TWO behind-the-scenes tours of Warrington’s archives are being arranged to give local people a rare opportunity to see some of the town’s hidden treasures.
The tours will take place on Tuesday and Thursday, November 22 and 24 at 10am-11.30am.
Visitors will be able to study the changing face of the town through maps, pictures and other documents.
The archives are at Warrington Museum and Art Gallery, Museum Street.
Archives and heritage officer Philip Jeffs said the “Explore Your Archive” campaign would provide a great opportunity to learn more about local history.
He said: “If you’ve ever wondered what lies behind the locked doors in the strong rooms, or requested a document and heard the receding footsteps and creaking doors in the search room, or you’re just curious about what the archive is, then you’ll thoroughly enjoy these behind the scenes tours.
“They will give visitors a fascinating insight into the amazing collections we have here in Warrington’s archives, and a chance to learn how important storage is in preserving these items for generations to come.
“The basic history through maps sessions will be an intriguing way to learn more about Warrington’s past and how the town’s appearance has changed over the years, with some features being long gone and others withstanding the test of time.”
Michelle Hill, collections and archives manager, said: “We’re delighted to be able to welcome the people of Warrington to our store and we do hope visitors enjoy finding out more about the town and its history through these special events.”
Tickets are selling out fast so to book a place now call 01925 442345 or visit www.warringtonmuseum.co.uk
There is a £2 admission fee, although Culture Warrington members will be admitted free.
Hidden...Warrington's historic archives
A rare chance to tour Warrington’s hidden archives
99 Comments
9 Comments
Are these not the maps & documents that can be requested to be viewed for free in the local history section of the Library?
Why the entry charge? A compensation payment for having had them locked away from public view for years would be more appropriate.
Why is Culture Warrington profiting rather than any collected funds going towards Library Services?
Why start charging entry fees now? perhaps they think this ‘experimental exercise’ will benefit them whichever way it works out?
Charging entry fees most usually results in a sharp fall in attendance – which if this proves to be case will be used as evidence that people are not really that interested in the material, so less space can be allotted to the local history section and more for the proposed alternative ‘activities’.
Alternatively, should attendance be high, this would be used to prove that charging entry fees does not deter visitors and it could soon become the norm.
I would suggest to anyone going to make it clear in writing that payment was regarded as not appropriate and the request of such payments are a cause of great concern in how our public collections are managed.
Someone steal your parking space?
You need a cup of Horlicks.
Sha, from what the news story says it’s a behind the scenes tour of storage areas not usually seen or accessible by members of the public. It sounds rather interesting and I don’t think a £2 admission fee is unacceptable at all for a tour with a guide and explanation etc and I’ll be more than happy to pay.
The only slight criticism I have is that it’s only for 1 and a half hours which really isn’t a long time to look at things and ask questions. If I go they will never get me out…… ha ha.
DIZZY, in your excitement to get access to the material in the archives (understandable) you seem to have totally missed the points made in my post.
The maps and manuscripts in the archive BELONG TO THE LIBRARY and thus access to the public should be free of charge.
Culture Warrington manages the Museum and Art gallery but NOT the library services.
If you or I went into the Library and for example took control of the microfiche machines and started to sell the information on them to the public whilst pocketing the fees charged – what would that be called?
Your are quite right SHA. LiveWire, or more correctly the people running (ruining?) that show, do not recognise their responsibilities or functions in managing libraries for the community. It may be a CIC, but that is where the ‘care’ component stops. We should all be concerned where this is leading us. Private Eye’s latest edition in the Library News section alludes to this concern.
Archive is “managed” by Culture Warrington since November 2015, previous to that LiveWire.
The cross pollination and intermingling of board members between the two organisations doesn’t lessen the overall responsibility for what is happening.
And this ‘cross pollination’ shouldn’t result in the intermingling of ownership of assets or funding.
You appear to have missed the point Robyn. It’s not about management is to do with ownership.