Today I am going to shamelessly plug our annual study day event on Saturday 3^rd October at the Bromham Hub. The theme is celebrating a handful of our Wiltshire towns, namely Westbury, Devizes, Chippenham and Salisbury. Each town has its own distinctive identity, not least in terms of their building materials and character. We are fortunate in having one of the longest runs of the Victoria County History in Wiltshire, with only a handful of areas (or hundreds) left to cover. John Chandler will be speaking fresh from an extended study of Chippenham for that publication, and his talk promises to be full ‘of the more intriguing and unnoticed aspects of Chippenham’s layout, buildings and suburbs’. Having done a walk around Chippenham for the Heritage Open Days event only last week, I can attest to that, for instance, who knew that the perfect Queen Anne building featured in the opening credits of The Antiques Roadshow is none other than the grade II* Zealy’s House in St Mary Street? This and other gems will no doubt be examined in John’s talk.

Suzanne Keene is the proud owner of a 15^th century timber-framed hall house tucked away in the centre of Salisbury. This really is a hidden gem, invisible from the street behind a Georgian front. As an academic with an enquiring mind, Suzanne is endlessly fascinated by its complexity. A number of possible origins are suggested, with no two experts agreeing. Even tree-ring dating cannot give a definitive start-date for this small but beautiful building. Suzanne will be setting out the story and inviting discussion.

Steve Hobbs needs no introduction to those who have frequented the History Centre in Chippenham in the past few years. As a retired archivist he has applied that same interest in cataloguing his modest home town of Westbury. This was once a huge parish, one of the biggest in Wiltshire spreading across from Dilton Marsh to Heywood, and from Chapmanslade to Bratton, taking in several small hamlets. Wiltshire Buildings Record has recorded several ancient buildings here, including the impressively timber-framed 15^th century Peacehouse in the Bratton Road. Other historic buildings have been swept away in the name of progress, but their records have been preserved in the Wiltshire Buildings Record archives for future study.

Not based in any particular town, but referring to Wiltshire as a whole, James Holden has authored three books for Wiltshire Buildings Record: gate lodges, non-conformist chapels and public buildings. It is the latter in the form of town halls and market halls that has occupied James’ most recent interest. These buildings symbolise civic pride and are often amongst the most prominent and lavishly-rendered town buildings, yet many are struggling to find a purpose in the 21^st century. Warminster Town Hall, for instance, has suffered years of uncertainty for its future, and has suffered neglect as a result – a shame for such a grand old building recalling Longleat House situated in the centre of the town, and given by the Marquis of Bath to the people.

As for me? I will be talking about a recent commission in Devizes that has thrown a new light on the development of 1-3 Northgate Street. You will probably have heard about the disastrous fire which engulfed the Kebab House at the north-west end of the Market Place, affecting the buildings on either side of it and closing off the road long enough to let those massive timber shores holding up the front wall imprint permanently on the mind!  Wiltshire Buildings Record was given the task of examining the remains, and recording them before the demolition of no.2. Layers of fabric were stripped which revealed some surprising evidence about the previous buildings on the site. All will be told on the 3^rd October at Bromham.

Dorothy Treasure

Principal Buildings Historian, Wiltshire Buildings Record