Guildford Museum Appeals for Mementoes of Your Pandemic Year

Published on: 30 Mar, 2021
Updated on: 31 Mar, 2021

Guildford Museum

Do you have any items which could help the museum to document life in Guildford during the Covid-19 pandemic?

The council’s Museum and Heritage Services team want items including diaries, photographs, poems, artwork and anything specially produced for Covid-19 to record your experiences of a year which has affected everybody throughlockdown, from social distancing to home-working and home-schooling.

Ian Doyle, director of Service Delivery, said: “We believe it isjust as vital to collect the history of Guildford as it happens as it is to record the history of Guildford over the past 1,000 years. “Covid-19 has impacted our lives personally as well as locally, nationally and globally, with so much changing around us each day.

“We have constantly had to adapt to the new ways of living and the help we have all received across the borough from local companies, charities and volunteers has been amazing. Their effort should be celebrated for many years to come.

“Our museum has already collected many items and thank you to everyone who has contributed so far.”

If you would like to donate something to our museum collection, or just want to know more about this campaign, please email Guildford Heritage Services at heritageservices@guildford.gov.uk

At present, our buildings are closed, so please do not send anything by post or leave anything at the museum.

The team would much like to hear from key workers and NHS staff, as well as local community groups and businesses.

For example, Albury gin distillers Silent Pool pivoted their production line in the early stages of the pandemic and made bespoke hand sanitiser.

Under the government pandemic roadmap rules, Guildford museum should reopen on Monday, May 17. Please check the museum’s social media pages and website for updates, at Facebook.com/VisitGuildford, Twitter.com/Gfdheritage and Instagram.com/guildfordsheritageservices.