Report of the Essex Field Club for 1999-2000
3
We have had a high degree of assistance from the Borough and we would like to express our grati-
tude for that. The mateiial is going temporarily into to cheaper storage pending further decisions on
a long(er) term home. Council has made the decision to reduce the collection to those elements
relevant to the county, but to regard these as a basis from which to build up again with a closer local
focus. Non-relevant material will be disposed of primarily to museums, but some items within this
category may be sold to help defray the costs of removal and storage. More news of the collections
will be appearing in the newsletters during the coming year.
To complement the changes in the format of our publications and to better reflect the achievements
of the Field Club, we are looking to have an indoor meeting detailing new records for the year and
with other relevant displays and/or talks. This may be in the form of an extended AGM or a separate
autumn/winter meeting. These matters are being considered by Council currently.
Finally, the Club has been helping to commemorate one of its founders. A couple of years ago the
Club's Council was delighted to hear work was being carried out to restore the headstone of William
Cole's grave at St Osyth Cemetery. William Cole (1844 -1922) was one of the founders of the Essex
Field Club, an important local naturalist and long-time (over 40 years!) editor of the Essex Natural-
ist. Additionally, part of the cemetry, consisting of species-rich grassland, was to be conserved as
the William Cole Memorial Meadow. The Council was keen to support a re-awakening of interest in
William Cole and the establishment of this site. The Club donated £100 towards the stone and
plaque, about a third of the cost, the rest of which was contributed by the Essex Heritage Trust and
St. Osyth Historical Society. We are also planning to visit the Meadow to carry out recording of its
fauna and flora to add to the list that Reg Arthur, a memeber of the Club and one of the main people
involved in the restoration project, has already compiled. We hope to maintain a long association
with this site and at the turn of the Century it has been good for the Club to re-connect with its
beginnings in this positive way.
Essex Naturalist (New Series) 17 (2000)