Promoting awareness of the archaeology and history of north Devon
Promoting awareness of the archaeology and history of north Devon
Explore North Devon Community Heritage Project:
Progress Report
Tim Wormleighton
(Newsletter No 13 2007)
Tim Wormleighton
(Newsletter No 13 2007)
Explore North Devon is an Internet based heritage project that is enabling communities in northern Devon to collect and research information about their localities and present it to a global audience, supported by funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund and the North Devon Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The project forms part of a national initiative, Archives 4 All, which is the latest phase of the hugely popular Access to Archives scheme, spearheaded by The National Archives.
Since its launch at the end of 2006, Explore North Devon has been actively working with community groups and schools in the parishes of Bratton Fleming, Hartland, Mortehoe, Parracombe and Winkleigh, creating and capturing historical data in a variety of media, from documents and photographs to sound and film recordings, to build up a vibrant picture of life in the past and present that will form the basis of the project database. Computers have been provided for all of the communities to allow residents to contribute material at special events and at regular data collection sessions. Each community will be linked to the central database by a Broadband connection so that they will be able to add to their section of the project remotely.
The necessary software and website design work has been carried out by Information Sciences, the company behind the highly successful HA2000 heritage software, to produce an attractive and informative product. Testing of the Explore North Devon website is now underway, and it is intended that the site, www.explorenorthdevon.org.uk, will be launched during May, with links and tasters accessible on the Access to Archives website at www.a2a.org.uk.
A touring exhibition entitled 'Let's Party' has been arranged to coincide with this year's North Devon Festival, with the theme of celebrations past and present. This will include a selection of photographs from each of the participating communities and will provide an opportunity for people to bring in their photographs, documents, or even finds from their gardens, and scan them into the project database. Events will be held at Parracombe Revels on 28 May, The King's Arms, Winkleigh on 13 June, Combe Martin Library on 19 June, Mortehoe Heritage Centre on 24 June, and Hartland Primary School on 25 June. Awareness sessions on how to use the Explore North Devon and Access to Archives websites are being held in libraries in northern Devon throughout the Summer. For details of these free drop-in sessions, please contact the North Devon Record Office.