Stokesley & District

u3a

Archaeology

Last updated on 27th January 2026.

Status:Active, open to new members
When: On Wednesday afternoons 2:00 pm
3rd Wednesday of the month.
Venue: Stokesley Town Hall
Cost: Contact group leader to find out cost - contact details are below.

Contact Co-leaders:

Tricia Virgo and David Chadwick

Our approach is non-academic, but will involve exploring the archaeology around us in the North East as well as finding out about archaeology sites elsewhere in the UK and globally. No experience is necessary, just the desire to learn something new.

From April to September, we visit sites and museums of interest within reasonable travelling distance, and so on occasion this may be a different day and time, to fit in with the venue's requirements. From October to March, we will meet in the Brunton Room in the Town Hall at 2pm, for a talk or presentation on a relevant subject. It is hoped that members will come forward to share their knowledge or experiences at one of these meetings.

In June we had a guided visit in the new Railway Museum at Shildon during the S&DR200 festival celebrating 200 years since the first passenger journey on the Stockton & Darlington Railway in 1825

In July we paid a return to Guisborough Priory with a guided visit of some of the recovered stones and off the beaten track areas of the Priory and its cleared areas.

We enjoyed a fascinating visit to the Cold War Bunker in York in August seeing the Ops Room and learning how nuclear explosions were to be tracked and assessed for Fall-Out and how the staff lived in isolation with limited supplies at the end of which they would be thrown out into the nuclear winter and left to their own devices to survive.


September ended our summer programme with a tour of
Aldborough Roman site, the Roman town of Isurium Brigantum, which began as a trading settlement around AD 70, and became the civilian ‘capital’ of an extensive region of north Britain from about AD 120 to about AD 400. Strategically founded on the Roman road network and the highest navigable point on the river Ure, the town was a vital point of communication, administration and trade in the Roman north. We also took the opportunity to visit the nearby Devils Arrows, 3 prehistoric menhirs from C 3000 – 2500 BC, the remains of supposed line of standing stones, part of the northern prehistoric landscape.

Through the winter we arrange a programme of monthly talks in Stokesley Townhall

In October our member Jean Spencely gave us an excellent account of Scarborough during the civil war and we intend to pay a visit to the castle this coming summer.

Our planned November talk was cancelled due to adverse weather preventing our speaker to reach Stokesley, but our leaders stepped in and we had an enjoyable session.

In December we held the second of our annual Christmas members sessions. Members contributed to a festive lunch and gave short talks on a subject of the choice with a challenging quiz based on our activities throughout the year.

January 2026 started the year with and entertaining and informative talk by Mik Lisowsky of York University on the subject of Zooarchaeology. Together with a team of his students we were shown and handled bones determining diseases, butchery and cooking methods evidenced by the remains.

In February Dr Emma Watson of Tees Archaeology will give a talk on prehistoric sites in North Yorkshire.

In March one of our members David Chadwick will give a talk on Early Man in Orkney – from the First Hunters to Neolithic.

Our summer programme is being finalised and will be published in the next few weeks

