West Wight heritage archive saved as Totland offers new home

A treasure trove of West Wight historical memorabilia has been saved after the Totland Parish Council stepped in to offer new storage space.

The West Wight Heritage Centre, run by the Freshwater and Totland Archive Group, has been based in Avenue Road, Freshwater, for nearly six years.

But secretary, Janet Haire, explained: “The group started at Freshwater Library in 2010. Since September 2020, we have been lucky to have had the foot fall of being in the main shopping street, windows to display some of the wonderful images and space to store them.

“Freshwater Parish Council originally took on the lease of the empty shop for two years, and helped finance equipment for the centre.

However, since then, despite receiving individual donations, sales of our three publications, public displays, talks, and quizzes, it became obvious that the income was not sufficient to cover the costs of rent and utilities.

“Several options of relocation were considered. All had their disadvantages, but it was thought important that these valuable archives had to be kept safe and together as a collection.

“Totland Parish Council then generously offered us space in Winchester House, The Broadway, Totland. This offer was received with great relief and so, for the last few months, the filing cabinets, cupboards, and artifacts have been gradually transferred to the new home.

“The Freshwater branch will close at the end of the month. Volunteers will then get the Totland space set up so it can continue collecting, collating, and storing the photographs and documents for future generations to enjoy. Eventually, it is planned to open the doors to the public once again.”

Financial assistance is still important, and help in the general running of the group would be warmly welcomed, especially anyone with IT or photographic skills.

The group can be contacted on westwightheritage@hotmail.com.