Jim Tonkin

Jim Tonkin was born in Newlyn, Cornwall, in 1921 and died at Wigmore, Herefordshire, on 22 April 2010.

Educated at Penzance Grammar School, he later attended the Universities of London, Bristol and Cambridge, gaining his BA Dip Ed. Serving in the Far East under Wingate during World War II, he was a major in the Royal Corps of Signals at the age of 23. He first taught at the Delabole Primary School in Cornwall, and then specialised in history at Camborne Grammar School. He became Deputy Head at Newquay in 1954 and Headmaster of Wigmore High School in 1963. Secretary of the Vernacular Architecture Group since 1972, he was elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries in 1974; he was President of the Woolhope Club in 1967 and 1973.

The Society is grateful to David Mander for the following appreciation.

Jim Tonkin was at the centre of Herefordshire's cultural life since his arrival in the county in the early 1960s. As a founding member of the Vernacular Architecture Group, his expertise in this field was was already recognised. On his arrival he was approached by the WEA and University of Birmingham extra-mural department to provide a teaching programme. For the next 40 years Jim delivered courses, including site visits, and lectures to innumerable students, and inspired generations of local historians to explore their built environment. His work is well recorded in specialist journals and the many proceedings of the Woolhope Naturalists' Field Club.

The Woolhope Club provided Jim with an additional outlet for his boundless energies from the 1960s and this ran in parallel with his lecturing work. With his wife, Muriel, he occupied most of the key positions in this organisation, including president and secretary. In addition to his many contributions to the club's published work, he has thus been a keystone of a body that has been at the centre of the county's intellectual life since 1852.

Jim's talent for inspiring seems to have been forged in Burma during the Second World War. As the youngest major in the history of his unit, the Royal Corps of Signals, he played a key role in maintaining communications, sometimes well behind enemy lines. His ability to gain the respect of those around him remained with Jim throughout his post-war career. Headmaster of new Wigmore Secondary School from 1965 to 1981, he drove for and achieved high standards in the still novel environment of comprehensive education.

On his retirement, Jim's skills as a researcher were harnessed by Herefordshire Record Office. An index to the enormous series of wills for the period 1540-1700 had already been compiled, but this was prone to errors and needed to be checked by a specialist. Jim was commissioned as a volunteer to work through the entire collection, double-checking and re-indexing where necessary. In addition to this, he set out to analyse 20 per cent of the wills to explore trends and developments in social history. By assessing this sample, he was able to investigate occupations, social structures and changes in farming practice. This was an enormous project for a volunteer to take on and Jim dedicated a large proportion of four days a week to this task for twenty-seven years. Given that his journey to the office meant a round trip of forty miles, this represents an astonishing commitment to the archive service. The fruits of his labours are now in the hands of the British Records Society, which is planning to publish the analytical index. This will be an enormous boon to family, local and social historians.

Jim clearly derived great satisfaction from his voluntary work and his enthusiasm for it remained undimmed. As a feature of the searchroom, his expertise was an added resource for the staff and he was always willing to advise researchers in the business of house history. His support for the office has also extended to his association with the Friends organisation. As a founder member and chairman at various times, he demonstrated an almost paternal interest in the office. As a modestly funded service, the support of the Friends, for fundraising and advocacy was invaluable.

Headmaster of Wigmore High School, 1963 – 1981
Editor of Woolhope Club transactions, 1966 - 2005
Secretary of Woolhope Club, 1986 – 2009
President of Woolhope Club (3 terms, 1966 – 1986)
Chairman of the Friends of Herefordshire Record Office, 2000 – 2005
Volunteer, Herefordshire Record Office, 1981 - 2010