Volunteers sought for project to encourage people back to work

VOLUNTEERS ARE being sought to archive one of the county’s most important collections as part of a programme to encourage people back to work.

The aim of the scheme by arts and heritage charity Settle Stories, called Dales Resilience, is to help people learn new skills as well as engage with their own heritage.

A recent project to digitise the previously unseen images from Bill Mitchell, featured in

weekly nostalgia supplement, has proven to be extremely successful, leading to the launch of this new programme. It will focus on photographs of the Settle to Carlisle Railway.

Director Sita Brand said: “Engaging in a worthwhile task cataloguing items from the collection and developing a small touring exhibition has provided a fantastic focus for participants.

“They have been learning on the job and in so doing have made an important contribution to Yorkshire’s heritage.”

Bill Mitchell was Dalesman editor for two decades and his collection of photos of Yorkshire and Cumbria is now housed at Settle Stories.

He joined The Dalesman in 1948 and went on to collect more than 600 taped interviews with Dales communities, an archive of Yorkshire dialect and local and family history which is now deemed invaluable.

The stories captured on tape range from the gentry, such as the Dawsons of the Folly in Settle and the Yorkes of Halton Place, to communities scraping a living in remote Dales settlements.

There are Thomas Dugdale’s recollections of early cinema in Settle, whilst John Keavey describes early recreational cycling in the Dales.

Bill Alderson describes the life of Susan Peacock, a landlady of the Tan Hill Inn in the early part of the 20th century.

In January 2012, Settle Stories received a £50,000 Heritage Lottery Fund grant to digitise a selection of his collection of cassette tapes.

The new programme, funded by the European Social Fund, will include learning about the Settle to Carlisle Railway archive, cataloguing and creating the exhibition.

Participants will be mentored with the goal of gaining work experience, confidence and skills. For more information see www. settlestories.org.uk/dalesresilience or call Settle Stories on 01729 822292.