The Month of July!

Right, this month I have not been very good at updating the blog mainly because there has been so much to do! The HBI Project has taken off in ways I could not have predicted and it hasn't even launched yet!

Scott Grenney the creator of two Plymouth 'Whats on' Websites has kindly featured us on those websites if you would like to take a look see the below link:

http://www.barbicanwaterfront.com/2012/07/17/swib-heritage-business-initiative%E2%80%8F/

We are also up and running on Facebook and Twitter so if any of my blog readers haven't liked the page or followed us please feel free to do so!

https://www.facebook.com/TheSWIBHBI

https://twitter.com/HBIHeritage

Last Friday Colette Hobbs, the outreach officer at SWiB and myself had a meeting with Sarah O'Leary manager of the Plymouth Waterfront Partnership where has very kindly offered us some advertising and networking opportunities for September - There will also be a lot more future collaborations between the SWiB HBI and the PWP, please check out their website for a bit more information about what they do. I will publish any events and or media coverage in next weeks post as details are still being put together.

http://www.waterfrontbid.co.uk/

I am also currently actively approaching a couple of companies which having done some research I feel may benefit from the HBI Scheme - if you know of any businesses then please don't hesitate to leave a comment!

Finally the SWiB website now features the project on its page so feel free to have a look at that too, although the photo of me used is probably the worst one I have ever seen!

http://www.southwestimagebank.com/HBI%20project.html

Keep watching this space and at the rate this project is moving by this time next week I shall have lots more to update you with, Thank you for your continued support :)

All set up for Fridays meeting with the finished Brochures and Business Cards

HBI Business Cards

I thought I would share with you the finished HBI Business card design, these will be printed and ready for the projects launch in September and I am currently working on the Brochures. Thank you to many of my facebook followers who took the time to help choose the design 

This weeks work at Cotehele - 3rd July 2012

This weeks session at Cotehele was another quiet one owing to the horrendous rain and mist we have been having, visitor numbers are down and the general consensus amongst staff and volunteers is that those visitors we do have coming in are becoming steadily more ill tempered as the wet miserable summer progresses... I don't blame them.

Therefore I have taken the opportunity to use this weeks post to discuss one of the smaller exhibitions in the house, yet one of the most important and informative in terms of preventing the deterioration of the historic artefact's at Cotehele and indeed in all Heritage establishments.

 

I often have visitors to the Victorian Library question me about the small plastic shapes positioned on the left of my desk. It being such a hands on room with so many bright and beautiful displays, all complete with detailed write ups and reviews, I think these small inconspicuous pieces trigger a certain curiosity.

As you can see each plastic case is comprised of two sections of the same type of five different materials from copper to suede to cotton, paper and velvet. One section of the material is covered by a thin protective plastic covering, the other is left exposed. Visitors are drawn to touch and rub the exposed material thus demonstrating the detrimental effect that this has upon each one. These plastic shapes are used to show visitors to Cotehele the reasons why certain areas and collection are roped off or concealed from public viewing, even from this photograph you will be able to see the difference between the exposed material on the bottom section and the covered material on the top, this is especially clear in the red Velvet and the faun suede. This exhibit has only been on display for the past 3 months so obviously we can determine from this the amount of damage that would be done to soft furnishings over a prolonged period of many years where thousands of visitors are handling these objects. Therefore I say to you bad tempered visitors, soggy from the rain and shivering from our 12 degree July temperatures - We are not trying to be mean or to ruin your experience of Cotehele or indeed any other Heritage attraction by restricting access to our collections, this is a necessary and important part of preservation and if we take these measures then these beautiful tapestries, paintings and furniture will be intact for further generations of history geeks (like myself to enjoy)

This weeks work at SwiB - July 2nd 2012

Unfortunately I was unable to attend this weeks volunteer session due to a flat tyre however I have been able to do a lot more work to my Exhibition Project with SWiB and a post regarding progress will be going up shortly.

Some more photographs from the South West Image Bank this week

These are some images taken of our beautiful gallery this week, we are currently running an exhibition centering on the Lenkiewicz mural which is situated just left of the SWiB archive on the b=Barbican Plymouth. We also have a newly completed exhibition of black and white photographs of Plymouth beautifully put together by our outreach manager, Colette Hobbs.

                                      

Also...

 

These pages are taken from the DH10 file; David Hocking is a local photographer mentioned in the previous "This week at SWiB" post. Here we can see how David has supplied small histories and background strories to accompany his photographs, a method which is hugely helpful and insightful when it comes to archiving these stunning images.

