Welcome to the Shepherdswell & Coldred History Society
Through this site you will be taken on a journey to our past, learning how events have shaped the people of this area and how the people have shaped the area.
History is a very fluid subject and so we will be constantly updating the information on this site as we learn more about the village and its history.
“Blast from the Past” is a monthly article about some aspect of village life or history. Click here to read the latest edition.
OUR NEXT MEETING
Thursday 29th May 2025
Shepherdswell Village Hall @ 7.30pm
Second World War Defences in and around Shepherdswell
To mark 80 years since Victory in Europe (VE) Day, the History Society’s May meeting will look at defences on the Home Front around Shepherdswell.
It will be led by Brian Flood of the Dover Transport Museum and Mark Cooper. Mark is an authority on the Local Defence Volunteers (Home Guard) and has also been exploring the wartime defence installations on the site of the East Kent Railway.
Brian and Mark will introduce Wehrmacht invasion maps – and ask what the Germans knew about the defence installations around Shepherdswell.
Then, they will report on what defensive positions and equipment we believe were actually in place.
Mark is an LDV reenactor and will appear in Home Guard kit. There will be a display of weaponry, a pill-box diorama and a model layout of the railway site showing the defensive positions.
The society normally holds monthly meetings and regular talks at Shepherdswell Village Hall.
To view our full 2025 programme of events click here but do check this website regularly for any updates or amendments to the programme.
To download a hard copy of the programme, simply click here.
To contact the History Society, please email shepherdswellhistory@gmail.com.
If you would like to become a member or renew your membership, you can either pay on the door at the next meeting or by BACS.
Click here for our bank details.
Our thanks to Dover District Council for the support it has given to the Society over the past few years which has greatly assisted our various projects as well as our ability to share the history of the village with the whole community.
The History Society is a member of the Kent Archaeological Society.