Walpole Old Chapel (www.walpolepoldchapel.org) and Halesworth and District Museum (www.halesworthmuseum.org.uk) recently signed a partnership agreement to work collaboratively on projects of mutual interest to protect, conserve and promote our local heritage.
One of the first exciting projects on which they will collaborate is the ‘Discovery Project’, investigating the story of Walpole Old Chapel.
This project will bring great benefit to both parties as the story of the Chapel and its congregation is integral to that of both organisations as well as others in the district. We will be working together on a bid to the National Heritage Lottery Fund in the New Year which will help fund the research programme and the means to make it accessible to both the local community and a wider audience. Attaining and managing a smaller grant will create experience for the Chapel in anticipation of a larger application for the repair and conservation work which the Chapel urgently needs.
Working with a team of volunteers, we will be using their skills and interests to cover as many aspects of the Chapel story as possible.
Our Project Leader, Miriam Stead, has an extensive background in museum and heritage work and will be supporting the volunteer team. Staff from Suffolk Archives will also be offering training and support as part of their lottery funded outreach programme.
Areas of research will include:
- The early years of the Chapel in the context of local religious belief and forms of worship
- Land ownership and property
- Family histories
- Governance – relationships with other organisations
- Oral history – capturing memories of those who have been associated with the Chapel over recent decades
- Examining the link between religious and social radicalism
If you are interested in helping with the research or perhaps in other ways such as publicity, making videos, vlogging or have some information or memories you would like to share, please do get in touch with Miriam Stead at:
discovery@walpoleoldchapel.org or 07902 411760