This weeks work at Cotehele - 26th June 2012

Unfortunately I have been unable to attend this weeks volunteer session due to a family funeral. I will however be back in the Victorian Library as of next week.

This weeks work at SwiB - June 18th 2012

Today I have been cataloguing a collection by David Hocking, a local photographer who has built up his own personal archive of images and histories of various aspects of life within Devon and Cornwall. The collection I have been working on is DH-10, the tenth collection we have on record and one that relates specifically to the rail network on the South Devon and North Cornwall divide during the closure of many of these stations during the 1960s. This collection is of particular interest to me as I grew up in a village near callington and have often passed remnants of the old railway lines when travelling to and from the town. Interestingly the Callington Station was actually situated in Kelly Bray.

"Callington railway station was a railway station in the town of Callington, Cornwall, built by the Plymouth, Devonport and South Western Junction Railway, but operated by the London and South Western Railway. It was the terminus of a branch line from Bere Alston, and the station closed in 1966. The Tamar Valley Line still operates services from Bere Alston with services terminating 5 miles (8 km) to the east at Gunnislake railway station. The now-closed section of line north of Gunnislake had several severe gradients and speed restrictions, which made operating difficult.

A small locomotive depot was built by the PD&SWJR in 1872, which remained in use until closure in 1964."

* http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Callington_railway_station

These two Images show the change in landscape for Callington, the original railway station would have been where Harris Close now stands and this road still bears the name "Station Road"

The railway shed (pictured right) was part of Callington station at Kelly Bray, some distance from the town itself. The local landmark of Kit Hill can be seen in the distance.

 

The part of the branch line from Gunnislake to Kelly Bray closed in 1966, as part of the Beeching Axe. The last train left Callington on 5 November, to the sound of detonators & fireworks, and carrying a wreath.

Here are a selection of some of the other Images and articles I have been cataloguing from this collection:

A timetable showing some of the now closed lines




(Left) Latchley Train Station, Closed in 1966 This station had a single platform on the Down side of the running line, which was recorded in 1908 as being 220' long. Immediately west of the platform the railway crossed a minor road by an un-gated level-crossing. There was a siding on the Up side opposite the platform, which was accessed by a connection facing to Down trains at the Gunnislake end of the station. A small loading platform was located between the main line and siding in front of the main platform and opposite this again outside the siding was the stationmaster's house and ex-ECMR goods shed. The siding was removed at some unknown date after 1950 and the station itself was closed on 5-Nov-1966. The station house and trackbed are now in private ownership.

 (Left) Bere Alston Station, which is still in use today

 (Right) Callington Sheds, which held the locomotives

 (Left) Callington/Kelly Bray Station

(Right) Luckett StationThis station was known originally as Stoke Climsland It had a 225' platform on the Down side and a loop siding opposite it on the Up side, with connections to the main line at both ends of the station. Immediately to the west of the station the line was crossed by a minor road on a girder over-bridge. There was a further siding on the Down side at the Gunnislake end of the platform, with a connection that faced Up trains, and apparently this siding boasted a carriage shed for some years. There was originally a small ground-level signal-box here on the Up side at the Callington end of the loop, but in 1923 this was reduced to a ground-frame. A separate small ground-frame worked the Gunnislake end of the loop siding. The carriage siding was taken out of use on 31-Mar-1923. The loop siding was taken out of use on 23-Sep-1962 and the station itself was closed on 5-Nov-1966. The station house and trackbed are now in private ownership.

This weeks work at Cotehele - June 19th 2012

This is my 6th week of Volunteering at Cotehele

Not a huge amount to say about this weeks session, the Library was quiet this week owing to glorious sunshine (extremely short lived glorious sunshine) so I occupied myself between talking to visitors by completing the Cotehele puzzle which we house in Library for visitors to complete and hopefully purchase in the Cotehele giftshop.

I am still continuing with my Tuesday rather than Wednesday slot due to work schedules and have found my fellow volunteers on both days to be friendly and chatty although they do keep threatening to feed me up as I tend to commit the cardinal sin of skipping breakfast...

First Draft: HBI Brochure Mark One

 

Prototype HBI Brochure Mark Two

A New Project for Summer 2012 - SWiB Heritage Business Initiative 2012

This week at SWiB alongside my continued involvment in the cataloguing and data entry of new collections I have embarked upon a new project set to launch in September of this year, coinciding with my spell as acting archive manager for one day a week.


