CREDITON Library held its annual Local History Day on Wednesday, July 19 and the number of people enjoying the talks and information tables on offer shows how high the level of interest in heritage still is in the Crediton area.

Four presentations gave the audience a chance to learn more about the work and collections of local organisations. 

Kicking off the day was Sue Bond from the Devon Family History Society who spoke about the various resources and help available to people who are interested in tracing their family back through time. 

Sue was also available all day to answer questions from the audience and to give pointers on how to find out information. 

Following on from Sue were archivist Annie Price and Special Collections Team Leader Sarah-Jayne Ainsworth from the Heritage Collections department of the University of Exeter. 

They explained how to access the collections in Exeter and spotlighted two which were of specific local interest – the Crediton Parish Library and the Edmund Collection.

After a break for lunch, the afternoon session began with Brian Carpenter from the South West Heritage Trust, joined by Local Studies Librarian Kate Parr. 

Between them, they told the audience about some of the gems in their collections which related to Crediton.

Finally, Mark Norman from the Folklore Library and Archive spoke about the Devonshire Folklore Collection and the work of the charity in preserving folklore material of both local interest and further afield. 

The Devonshire Folklore Collection which is held in Crediton Library and can be viewed by appointment. It is made up of books, documents, audio and video recordings and artefacts.

In addition to the information tables staffed by the speakers, representatives from the Devonshire Association and Crediton Area History and Museum Society were also on hand to chat to attendees about their work. 

The Library has already received enquiries from other organisations about presenting for the 2024 day, and there are plans for various other one-off history events and projects in the meantime. 

To find out more about library events please visit the website at https://www.devonlibraries.org.uk/web/arena/creditonlibrary or follow the Crediton Library Facebook page. 

Mark Norman