The South Dorset Group met on 13th March 2002 for their AGM and a talk by Colin Dean. Tony Johnson, the South Dorset Group's press reporter has written the following review of the evening's events.

Tony Pomeroy, the acting chairman of the South Dorset Group started the meeting with a report of the past year's activities. He reported that the group was in a satisfactory state regarding finance and membership, although there was still difficulty in recruiting members for certain tasks. Tony was elected chairman of the group for the coming year.

Colin Dean, the editor of the society journal The Greenwood Tree then gave a talk about the research he had carried out into migration between the Channel Islands and Somerset and Dorset, based on the 1851 census. This migration appeared to be two way traffic, with many families living on the Islands for a few years before returning to the mainland. There were several reasons for their original departure, but the poverty and the difficult conditions amongst workers in England was probably their main motivation. In those days, France was seen as the potential enemy, and the United Kingdom defended the Channel Islands with a large garrison which needed fortifications and accommodation. The local labour force was inadequate, and Dorset, with its quarrying and building skills, was a relatively short distance away. Of course, once people had settled into their new abode, they wrote home to encourage relatives and neighbours to join them. This flow of migrants, in both directions across the channel, gave rise to a ship building industry. Here again, experienced workers on the English coast were persuaded to move to the Islands where conditions were better. Families who returned to England tended to settle in the ports rather than move inland, and Weymouth was a popular destination.

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