Members - near and far
The Society has a membership of over
300 persons. Although the majority are resident in the United
Kingdom, the Society is represented by members in France, Norway,
the USA and New Zealand.
Membership is open to all persons
interested in discovering information about inn signs and pub
names - collectively referred to as inn-signia.
Most members thought themselves
to be alone in their interesting hobby. It was only when they
joined the Society that individuals realised that others too
shared their passion.
A particularly enjoyable aspect
of inn-signia is that the pastime presents innumerable choices in
which members can specialise - if they so wish. A selection of
categories which some members pursue include:
Animals, Birds, Civil War,
Cricket, Entertainers, Hanging Ladies, Heraldry, Horses, Law &
Order, Royalty, Sport and Trains to name just a few.
Others prefer to collect signs of
one or more counties or past pictures relating to a specific
brewery — Flowers, Whitbread, Young's for example.
Swop Shop
The Society operates a Swop Shop or Exchange Club.
Members can exchange photographs of signs in the
form of prints, slides and digital images. The majority of the
exchanges take place by post, though the scheme also operates at
the Regional Meetings and at the AGM.
Packages of 40 images are sent out to participating members by the
Exchange Secretary. Te first recipient forwards the package to the
next member on the list and so on until it is returned to the
originator. Each member can either exchange one picture for one of
his / her own or purchase images for 20p each.
All proceeds go to the Society to help defray
costs.
New participants are welcome to join the scheme
Donations of images (prints in particular) will
be welcomed.
Please contact the Exchange Secretary - 0121 477
4044 - for further details
Learn about local heritage
We can guarantee that in pursuit of inn signs, you will venture
into areas where you have seldom if ever been before!
Once the bug has bitten, you may wish to explore and research the
origins of various pub names. Although many are common place, most
towns - and some villages - can boast a pub with an unusual, if
not unique name.
Members are encouraged to share their findings
with others. The easiest and most effective way to do this is via
the Journal. Four issues each year are mailed to all members.
As your interest and knowledge increases you may
wish to submit an article on a particular aspect of inn-signia.
The Journal editor will be pleased to receive your submissions -
all of which are considered for publication.
Click here
for more news about the ISS journal
Meetings
Various attempts have been made by members to host regional
meetings. All except the West Midlands group have withered on the
vine. In contrast the WM group has met quarterly for the past
fifteen years!
Members and guests are welcome to attend the WM
regional meeting which takes place at The Swan, Martin Hussingtree
(on the A38) between Worcester and Droitwich. See box at top of
page for the date of next meeting.
Talks
The next progression that many members take is to present
illustrated talks to various external bodies, such as your local
Civic Society, Heritage Group and Women's Institute.
Although the majority of presenters use slides
to illustrate their talks, others are taking advantage of digital
technology. The choice is up to the individual.
Click here
for the list of presenters of illustrated talks
Publications
A number of members have compiled, researched, written and
published an impressive range of publications. Many titles are
still in print and available to the general public.
Click here for a
list of members' publications that are available now.
