This month’s meeting was kept “in house” as two members of the Wickhambrook History Society gave a talk on the history of the Women’s Institute in Wickhambrook and how it has progressed over the years.
Dorothy Anderson explained that interest had been piqued by a visit to the Records Office in Bury St Edmunds last year where many of our old records are held. Sadly the current offices are due to close and all records will be moved to Ipswich. There was concern that these records would not be as accessible to members interested in the history of the Institute.
With the help of Gillian Cooper who read out some historic information, Dorothy gave a brief synopsis of how the Women’s Institute first came about. In Ontario, Canada, children had died from contaminated milk and there was an attempt to promote education for better health. There was already a Farmer’s Institute and 35 women turned up keen to set up a Women’s equivalent. The very first Women’s Institute was founded in Stoney Creek, Ontario by Erland and Janet Lee. Adelaide Hoodless was the very first speaker at the inaugural meeting in 1897. The first Institute to be founded in Great Britain was in 1915 after the outbreak of the First World War when the role of women became increasingly important to the war effort. It was set up in the small village of Lanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllanttysiliogogogoch which is on the island of Anglesey in North Wales. The Marquis of Anglesey was keen to support the movement and gave the women a place to meet. By 1917 there were 40 Institutes established.
The guiding principle behind the movement is that the Women’s Institute is for everyone: rich, poor, educated or otherwise. It was intended as a place for friendship, education and exchange of ideas. Wickhambrook was originally a village of small farms including one owned by Justin Brook. He was a very philanthropic farmer who employed women as well as men and built houses for his workforce. Wickhambrook WI was given land and money to purchase an old barrack room in which to hold its meetings. This hall is still in use today. Wickhambrook’s first meeting was held in December 1926 and moved into their own hall in 1929. It is unusual for an Institute to have its own hall. The hall is in the charge of three Trustees who are all members of the Institute.
Each of these Trustees then gave us their personal insight into what the WI means to them. Firstly Joyce Draycott described how she moved to Wickhambrook in 1966 as a teacher at Ousden. She soon joined the committee and remembers how formal things were back then. Members addressed each other as Miss or Mrs and it was always Madame President. She was at pains to point out that wherever you go and meet a member of the WI they become a friend. Thelma Farrow, the second Trustee told the story of how in 1995 she was celebrating her 50th birthday at a WI meeting when the meeting was interrupted by a debonair young man who presented her with a box of chocolates saying “ because the Lady loves Milk Tray”! The meeting was interrupted again by the present of a bottle of red wine and a third time by a bunch of red roses. All this had been organised by another member of the WI as a surprise.
Deirdre Smith, the third Trustee, read out a moving description of the WI written some years ago by her mother who was a previous stalwart of Wickhambrook WI.
After all the talk of the history of our WI Dorothy was keen to point out that the movement continues to evolve and move with the times. Wickhambrook WI has two reading groups and two walking groups who all meet regularly. We also have many events outside of the monthly meetings including trips to the theatre, pub lunches, providing monthly tea parties and a yearly Literary Lunch which involve guest speakers from the world of books. The evening was deemed a great success and enjoyed by all the members who attended.