The project will allow businesses to commission SWiB for various heritage related exhibitions and displays celebrating the history of their premisis or business itself by utilising SWiBs expertise, experience and material comprising over 3 million digital sources. The working title of this project is the SWiB Heritage Business Initiative and the project is very much in the planning stages as you can see from the scribbled mind maps and diagrams. However by the deadline date which I have set - The 1st of September 2012 they should be transformed into a detailed business plan and mock brochures.

Obviously I shall be keeping records of progress via the My History blog and opening the project up to debate and suggestions from my followers and I would appreciate any feedback you would like to offer.

Please feel free to leave comments in the below box and I shall keep all followers posted. Also if you know of a business in the Plymouth area that could benefit from this scheme following its launch then please let me know.

And finally a HUGE Thank you to Stacey Dyer from SWiB who has been the biggest help, support and encouragement in the conception of this scheme - I hope I can do her proud and repay her for her continued trust.

Photo of the Week

Hooray! My badge finally came! People don't just think I'm not weirdo sitting in the corner barking facts at them now. Incidently people have been a lot more chatty today now that I have the badge although the power may soon go to my head...

This weeks work at Cotehele - June 12th 2012

This is my fifth week of Volunteering at Cotehele.

The most astute of you may have realised that this week I have been at Cotehele on a Tuesday rather than a Wednesday. This is due to work commitments and my weekly volunteer session shall permanently be moved to Tuesday with attendance on other days for events and open days.

My health and safety training day for the Imminent 'Look Sharp' event has also had to be rescheduled due to work commitements (This is the trouble with having 3 jobs!) and I am waiting for the new date to be confirmed.

In the meantime here are some images taken in the great hall at Cotehele of some of the weaponry I shall be handling and demonstrating (eep!) during the event:

Various suits of Armour, Shields and Pikes

Various Knives, Swords and Sabres

Various Guns, Swords and Pikes

From the National Trust Cotehele Conservation Volunteer pack pictures bellow:

"Our Look Sharp exhibition is an extremely popular events that allows visitors to get close to some of our bladed weapons and gives them the opportunity to hold them (as long as they wear gloves!). We require volunteers to help explain and demonstrate a selection of bladed weapons, and supervise visitor handling. Popular with both children and adults of all ages, this is a hands on event that is also enjoyed by the volunteers that supervise it."

When cleaning and preparing these weapons for public viewing it is important to take precautions in order to avoid damage to the weapons.

Unessecary polishing removes layers of metal and can lead to serious corrosion over time. After any required cleaning and polishing a layer of Renaissance (a microcrystalline wax) is applied, enough to give protection but not so much as too attract dust and warrent further cleaning which is damaging to the artefact. 

I am curently reading though my Cotehele Conservation pack getting to grips with various restoration and protection methods ready for future events at Cotehele in the coming months!

 

Look Sharp at Cotehele will be taking place throughout August if you  would like to book please call 01579 351346 The event itself is free although the admission price of Adult £9, child £4.50, family £22.50 still applies.

My Dissertation

As I am very priviledged to be running the South west image bank Archive for one day a week from September to December this year I have made the decision to take a 3 month 'study break' during that time whereby I will cease work on my Dissertation. I have chosen to do this as alongside my one day a week at SWiB I will also continue to work my 2 jobs, continue with my other University modules and revise for my January exams and therefore I cannot possibly remain eyeball deep in dissertation research. Therefore I have decided to begin my dissertation research now with a view to getting as much done as possible before  September in order to give me that time off and I aim resume work on it early on in 2013 following my January exams ready for final submission in early June 2013.



In connection with this there will now be a regular if not weekly update on this site concerning dissertation progress. This week I have begun the background reading into my dissertation topic, I am hoping to produce a 12,000 word document concerning the 1910 - 1913 Terra Nova expedition on which my great great grandfather accompanied Robert Falcon Scott to the South Pole. I have chosen this topic as I am lucky enough to have a family who have been hugely involved in the preservation and celebration of the involvement of my great great grandfather in this historic event and have to hand many thought provoking and beautiful historical sources and artefacts including my great great grandfathers offical journal from the Terra Nova as well as his own personnal journal, newpaper clippings charting the progress of the expedition, Skis used on the expedition (currently residing in the Plymouth Museum) and less helpful to my dissertation but incredible all the same a stuffed emporer penguin (currently residing in Edinburgh museum)

The Dissertation begins... Background Reading

The first piece of background reading I am currently engrossed in is the Journal of Robert Falcon Scott from the Expedition enititled Scotts last Expedition which has been forwarded by his son and generously loaned to me from my Gran and her vast collection of Scott related literature which I hope to take great advantage of throughout the coming months! I was very excited to see my great great grandfathers name, Frederick Parsons, on the list of expedition members page, it was almost as if I didnt expect it!

