Ely Society will hold display showing what life was like in city in First World War - and contributions are welcomed

Published: 2:58 PM July 15, 2014

Updated: 6:23 PM December 14, 2020

Few people will have failed to notice that we are now commemorating the centenary of the start of The Great War.

There have been numerous articles and programmes about the conflict, life in the trenches and the terrible carnage.

The Ely Society is planning to do something a little different - we are going to have a display in the cathedral of what life was like in Ely and the surrounding villages for those left at home.

We have photographs of the time showing people (often women) going about their work, scenes within the city and on the farmlands.

We also have items that showed business, in some ways, continued as usual. In fact some businesses flourished including the sale of horses, harness making and the making of boots.

We would very much welcome contributions of additional photos, letters, comics, cook books, receipts, invoices and artefacts of the day. Photos will be promptly copied and returned and all other items will also be returned to their owners in November.

We cannot manage larger items such as ploughs and prams, and we are not collecting military items.