Honorary freemen, aldermen and officers
Honorary Remembrancer
The appointment of Honorary Remembrancer was created in May 1933. It was created especially for Dr G C Williamson, an antiquarian and local historian. The honour was created in recognition of his services investigating and recording the town's history.
At annual elections of mayors, he read reviews of the more important work carried out by the Corporation during the past year. Rather than an annual report, he began to chronicle events in the town by amassing material in scrapbooks. These included the results of his historical research as well as contemporary matters. They are are now kept at the Surrey History Centre.
Williamson died in 1942. Even though the role was created for him, the post of Honorary Remembrancer continued. F W Elsley, the Honorary Curator of Guildford Museum, was appointed to the position next. It was Elsley who began the series of annual reports, copies of which were circulated amongst councillors. Until the 1970s, Remembrancers were local historians. It then became the practice to offer the post to a long-serving councillor, usually an Alderman.
The original concept has been restored to with the appointment of Mr Matthew Alexander in 2010.