Who we are
The BLFHS is a community group run by a Management Committee elected each year by our members at the Annual General Meeting. All members have a vote at the meeting. Those unable to attend may vote by post.
Early in 2011, a group of enthusiasts sharing a keen interest in nurturing and preserving our town and county heritage met to discuss the formation of the Breconshire Local & Family History Society (the BLFHS).
A steering committee was established to prepare the society's organisational and financial framework, to devise a programme of meetings and activities, and to manage the running of the Society until its first Annual General Meeting. An inaugural meeting was held in Brecon on 1st June 2011, to provide opportunities for interested members of the public to participate and discuss the objectives and plans of the new society and to formally adopt a Constitution. Coinciding with the inaugural meeting, the Society launched its website, and published its first online newsletter later the same month.
Full committee meetings are held bi-monthly using in-person and video conferencing. This enables members who do not live near Brecon to serve on the Committee.
What we do
Our aims are to "enhance, encourage and enable the study of local history and family history in Breconshire"
Meetings – The Society holds regular meetings on the second Tuesday of each month usually at 2:00 pm at Kensington Church Hall, Brecon, although some meetings consist of visits or outings to nearby sites. Most events are free to members, while non-members pay a small charge.
All members have access to a monthly Newsletter containing details of forthcoming meetings, events and activities. Short articles by members are welcomed for inclusion in the newsletter and on the Society website.
Projects – The Society also has an active team of volunteers carrying out individual and group research such as:
- Transcribing Monumental Inscriptions (gravestones and memorials) in local burial grounds.
- Transcribing church and chapel records and publishing them on the Society website, and in some cases in booklet form.
- Producing leaflets to assist in family history research using locally available records as well as internet resources.
- Collecting and digitally scanning old photographs of Breconshire.