In the book he is listed as a petty officer and had indeed enjoyed a long career in the Navy. I am looking forward to next reading  his journal and am hoping to conduct some interviews with my granparents and great uncle about thier memories of him, I will then aim to transcribe these interviews into relevents oral evidence for my dissertation a technique which I honed during my second
year at Plymouth University when my research peice on the Blitz in Plymout (again interviewing my gran) was awarded best in the module winning me a £50 book token and more importantly the publication of my transcript on the Plymouth and West Devon record office archival database. You can view this project: http://www.plymouth.gov.uk/archivescatalogue?record=0&cid=v5lysm55rbkcak55gfhdom55&criteria=3807 if you are interested.

I was slightly concerned that this reading would be tedious and boring but actually it has been really really interesting and thought provoking. I am currently at chapter 9, April 1911; the Scott team have been carrying out short expeditions to various points around the original landing site on various geological, biological and photographic errands. It does strike me at this point that the expedition to the Pole itself, which we now know to have been a disaster, is already descending into bad fortune as various incidents have led to loss of half of the ponies and a considerable number of the dogs which were intended to act as transport for both people an equiptment. At this point I am left asking the question: Was Scott woefully unprepared or was he just struck by a round of particularly damaging bad luck which resulted in the catastrophic demise of his treasured expedition?

"The reactions of the human spirit in extreme adversity can strike our imagination vividly. Sometimes, one example moves a whole generation of people, and the story becomes history, to be handed down to generations who were not even born when the events took place. This happened to the story of my fathers last Antartic expedition on which he and four of his companions reached the South Pole in January 1912, but died of hunger and cold on the way back."
                                                       - Sir Peter Scott, Robert Falcon Scotts son.

 

This weeks work at SwiB - June 11th 2012

Unfortunately I was again unable to attend this weeks session at SWiB as the Archive due to work commitments. I am very much missing the archive and all of the volunteers and am looking forward to returning NEXT week providing no monarchical or employment related incidents occur.

This weeks work at Cotehele - June 6th 2012

This is my fourth week of Volunteering at Cotehele.

Unfortunately there is not a lot to say about this weeks session. I have remained in my capacity as a room guide managing the Victorian Library and am hoping to take part in some different workshops and open days throughout the coming months.

The 22nd of June will be my Training day for Augusts 'Look Sharp' Heritage event and I am looking forward to taking on a more hands on role in the coming months.

This weeks work at SwiB - June 4th 2012

Unfortunately I was unable to attend this weeks session at SWiB as the Archive was closed for the Bank holiday and Jubilee celebrations. Please look out for next weeks post where I will be back to work at SWiB and starting an interesting new project!

Photo of the Week # 2

I had some company in the Victorian Library this week in the form of the head gardeners cat, whilst very affectionate when awake I did quickly learn that he is as much of a morning person as I am and did not not take kindly to me trying to move hime from my chair. But did I let myself be beaten by a cat? Umm yes I had to go and get another chair...!

This weeks work at Cotehele - May 30th 2012

This is my Third week of Volunteer Placement at Cotehele...

This week I have been continuing to act as a room guide, managing the Victorian Library. During todays session I have been cleaning and restoring parts of our mechanical hand exhibition. The mechanical hand is a replica from one of the suits of armour found in the great hall at Cotehele. The replica hand on display in the library was comissioned by one of our past volunteers in memory of her husband who had also been a volunteer at Cotehele and who had a keen interest in military history. The mechanical hand replica is an extremely popular peice and a demonstration of the moving fingers and wrist joints is often requested by visitors.

"The knights of the medieval days were anxious to replace limb loss with a prosthesis, not only to improve function but also to conceal their deformity and thus their weakness. It is only natural that prosthetic fabrication became a func- tion of the armorers of the day, who were skilled in the use of metal and wood.

In 1550 Pare designed an artificial hand called "le petit Lorrain" that had a fixed thumb but spring-loaded movable fingers. He also devised an above-knee prosthesis with a knee joint that could be released by a thong running to the hip. An upper-limb prosthesis using the trunk and shoulder-girdle muscles as a source of power for flexion and extension of the fingers was designed in 1818 by a German dentist, Peter Ballif. An above-elbow arm, using Ballif's principle to flex the elbow, was proposed by a Dutch sculptor in 1844."

 *http://www.acpoc.org/library/1976_05_015.asp

Also...

