Scottish Jewish Heritage Centre to open in 2019

Scotland is to get its first Jewish Heritage Centre, thanks to a Heritage Lottery Fund grant of £296,900.

The centre, a joint initiative between the Scottish Jewish Archives Centre (http://www.sjac.org.uk) and the Garnethill Synagogue Preservation Trust (GSPT), is to be based at Garnethill Synagogue in Glasgow, and will cost about £500,000. Work on the new Centre is to start this month, with the launch and opening scheduled for summer 2019.

For more on the story, visit the SJAC's website at http://www.sjac.org.uk/national-lottery-funding-approved-for-jewish-heritage-centre-at-garnethill-synagogue/.

Chris

For my genealogy guide books, visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html, whilst details of my research service are at www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk. Further content is also published daily on The GENES Blog Facebook page at www.facebook.com/BritishGENES.

Work to commence on new Plymouth history centre

Work is abou to commence on constructing a new Plymouth based history centre, thanks to a Heritage Lottery Fund grant of £14.8 million grant, following a previous grant of £940,300 to progress intial designs for the project. The new centre will create a single attraction out of the current city museum, central library and St Luke's Church.

From The Plymouth Herald newspaper: "The centre will see five of Plymouth's major heritage collections come together in one location. The Plymouth and West Devon Record Office, South West Film and Television Archive and South West Image Bank will join the Local Studies and Reference Collection and the City Museum and Art Gallery's significant art, human history and natural history collections on the Tavistock Place/North Hill site."

For more on the story visit www.plymouthherald.co.uk/plymouth-s-history-centre-green-lit-thanks-to-14-8-million-grant/story-29610786-detail/story.html#xIiDdBWGY3YV4RGu.99.

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923, Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.

Argyll archive papers to be conserved, catalogued and digitised

From the Friends of the Argyll Papers Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/friendsoftheargyllpapers :

Written in the Landscape wins Heritage Lottery Fund support

Argyll and Bute Council and Argyll Estates have received a grant of £100,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) for an exciting three-year joint project to catalogue, conserve and digitise 64 Argyllshire family and estate archives.

The “Written in the Landscape” project, which will run from January 2016 until December 2018, will see the most fragile items in Argyll Estates' collection of historic maps and plans being cleaned and repaired before being digitised.

It will also create jobs for two project archivists, who will catalogue the archives so they can be accessed and understood by researchers. They will work closely with local heritage centres to identify records of greatest interest to local communities and develop a training and mentoring scheme. The project will also offer opportunities for people to develop their personal skills by volunteering in Argyll Estate Archives, the Council archives, or from their own homes.

A series of open days, tours, talks and exhibitions to promote the archives will also be delivered and a leaflet and online guide will be created which will provide information about the family and estate archives of Argyll.

Welcoming the news, the Council’s Policy Lead for Community and Culture, Councillor Robin Currie said: “This is wonderful news. Family and estate archives are unique and invaluable resources for investigating Argyll’s rich cultural, built and natural heritage. The archives represent nearly eight hundred years of local and national history. Until now much of this history has been locked away and unavailable for research. Once this project has been completed, researchers from ancestral tourists to academics will be able to access this fantastic resource to learn more about our ancestors and the routes their lives took.”

His Grace the Duke of Argyll said: "We are delighted to be part of this exciting project which will support the opening up of our archive to researchers and local communities.”

Lucy Cast, Head of the Heritage Lottery Fund in Scotland said: “Saving our historic archives has never been more important. They provide such a valuable resource for anyone who wants to delve into their past. Thanks to National Lottery players, the Heritage Lottery Fund is able to support projects such as Written in the Landscape that will enable volunteers and the wider community to learn about what life was like and how that has shaped who we are today.”

The project will run from January 2016 until December 2018 and is funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, Argyll and Bute Council Archives, Argyll Estates, Tiree Community Windfall Trust, An Iodhlann, Inveraray CARS, Clan Campbell Education Foundation and private donations. Some additional partnership funding is needed to complete the funding package of £300,000, which should be secured by the end of this year.

(With thanks to Christine Woodcock via Facebook)

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including my recently released Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html. My Pinterest account is at https://www.pinterest.com/chrismpaton/.

Funding allocated for Plymouth's new History Centre

News that a major new History Centre to be built in Plymouth has received significant grant funding from the HLF. The following press release (abridged) has been issued by Plymouth City Council:

£12.8M HERITAGE LOTTERY FUND GRANT WILL BRING PLYMOUTH LEGENDS TO LIFE AT MAJOR NEW ATTRACTION

Plymouth is celebrating a truly historic moment after scooping earmarked funding* of £12.8M from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) to create a major new historic and cultural attraction at the very heart of the city.

