Celebrating our collections dating from 780AD to the present day
By Dr John Godfrey DL Caroline Nicholls, the current High Sheriff of West Sussex, and I are giving a talk at the Record Office on 26th February on The High Sheriffs of Sussex. I shall be talking about the history of the office, using materials from the Record Office’s collections, and Caroline will be speaking…
One of the larger gifts to the Record Office in recent years has been from the British Railways Board in Derby. This comprises the personnel cards of all employees in its Southern Region. In the days before computers, cards were the way to store details of all the men and women who worked on the…
Continue reading ➞ All aboard! Introducing the Southern England Railway Employee Cards project
‘Getting to know you’ is an apt title for what I’ve been up to these past two months. In my previous blog post, I described the importance of getting to know your digital records – understanding what you’ve got and how much you’ve got – and I really feel like we’re getting there at WSRO.…
Continue reading ➞ Digital Preservation Diary 2: Getting to know you…
In the first Tuesday Talk of 2019, Alan Green will be talking about the fascinating histories of what became known as The Little Churches of Chichester. Chichester was once the most pious of cities. In Pre-Reformation times there were nine parish churches, three chapels, a cathedral and two friaries all within its walls. Of these…
Traditionally, the festive period extended several days beyond the New Year, yet for many that practice has declined and most of us have taken down the Christmas tree and weaned ourselves off the leftovers by then. I’ve recently learnt of an ancient custom that took place in the depths of West Sussex between Twelfth Night…
Continue reading ➞ Apple Howling, or how to serenade an orchard
Last month saw the culmination of the Bernstein in Chichester Festival with the sublime and historic performance of the Chichester Psalms on 24 November in Chichester Cathedral by the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra conducted by Marin Alsop, herself a protégé of Leonard Bernstein, and the choirs of Chichester, Salisbury and Winchester Cathedrals. The Bernstein in Chichester…
Continue reading ➞ BERNSTEIN IN CHICHESTER 2018: THE ARCHIVE STORY
When we think about archives, we picture rooms filled with boxes of precious records. For anyone who’s been behind the scenes at WSRO, they’ll know this is certainly the case for us. But what would an archive look like if it only collected records created after Thursday 29 November 2018? Many of us work on…
Continue reading ➞ Digital Preservation Diary 1: What’s all the fuss about digital ‘stuff’!?
To mark the centenary of the end of the First World War, staff at West Sussex Record Office have shared their stories of family members who were caught up in the conflict. When the Worthing Gazette was published on Wednesday August 16th 1916 right at the bottom of page 7 was a four line notice…
Continue reading ➞ WW1 Centenary: Staff Stories, Private H P Pocock
I have recently started looking into my military family history and it has been a fascinating journey. I have discovered amazing stories of people I never knew existed. One of these people is Charles Wickers, my great great uncle. I would like to share just a little bit of his story with you. Charles was…
Continue reading ➞ WW1 Centenary: Staff Stories, Charles Wickers
To mark the centenary of the end of the First World War, staff at West Sussex Record Office have shared their stories of family members who were caught up in the conflict. My great grandfather James (Jim) Horace Wright was born in Hackney on 22nd April 1891, the son of James and Esther Wright, and…
Continue reading ➞ WW1 Centenary: Staff Stories, James Horace Wright
West Sussex Record Office 