The Kilt Shop in the 1950s (click to enlarge)
The Society has a programme of speakers on local history from September to March. The syllabus for 2018-2019 can be found here.
Meetings take place in Dunbar Town House on the 2nd Tuesday of each month from 7pm (Speaker at 7.30pm).
Our next speaker is DDHS member Dave Sowerby who will give a talk entitled “The Retreat Dunbar: The history of a house and its people”. The speaker supplied the following information about his talk:
‘The Retreat’ is an attractive stone built house located just outside the old Dunbar Burgh boundary, on the south side of the Inner Common (the remains of which are the Hallhill playing fields). The illustrated talk will trace the history of the house using evidence from maps, photos, the fabric of the house itself and various documentary sources to explore:
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when it was built
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who caused it to be built & how it was modified over time
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who owned and/or occupied the house down to the present time, examining a select few of the occupants in greater detail to illustrate changing times.
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Theories about why ‘Retreat’ was chosen as the house name
This is a contemporary photo of the house.