 

This week I have been taking a closer look at some of the 18th century books we currently hold in the Victorian library, many of them are beautifully bound and embossed with gold leaf similarly inside they are decorated in the most intricate designs. I have included a few arty images of the books for your enjoyment as I certainly enjoyed looking at them

I have also been given the dates this week for my promgramme of volunteering over the next 6 months. This will include;

* Look Sharp Exhibitions - Demonstrations and talks on the 18th Century swords and knives currently on display in the great hall

* Heritage Open Days - Talking to the Public about how Cotehele is run and maintained in terms of preservation and restoration

* Behind the Scenes events - Taking tours of visitors around areas of the house not usually open to the public, including the attic

* CSI Fridays - Leading torchlit tours around the house and educating visitors on the agents of deterioration and how we preserve and restore historical pieces.

* Haunted Cotehele - Tours of the house at night by torchlight, telling ghost stories and potted histories of each room



All of these events will be great additions to my CV and if anyone would like to book a place then please let me know :)

Photo of the Week

The Tamar Bridge 

 

 

Construction of the Tamar Bridge began in July 1959, this Image is dated from that year. Before its construction, the lowest road crossing of the River Tamar was Gunnislake New Bridge at the village of Gunnislake. The Tamar bridge runs parallel to Isambard Kingdom Brunel's Royal Albert Bridge, sometimes referred to as the Brunel Bridge ;seen here on the left of the image, which opened in 1859.

 In the 1950s (and for centuries before this) road users wishing to drive from Saltash to Plymouth had two main choices. They could take a long detour north either to Gunnislake New Bridge (a one-lane medieval bridge), or even further north to the land-link between Devon and Cornwall. Or they could cross the river by ferry. For centuries there was a ferry link between the two counties just downstream from the current bridge, but the ferries did not have sufficient capacity to transport large numbers of vehicles as traffic volumes increased.After failing to secure government funding for a new road bridge, Plymouth City Council and Cornwall County Council applied for permission to operate a toll bridge for which they received Royal Assent in 1957.

The Tamar Bridge was the first major suspension bridge to be constructed in the UK after the Second World War. It was also the longest suspension bridge in the UK at that time. Its central span measures 335 m (1100 ft).The bridge was constructed by Cleveland Bridge and Engineering Company, and building work began in July 1959. It had a concrete deck, and was capable of carrying lorries up to 38 tonnes. The construction cost over GBP1.5 million, and the bridge opened to traffic in October 1961. H.M. Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother officially opened the bridge on 26 April 1962.

*http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamar_Bridge

SWiB

The SWiB Archive on the Barbican: http://www.southwestimagebank.com/

This weeks work at SwiB - May 28th 2012

SWiB... The South West Image Bank

Today I have been scanning and editing the final stages of the Roy Westlake "Iconic Images of Plymouth" photographs some of which include the sub catergory "The Plymouth Telephone Exchange" I have included some of these Images on this weeks blog for those of you who are interested in this particular area to look at. These are 1940's images of the Plymouth Telephone exchange:

"On Wednesday May 17th 1933 the Postmaster-General, Sir Kingsley Wood MP, laid the foundation stone of the new automatic telephone exchange in an unusual ceremony. 

The stone was one of three to be laid that day, all by remote control from the General Post Office in Westwell Street.  When Sir Kingsley pressed a button at 4.40pm, the stone at Norley Place, along with those at the new exchanges in Exeter and Torquay, fell a half an inch into place.  There was apparently no-one watching this historic event in Plymouth and men working at the site barely noticed the foundation stone fall.  The ceremony was carried out in the presence of Plymouth's Head Postmaster, Mr D Laws.

The big change-over came on Saturday July 6th 1935.  At 1.55pm all callers were asked to defer making their calls for about fifteen minutes.  When all the lines at the manual exchange were clear, just after 2pm, a signal was sent to the switch room and 160 Post Office workers pulled strings attached to pegs inserted in the switches at the rate of 200 per second to re-connect the 7,400 subscribers. 

By 2.06pm the exchange was in operation again.  Immediately the change-over had been completed, officers at each exchange rang every subscriber, starting with doctors, nursing homes and hospitals, to tell them that the new system was in operation.  It was now possible to dial your own call right through as far as Torquay.

The Plymouth Automatic Telephone Exchange was formally opened by Lady Nancy Astor on Monday July 29th 1935."

* http://www.plymouthdata.info/Telephone-11-Plymouth%20Exchange.htm



Having now completed the 30 subcategories of this Collection I will be moving onto a new project next week so lookout for next weeks post on that one!