Lifting the lid on Secret Horsham
Maggie, aged 69, said: “I have lived in Horsham for 20 years now and really enjoy the town and surrounding Wealden landscape. When I first settled here I wanted to know more about it and was particularly fascinated by St Leonard’s Forest and so I began a part-time research DPhil at the University of Sussex into the landscape history of the forest.
“I really enjoyed the whole process of research and writing of my thesis and wanted to tell everyone what I had discovered. A book, based on the information in the thesis was the answer, or so I thought. Sadly all the publishers I approached felt that a book about a local forest was a bit niche to sell well. However Amberley Publications asked me if I would like to write one about Horsham in their Secret Town series. I was delighted to do so as it meant a bit more research, and I had by then retired from many years as a probation officer.
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Hide Ad“I was aware that there had been lots of new building in and around Horsham in the last few years and many new residents, so I wanted to write a book that introduced them to the town and its historical background.
“The subject chapters I chose to write about demonstrated my own interests and hopefully show some sort of logical progression. Thus I started with Early Beginnings, a geographical, geological and archaeological introduction to the place of Horsham in the south east and on the edge of the High Weald.
“I continued by looking at the economic development of the town through markets and fairs, industry and commerce. I brought this up to date with recent developments, new companies, vineyards, festivals and fairs.
“I could not resist including a chapter on my beloved forest and the commons, and then the myths and legends that often associate with forests, in this case the St Leonard’s dragon. It was important to me to include something on the town’s arts and culture, especially since 2019 is Horsham’s Year of Culture.
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Hide Ad“Given my profession I really did want to cover crime and punishment and this was particularly interesting given Horsham’s early importance as site of the Assize Court, gaol and gibbet. My final chapter was War and Peace as Horsham was subject to great influxes of soldiers and prisoners during the Second World War but I wanted to end on a peaceful note.
“I did find myself getting rather over-enthusiastic about the town. It really does have so much to offer.
“I am not Horsham born and bred so I am sure I have missed bits that others would have put in, but it is the sort of book that I would like to have read when I first moved to Horsham. I should mention that there are lots of illustrations in the book, mainly taken by myself, usually accompanied by understanding friends. I also approached the museum and heritage officer of Horsham Museum, Jeremy Knight, for historical advice and permissions to use illustrations.”
Maggie added: “Having started writing after finishing my DPhil thesis, and after retiring, I have now rather got the bug. I really do want to do my forest book and this is the next project which may well have to be self-published. However, I am also interested in creative writing and in particular historical fiction, so far I have written one short story based around Horsham of course. I have recently joined Horsham Writers Circle and signed up for Collyers creative writing course. I am also interested in poetry and have been writing this for many years, although only recently taking it seriously and going to workshops. I love writing in all its forms and of course I am an avid reader.”