How we store our archives

For many years Appledore Local History Society (ALHS) held its archival material in box folders and in various homes (in the case of items such as pictures, objects etc) and was difficult to interrogate and even to read in some instances.  The ‘box file’ system relied upon memory and local knowledge to determine where a particular item was stored or who might have had it last!  The Society was sure that over the years, some material had been lost due to the need to keep items at separate venues.

in 2017 the society created its first website, which hosts information on Appledore and its surrounds. We continue to review and update reguarly and we hope to continue to do so, as long as we have the resources and information to post!

For some years the Appledore Local History Society used an archival software program, Community Chest and whilst this is still available to us, the lack of a permanent home and its singlar management structure, made it a little problematic to continue to work with. Should we eventually have a home, with permanent broadband, we may again be able to use and continue to work with Community Chest. For the time being it is itself archived.

Recognising the need to digitise our archives whever possible, however, we began to scan and upload to Google Drive. With the restrictions of having disparate members needing access, it was a logical and easier way to manage and save the files that had been converted to digital form. Physical archives are currently stored by a local resident, for which we are very grateful and very delicate materials, are also stored at The Village Hall.

We continue to work on current archives and any information held on the village of Appledore, Kent and its people would be most welcome.  Adding to the data we have already will help produce an image of Appledore as it was and as it is going forward.  It will provide a legacy for the people of Appledore into the future, which would not have been possible previously.

Any materials we are loaned are scanned, photographed and returned quickly to their owners; the idea is not to own everything we find on the village, but to digitally store it for future generations.

Whever possible we attend exhibitions and events, showing our archived material and treasures to the community and sharing, as much as possible with local residents and interested visitors.

If anyone knows of a suitable venue which could become a permanent home for the ALHS, we would be grateful to hear from you.