Ready to get OOT ‘n’ abOOT
Submitted by: Sally Brewis - 16th April 2019
Project Manager Sally Brewis has been appointed to lead the Out of Town (OOT) Museum project for the award winning Bailiffgate Museum and Gallery
Working with individuals and community groups in the Coquetdale area, Sally will be overseeing the Out of Town (OOT) Museum project, funded by a National Lottery Heritage Fund grant, focussing on routes, journeys and travelling by collecting and recording memories and stories told in local voices. Photographs, audio recordings, documents and other artefacts will be gathered together for a touring exhibition celebrating the rural heritage around Coquetdale.
Sally said “There is a huge amount of interest in the OOT Museum already and I’m looking forward to building on the excellent work that has been carried out in the area to capture the lives of people who lived and worked in Coquetdale. This project will run until June 2022 and has a real chance to bring all of this existing work together along with the new outreach activities and events that we have planned. We will be involving many more people across the area and will celebrate with an ambitious exhibition programme. The recordings and items will be archived at the Bailiffgate Museum and the Northumberland Archive at Woodhorn and available for future use.
“The National Lottery Heritage Fund grant of £285,500 will enable us to find those people who want to share their valuable memories of the old way of life and record the distinct Northumbrian dialects to ensure we have a lasting record of a voice that is rapidly disappearing. The focus on journeys and the way people travelled across one of the most beautiful but remote areas of Northumberland will uncover stories and memories of before everyone had a car and it wasn’t so easy to get oot n aboot.
“It is exciting to be able to plan an OOT programme of events to interest people of all ages and backgrounds and encourage and enable them to participate in and contribute to the OOT Museum, as well as learning about the area’s heritage.”
OOT will also be looking for volunteers to train in collecting those memories across Coquetdale as well as individuals and community groups who want to get involved.
Sally said “We will be officially launching the OOT Museum at an event in the Jubilee Hall in Rothbury on Saturday 27 April with activities to get all ages involved including a chance to listen to what we have done so far and have a go at recording. We hope people will come and find out more about our plans and contribute their voices and memories.
You can get involved by emailing sally.brewis@bailiffgatemuseum.co.uk or calling the museum on 01665 605847.