Cambridgeshire & Huntingdonshire Family History Society

12/10/2026

The Nunn family of Sutton Cambridgeshire

12/10/2026

Eddie has shared with us some photos of the Nunn family of Sutton:

The family newsagents shop, situated at No 69, High Street, Sutton, Camb’s, was established in 1860 and remained as a family business until February 1953.

William NUNN inherited the shop from his mother, upon her death in 1913. Then in turn William, upon his death, left the business to his son Harold NUNN, who continued to manage the business until its sale in 1953, following the death of Desmond in 1951.

The photos show as follows

Photo 1 - The original shop, with the owner William NUNN standing in the doorway. (possible

Photo 2 - Nunn's shop in the 1920’s with the owner Mr William NUNN far right, his son Harold Nunn in the middle and an unknown lady on the left.

Photo 3 - Harold NUNN selling ice cream from a motorcycle combination in High Street, Sutton. (believed to be early 1920’s).

Photo 4 - High Street, Sutton with Nunn’s Newsagents shop on the right, next to the Ship Inn.

Photo 5 - The NUNN family in front of the shop. From L to R, daughter Alma, Harold and his wife May, then son Desmond. (1940’s)

Photo 6 - Harold NUNN, at the counter inside the shop. (possibly early 1950’s)

Photo 7 - Taken in December 1943, the Nunn family, Harold and May, their daughter Alma and son Desmond, together with a New Zealand airman, Mr Phil Pullyn, who was stationed at RAF Mepal during WW2.


The attached news cutting covers their retirement and sale of the shop together with a little background information, hopefully you will be able to view that. If not please let me know and I will type the text for you.
I will mention one thing about the cutting though, the fact that it says the business had been in the family 103 years. However, on Photo No 5, at the top of the sign, it clearly states Established 1860, which, if my math is correct, would make it 93 years. Unfortunately I do not know the exact date it was first opened.

If you recognise anyone o0r want to share some memories let us know!

23/08/2026

Our talks for the rest of the year are now open for bookings on our website! All free, so head on over and reserve your place: https://www.chfhs.org.uk/talks

18/08/2026

The Society of Genealogists are holding a free event of interest to those researching in Cambridgeshire & Huntingdonshire on the 7th September 2-4PM. There will be speakers from the SoG, Cambridgeshire & Huntingdonshire FHS, Cambridgeshire Archives Service, Cambridgeshire Collection and Cambridge University Library.

Book your free place: https://portal.sog.org.uk/Event/view/2746748

02/08/2026

If you are interested in the Smoothy family of Great Abington, there is a family bible for sale on Vinted with many dates of birth and death of family members during the 1860s to 1880s:

1825 family bible - Here is a 1825 family bible. It's in ok condition considering it's age.

03/07/2026

The Society of Genealogists are holding a free event on 7th September 2-4PM where you can connect with experts from local family history societies and archives to discover the wealth of resources available in Cambridgeshire & Huntingdonshire.

This is a collaboration between the Society of Genealogists, Cambridgeshire & Huntingdonshire Family History Society, Cambridgeshire Archives Service, Cambridge Collection, and Cambridge University Library. Join us to learn about family history resources for Cambridgeshire & Huntingdonshire.

Book your place here:

FREE event. Book a spot to watch live. No pre-booking required to view the recording which will be available in the SoG Learning Hub.

03/07/2026

We will be attending so please join us if you can!

Come and join us for our History Fair on Monday 20th July, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
See the attached poster for details.
Please note, those who receive Elyi magazine there is an error with the dates on the ‘What’s On’ page. The date should say 20th July.
We looking forward to welcoming as many visitors as possible.

27/05/2026

Our upcoming talks for JUNE

A-Z of Cambridge with Sarah Doig
Wednesday 3rd June 2026, 14:00-15:00
March Library
King's Chapel with beautiful morning sky in Cambridge, UK
A quirky alternative to Cambridge’s rich history from dipping into a wide variety of stories—such as books, oysters sold at the largest fair in Medieval Europe, and famous residents

Is Artificial Intelligence a help or hindrance to photo restoration and research? with Steve Gill
Wednesday 17th June 2026, 19:30-20:45
Zoom
AI is revolutionizing photography, but is it truly beneficial? In this talk, Steve will explore AI’s role in restoring old photos—highlighting its flaws—and contrast it with its powerful potential for historical research. Join him to discuss whether AI is a tool or a troublemaker in photo preservation! He’ll also be taking you through some ways you can understand and date your old family photographs.
(Please note this talk will be recorded and made available to members)

No pre-booking required for the March in person talk. Book your place for the online talk here:

AI is revolutionizing photography, but is it truly beneficial? In this talk, Steve will explore AI’s role in restoring old photos—highlighting its flaws—and contrast it with its powerful potential for historical research. Join him to discuss whether AI is a tool or a troublemaker in photo pre...

26/05/2026

Member number 1, Bob Adams, cut the cake at our AGM on Saturday at the Huntingdon Archive to celebrate 50 years of the Cambridgeshire (and now also Huntingdonshire) Family History Society. Bob assured us he had not queued all night to be the first member - he was simply alphabetically gifted!

20/05/2026

Join us this evening at 7.30PM on Zoom for Dorothy Halfhide's talk on Thorney. For more information and to book your free place click the link :)

https://www.chfhs.org.uk/thorney-with-dorothy-halfhide-532