Abingdon-on-Thames Heritage Open Day 2012

We are so lucky in Abingdon to have a lot of history to look back on and some fantastic buildings. Heritage open day is a great day to get behind some of those closed doors we walk past every day and to peer at what is hidden behind. The owners of the private buildings are always so friendly and welcoming when they open their doors and show so much care in preserving their buildings.

On the odd year we have missed the hod as we are in other parts of the country, it's made us realise what a lot of effort the town puts into the day. One town we went to the only open doors related thing going was a tour of a recycling plant!

This year the hod is on the weekend of  8 - 9 September and seems to have more open than ever before and Twickenham House, a grade II listed mansion recently converted to apartments, is a possible 'last chance to see'. A good visit for children will be the old magistrates court with bench and cells and a magistrate to tell you about her experiences there or drop into meet the mayor in the parlour at the Old Abbey House. But the first stop on your visit should be the market place to pick up a what's on leaflet and map from the volunteers so you get plenty of updated information.

There are a number of organised walks over the weekend, I think we will be going on the Abingdon Abbey Walk as this is nice and short but if you're up to it I know the boundary walk is excellent as we have done this on new years day before.

Due to the age of some buildings it's not always easy to navigate with a pushchair so I would recommend popping young ones into a baby carrier if they aren't up for the walk. We have done this in the past and it's worked out well.

To find out more about the heritage open day see their website where you can download a leaflet with all the buildings that are open and their times, and the best about the weekend, its all free.
http://www.abingdonheritage.co.uk/

Many thanks to the organisers of the heritage open day for letting me use their images.