volunteer – St Ives Archive

Hi, I am Jan Harris (née Janet Dyer for anyone who went to the Stennack Schol in the 1950s).

I am delighted to be able to tell you how I came to be a volunteer at the St Ives Archive back in 2008, whilst the Archive was still in the Parish Rooms in St Andrew’s Street.

I had just retired and decided that I would like to find out if the Archive held any information on two subjects. Firstly, I wondered if the Archive held any information on Evacuees. My Grandparents took in twin girl evacuees when they lived in Street an Garrow during the War. I know they were very fond of each other as the twins would come and stay with them for many years after the War had ended and I still have a photo of me with one of them.

When Janet Axten (who was the Administrator at the time) asked me what my interests were, I asked if they had any information on Evacuees. Janet disappeared then came back with a very full file and flipped through the pages as we spoke. After a little while she turned the file around and to my astonishment there was a letter from one of the twins. I was then able to contact her and, as a result, not only have we kept in touch ever since but I was able to compile several books of Evacuee Stories which sell to raise much-needed funds for the Archive.

My second query related to an object I had dug up in my garden when living near Wadebridge. It was a Duke of Cornwall’s Light Infantry military item and, with the help of the late Ted Lever, I discovered it was a Bed Plate and was able to trace the soldier it had belonged to and the fact that he had deserted in 1901!

I found it so fascinating being able to delve into the past with the help of all the documents held at the Archive, that I now enjoy trying to find subjects that I think might interest others and writing about them for the St Ives Local.

It is also very satisfying when people come into the Archive hoping to track down information on family members or old buildings and, more often than not, being able to find something for them.

I would encourage anyone to come to see what information we hold and I would be very surprised if there was nothing to interest them.

My Archive Story is a new monthly blog series featuring a volunteer and their personal experience, expertise and interests at the St Ives Archive. If you would like to learn more about becoming a volunteer at the Archive, please get in touch with us here.

My Archive Story: Ethan Carney

Ethan Carney conducting an interview at Madron

I’ve been a volunteer for almost 2 years now and I’m really enjoying it. I first became aware of the St Ives Archive in 2012. I was in Year 10 at school in St Ives and looking for a ‘work experience week’ placement. I’d always enjoyed history and wanted to find out more about the town, so ended up spending a week at the Archive researching the history of The Island and Porthgwidden Beach – and I was hooked!

I went off to university to study for an arts degree and used all I had learnt about research at the Archive to help me. Then fast forward to late 2022, I saw a call-out for new volunteers at the Archive and decided to sign up, as I’d enjoyed my time there so much 10 years before!

Working in a gallery at my day job, I have a keen interest in art and St Ives Archive holds lots of books and photographs of all my favourite artists, like Barbara Hepworth and Alfred Wallis, as a volunteer most of the research I do on behalf of visitors is in this particular area. Volunteering has given me a great opportunity to engage more in this interest and deepen my understanding of local history, which helps me in my day job too. It has also been a fantastic chance to meet like-minded people who are all so passionate about keeping our heritage alive and knowledgeable. I also love to browse through the old photos of the town and see how much things have changed in the last century.

Since I’ve been volunteering, I’ve been to training sessions to learn about archival conservation and environmental conditions for storage, which have opened my eyes to the many different considerations we make daily as an archive. I have also given some talks on local artists – Alfred Wallis and Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, at Porthmeor Studios. I really enjoy researching and writing talks; it’s a wonderful way to engage people with a subject and hopefully get them as excited about these artists as I am!

These artists’ talks were helping to raise funds for our upcoming move to The Market House in St Ives, which will make the Archive much more accessible to locals and visitors to the town. It’s so important that our local heritage is situated on our doorstep so as many of us as possible have a chance to learn about the rich history of St Ives. I’m excited for the future of the Archive and looking forward to many more happy years of researching, giving talks and helping visitors with their research.