HAP are currently working on a project called Understanding Dunkeswell Abbey Church. This Victorian Church, hidden away amongst the ruins of Dunkeswell Abbey in the Blackdown Hills, has a very unusual history.
It was built by a family of women who poured their time and energy into mastering the craft skills needed to create architectural fixings. Using a large drawing room at their home as a workshop they produced stained glass windows, altars, reredoses, a font, a pulpit, a reading desk, capitals, corbels and furniture reconstituted from antique carvings.
For Women’s History Month we’ve written a blog for the Blackdown Hills AONB about these remarkable women: The Simcoe sisters: Victorian craftswomen in Dunkeswell.
If you’re interested in finding out more about the women of the Simcoe family, come along to our open day on May 7th.
