea and Coffee
11.15–11.45:	GROUP 1 – Drama Performance ‘Lord Aberfeldy of Trent Park’, Colin Uttley, Spectrum Drama
11.15–11.45:	GROUP 2-  Interactive Session - Enfield Bomb Damage Maps, Joe Robinson
11.45-12:45:	Lunch (Theatre) & option to view the exhibition (Ground floor), view WWII Archives with John Clark in Enfield Local Studies Centre (1st floor) or explore Local Society stalls (Foyer)
12.45–13.45:	Talk: Carol Harris - Women in World War Two – The Home Front
13.45–14.15:	GROUP 2 - Drama Performance - ‘Lord Aberfeldy from Trent Park’, Colin Uttley, Spectrum Drama
13.45–14.15:	GROUP 1 - Interactive Session - Enfield Bomb Damage Maps, Joe Robinson
14.15–14:30:	Tea and Coffee
14:30-15.30:	Talk: Mike Brown - The Real Dad’s Army – The Home Guard’
15.30–16:15:	WWII Voices from Enfield’s War Torn Past delivered by Enfield Poet Mary Duggan and featuring a line-up of poets.
16.15:	Finish – last chance to visit the exhibition before the building closes

It was an unremarkable but satisfying end to this year's summer dig on the site of Elsyng Palace. After finishing up the few remaining recording jobs this morning, we spent the rest of the afternoon backfilling and returfing trench two.

Don't forget to follow us on twitter and on facebook for updates on post-excavation work, the full results of which will be published in due course in the Society's newsletter later in the year.

Tentative interpretations of the complex features in the west end of trench 2 suggest that the conical feature may be the base of a tall cistern, and the stub of wall next to it possibly a demolished threshold and step leading down to the brick floor. The current hypothesis is that this was associated with one of the palace stables.

Special thanks are due to our members this year, who did a sterling job and endured particularly hostile weather this week. We're especially grateful for the good turnout for backfilling today, which saw us get the job done early for the first time in 15 years!

Sadly, rain stopped play today as heavy showers overnight and all through the morning made the side too muddy to safely set up for our public viewing day, and too wet to do any accurate recording, forcing us off site before 11am.

We're aiming to make an early start tomorrow to get the final planning jobs done before our palace structures will be covered and the trenches returfed for another year.

Not much to report today; heavy rain and thunderstorms all morning and most of the early afternoon made it impossible to do anything much other than take shelter beneath the park's lime trees and savour the cooler temperatures.

We spent most of the dry periods backfilling trench 1, which is now finished and returfed, and part of trench 2, leaving the walls of the barn and associated structural features visible for members of the public on tomorrow's viewing day.

We also managed to get some important drawing and surveying work done, hopefully meaning there won't be much to do tomorrow, since the weather forecast is even worse.

Because of the weather we weren't able to work on trench 3, and if the heavens open again tomorrow, we may backfill it to return to next year.

The record breaking heatwave currently sweeping northern Europe brought work to a crawl this afternoon, on the tenth day of our summer dig on the site of Henry VIII's Elsyng palace, as temperatures in the afternoon crept into the high thirties.

Using improvised shade and staying as much as possibly beneath the canopy of the lime tree avenue, we were able to work in small stints with frequent drink breaks. Overall we weren't able to make much progress beyond topsoil removal in trench 3, which we opened yesterday speculatively looking for the continuation of the brick lined culvert which we found a small section of last year, and suspect may be heading towards the (currently undiscovered) location of the palace's inner gatehouse.

In trench two, we were able to do two small but interesting jobs, the first of which was examining one side of the vaulted drain which runs beneath the southern barn wall.

Excavating a small section next to the drain, we unexpectedly found a course of bricks running alongside it, which at first looked like the drain had a brick offset or a shoulder at the base of the arch.

Expecting to reveal the brick-built side of the drain, we dug down in front of the bricks only to find that they are only a single course set in a mortar bed.

We've nearly reached our allowed maximum depth at this point of the trench now, so unfortunately it looks as though we won't be able to get a good idea of how deep the side of the drain is.

Nearby, at the west end of the trench where we've been excavating an unusual feature including a conical fire pit, we were able to finish removing the rubble deposit next to the pit and the stub of partly demolished wall next to it, revealing a mostly intact brick floor.

The floor is quite limited in extent and occupies a narrow cut in front of the fire pit, the chronology and purpose of which are still far from clear,

Elsewhere on the site, we were able to get some key recording work finished meaning that tomorrow backfilling of trench 1 can begin and perhaps parts of the east end of trench 2.

Hopefully we'll be able to spread this out over a few days, although the forecast tomorrow and over the weekend looks considerably cooler.