Photos: S&D u3a members

<<<< More Groups Below>>>>

Groups listed alphabetically

  • A to B – from Arts and Crafts to Bauhaus
    Status: Active
    Monthly on Tuesday mornings 10:00 am-12:00 pm
  • Acoustic Instrument Players
    Status: Active
    On Friday mornings 10:30 am-12:30 pm
    2nd and 4th Fridays
  • Advanced Guitar Group.
    Status: Full
    Fortnightly on Tuesdays 10:00 am-12:00 pm
    Alternate Tuesdays
  • Archaeology
    Status: Active
    On Wednesday afternoons 2:00 pm
    3rd Wednesday of the month.
  • Art Appreciation
    Status: Full
    On Thursday mornings 10:00 am-12:00 pm
    Meets on the first Thursday of the Month.
  • Arts group
    Status: Active
    Monthly on Thursday afternoons 2:00 pm-4:00 pm
    3rd Thursday of the month commencing 16th October but no sessions in December or February
  • Beginner's German
    Status: Active
    On Wednesdays
  • Beginners' Guitar
    Status: Active
    On Tuesdays 10:00 am-12:00 pm
  • Beginners’ French Group
    Status: Active
    Weekly on Monday afternoons 2:00 pm-3:00 pm
  • Bloomsbury Group
    Status: Active
    On Tuesday mornings 10:00 am-12:00 pm
  • Bus Walk Group
    Status: Active
    On Tuesday mornings
    3rd Tuesday in the month.
  • Canasta
    Status: Waiting list
    On Thursday afternoons 1:15 pm-3:30 pm
    Meets on first, third and fifth Thursday of the month.
  • Classic Films
    Status: Active
    On Wednesday afternoons 2:00 pm
    Fourth Wednesday of the month.
  • Computer Basics
    Status: Active
  • Computer, Tablet & Phone Group
    Status: Active
    On Wednesday mornings 10:00 am-12:00 pm
    3rd Wednesday of the month.
  • Creative Writing Group 1
    Status: Active
    On Friday mornings 10:00 am-12:30 pm
    3rd Friday of the month.
  • Creative Writing Group 2
    Status: Active
    On Thursday mornings 10:00 am-12:00 pm
    4th Thursday of the month.
  • Croquet
    Status: Active
    On Wednesdays
    Meets Mondays 10.00 to 12.00 and Wednesdays 10.00 to 12.15 and 1.30 to 3.30
  • Cryptic Crosswords
    Status: Active
    2nd Tuesday of the month (morning) & 3rd Wednesday of the month (afternoon), both on Zoom
  • Current Affairs
    Status: Active
    On Wednesday afternoons 2:00 pm
    3rd Wednesday of the month.
  • Family History
    Status: Active
    On Wednesday afternoons 1:30 pm
    1st Wednesday in the month.
  • Family History for Beginners
    Status: Active
    Monthly on Wednesday afternoons 1:30 pm-3:00 pm
    third Wednesday of each month
  • Folk Dancing
    Status: Active
    On Wednesday afternoons 2:00 pm-4:00 pm
    1st Wednesday in the month and possibly 5th Wednesday in the month if there is one.
  • Food group, veggie style!
    Status: Active
    On Wednesday afternoons 1:30 pm-2:30 pm
    3rd Wednesday in the month.
  • French - advanced
    Status: Active
    On Tuesday mornings 10:00 am-12:00 pm
    2nd and 4th Tuesdays in the month.
  • French for Enjoyment
    Status: Active
    On Wednesday mornings 10:00 am-12:00 pm
    1st and 3rd Wednesday in the month.
  • Friday Fun and Games
    Status: Active
    Fortnightly on Friday afternoons 2:00 pm-4:00 pm
  • German Intermediate Group
    Status: Active
    On Wednesday mornings
    2nd and 4th Wednesday of the month.
  • Guitar
    Status: Full
    On Monday mornings 9:30 am-11:30 am
    Alternate Mondays
  • Intermediate Guitar
    Status: Full
    On Monday mornings 9:30 am-11:30 am
    Alternate Mondays (the opposite to the main guitar group.)
  • Intermediate Spanish
    Status: Active
    Fortnightly on Thursday mornings 10:00 am-12:00 pm
    Meets on 2nd and 4th Thursday of month
  • Italian Conversation
    Status: Full
    On Monday mornings 10:00 am-12:00 pm
    1st and 3rd Monday of the month.
  • Life Drawing
    Status: Active
    On Thursday afternoons 1:30 pm-3:30 pm
    4th Thursday in the month. No meeting in December.
  • Meditation - Sharing the Light
    Status: Active
    On Wednesday mornings 10:00 am-11:30 am
    Meets on 2nd Wednesday of each month
  • Modern History
    Status: Active
    On Tuesday afternoons 2:00 pm
    4th Tuesday of the month.
  • Music appreciation
    Status: Active
    On Thursday mornings 10:00 am-12:00 pm
    4th Thursday of the month.
  • Outings Group
    Status: Active
    Various dates as shown below
  • Philosophy
    Status: Active
    On Monday mornings
    2nd Monday of the month.
  • Piano Group
    Status: Active
    Monthly on Monday mornings 10:00 am-12:00 pm
    Ist Monday of month 10.00-12.00
  • Poetry Reading 2
    Status: Active
    On Wednesday afternoons 1:30 pm
    3rd Wednesday KCH
  • Poetry Reading 3
    Status: Full
    On Thursday mornings 10:00 am-12:00 pm
    3rd Thursday of the month.
  • Poetry Reading 4
    Status: Active
    On Monday afternoons 1:30 pm-3:00 pm
    4th Monday of the month
  • Quiz group
    Status: Active
    Monthly on Friday afternoons 1:30 pm
    Meets on first Friday of the month
  • Railway History
    Status: Active
    On Wednesday evenings 7:30 pm
  • Reading Group
    Status: Active
    On Thursday mornings
    2nd Thursday of the month.
  • Science Group
    Status: Active
    On Wednesday afternoons 2:00 pm
    4th Wednesday of the month.
  • Sewing and Craft Group
    Status: Active
    On Wednesday afternoons 1:30 pm-3:30 pm
    1st Wednesday of the month.
  • Shakespeare
    Status: Active
    On Wednesday mornings 10:00 am
    4th Wednesday on the month
  • Singing for Pleasure
    Status: Active
    On Tuesday mornings 10:00 am-12:00 pm
    1st and 3rd Tuesday in the month.
  • Ukulele
    Status: Active
    On Tuesday mornings 10:00 am-12:00 pm
    2nd and 4th Tuesdays of the month.
  • Walking - Intermediate (5-7m.)
    Status: Active
    On Thursday all day
    2nd Thursday of the month.
  • Walking - Long (7-10m.)
    Status: Active
    On Friday all day 10:00 am
    1st Friday of the month.
  • Walking Tennis
    Status: Active
    Weekly on Friday mornings 10:00 am-12:00 pm
  • Yoga
    Status: Waiting list
    On Wednesday mornings

Photo: S&D u3a members

Back to top