The HLF today announced the results of its major grants (applications of £5m and over) Board meeting which saw Plymouth approved to receive more than half of the cash needed (a total of £12,873,500) to create the much anticipated £21M 'History Centre' that will breathe life into the city's world-famous figures and most precious historic collections.

Nerys Watts, Head of HLF South West, said: "Plymouth's heritage is of national importance. These exciting and visionary proposals are the first step towards developing a new and much-needed Plymouth History Centre. They will showcase a host of wonderful artefacts, photographs, films and records, which will now be safely housed in one place, for both local residents and visitors to explore. We're very proud to be supporting the creation of this 'treasure trove' and applaud the Council's plans to make it widely available so people can explore both their own personal heritage as well as Plymouth's rich history.'

The History Centre, which will not be the attraction's eventual name, will unite five separate heritage collections into one single location including treasures from the Plymouth City Museum and Art Gallery; Plymouth and West Devon Record Office; South West Film and Television Archive; South West Image Bank and the Local Studies and Reference Collection from the Central Library. Plymouth University is also an official partner through the engagement of Peninsula Arts and its world leading research and teaching in history and related disciplines.

The listed buildings on North Hill which currently house the Museum and Central Library will be refurbished, a new large extension added and the former St Luke's Church at Tavistock Place will also be renovated. Together this will create an attraction three times the size of the existing museum, which will include WOW spaces to showcase the staggering array of historic treasures that will be brought to life with interactive displays encouraging visitors to explore further.

An added dimension to the History Centre project is the development of the former St Luke's Church on Tavistock place, which will be restored to offer the largest gallery space in the South West. The aim is that this grand exhibition space will attract some of the most impressive and notable travelling national and international exhibitions to Plymouth.

Add the cash from the successful HLF bid to the Council's £5M investment and total funding for the History Centre currently stands at almost £17.9M. The remaining £3.1M will be sourced from other grants including European funding.

The History Centre project will receive an initial £940,300 grant from HLF to complete its development phase, which will involve a solid year of planning and consultation to work up the detailed designs for the buildings and exhibition spaces. Once the plans are approved, the remaining £11,933,200M will be released to undertake the build project, as well as transform three organisations into one major new attraction.

Maureen Selley, Chairman of the Devon Family History Society and one of the founders of the Heritage Consortium, said: "I am buzzing! Really buzzing! This work has taken place over many years by many people and we are thrilled it has at last been successful. I've been coming to the museum since I was two so it is a place dear to my heart. As I said to the HLF when they visited, the Plymouth History Centre is not a maybe, it's a must! Now with the Society and other stakeholders we'll actively support the development of the Plymouth History Centre."

To make the History Centre a truly community-led attraction, the Council and partners will be holding more consultation and engagement activities with the public to gather ideas and gain feedback that will be used as part of the development phase. More events like the Pop-up Museum, taking place in Drake's Circus next week as part of History Month, will be organised giving people the chance to get involved.

Some early ideas have been formed but the project team is keen to stress that much of the detail is up for grabs, and suggestions from the public are very welcome to ensure the Centre appeals to the widest possible audience.

Anyone interested in finding out more about the developing History Centre plans should visit the Love our past website, which includes some key dates for your diaries, examples of the city's show stoppers and an overview of what the History Centre is all about.

The planned opening date for the History Centre is by spring 2019.

NB: The full press release is at http://www.plymouth.gov.uk/newsreleases?newsid%3D338214. Also of interest is the Plymouth Herald story on the news at  www.plymouthherald.co.uk/12million-heritage-centre-project-bring-Plymouth/story-21146499-detail/story.html, and information and timescale on the presentation given at the recent Plymouth Local Studies Day is at www.saveplymouthshistory.org.uk/docs/26.pdf.

(With thanks to Maureen Selley - and congrats!)

Chris

Now available for UK research is the new second edition of the best selling Tracing Your Family History on the Internet: A Guide for Family Historians, whilst my new book British and Irish Newspapers is also now out. And FindmyPast - please reinstate the original Scottish census citations on your new site.

Scotland's Urban Past project gets HLF funding

The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historic Monuments of Scotland has announced that a new initiative called Scotland's Urban Past has received first round Heritage Lottery Funding of £1.65 million, including £55,000 for development work. The project, a follow up to that on Scotland's rural environment, will be a volunteer based initiative within 60 of the country's urban communities to understand the evolution of such locations.

The full story is at www.rcahms.gov.uk/news/history-on-your-doorstep-to-be-revealed.

(With thanks to RCAHMS at @rcahms)

Chris

My new book, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet, is now available from Pen and Sword. For my other genealogy books, please visit  http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html; whilst for my online Scottish based genealogy courses please visit the Pharos Teaching and Tutoring Ltd site.