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25th February 2010Customers give thumbs up for the Wiltshire and Swindon History Centre
However, the team will not be resting on its laurels. When asked what we could improve upon, 9.9% of customers said the Website, 6.9% Opening hours and 6.4% Computer Facilities. We are continually working to improve our website and feedback from customers on this and other aspects of our work is vital in enabling us to provide the best possible service. Customers were also asked about the role of archives and the Archive Service in their lives. Over 90% of customers believe archives support learning opportunities, preserve heritage and culture, and promote family and community identity; while over 60% think archives support both business activity and citizens’ rights. Thank you to all our customers who helped in the survey. Please do continue to provide your comments on our service. 29 September 2009More than 1,000 people came along to meet the Tudors at the Wiltshire and Swindon History Centre on Saturday, 26th September. King Henry VIII and his courtiers were on hand to greet visitors as they joined in the fun, meeting the crew from the Mary Rose and looking at original artifacts from Henry’s great naval ship. Visitors learnt how to shoot arrows with a longbow and viewed some of the Wiltshire Council-run centre's rarest documents from the Tudor period. These include the marriage deed of Henry VIII to Jane Seymour and a signed letter from Elizabeth I about her cousin Mary Queen of Scots, which are just some of the thousands of historic documents contained in the history centre. Tudor enthusiasts also found out about how the star-studded film The Other Boleyn Girl was made at Great Chalfield Manor near Trowbridge, experienced how to write with a quill pen and saw how conservators freeze dry waterlogged wood. The 1,133 visitors, which included more than 400 children, were also able to gain exclusive behind-the-scenes access to conservation laboratories and strong rooms and handle some of the earliest archaeology, including stone age axes, which are more than 250,000 years old. Cllr Jane Scott, leader of Wiltshire Council, said: “We are thrilled by the huge public response. This was our third annual open day and it has been our biggest and the best so far. "We received hundreds of wonderful comments, with children and families telling us how much they enjoyed learning about the Tudors, having a go at archery and trying on Tudor clothes. It was especially wonderful that some children came along already dressed as Tudors. Many people told us they were surprised by how much there was to see and do and some children said that they want to bring all their school friends next time.” During the Open Day historian, author, and publisher John Chandler, presented a copy of his latest book, The Reflection in the Pond: A Moonraking Approach to History, to Tom Craig, who accepted it on behalf of the History Centre. This fascinating collection of essays is largely based on material in the Archives and other collections of the History Centre and inside the book John has written, “Dedicated, in friendship and admiration, to the staff of the Wiltshire and Swindon History Centre, which opened in Chippenham in 2007”. We are very pleased to have received this tribute from our good friend John in this really excellent book. You can obtain copies from Wiltshire bookshops – publisher Hobnob Press,ISBN 1 906978 08 2, price £12.95. If you are visiting the History Centre you can pick up a copy from our Centre bookshop.
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