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Carterton's Fast Forward Heritage
Location: Oxfordshire
Background
Carterton has an interesting, if unusual history, having really only existed as a community for 104 years. Mr Carter bought Rock Farm in 1900 and sold it off in one-acre plots as farmsteads, and for a while carterton became best known for market gardening. Although carterton has grown rapidly over recent years and has a population approaching 15,000, its layout still reflects the grid pattern laid down in the early days and a few of the original homestead buildings remain. The raf (brize Norton) came in 1935 and later for a while hosted the USAF. It was unfortunate for carterton that raf cardington already existed and was regarded as too similar to allow the new base to be called raf carterton.
The Heritage project is very important to carterton because as time goes by there are fewer people who remember the early days, and the small number of remaining original buildings are being demolished for new developments.
One of the projects identified in the Action Plan carterton Fast Forward Towards 2010 was 'to exploit Carterton's interesting Heritage and produce a display'.
A Heritage Group was set up and developed a more ambitious project which was awarded a grant of £21,000 by the Local Heritage Initiative. The Project falls into five parts:
1. A project linking generations
This brought together a group of 10 members of the Over 60s Club and 10 children from Edith Moorhouse Primary School who worked with professional artists from the Oxford based charity Ithaca over the Autumn Term 2004 to produce a high quality textile/wall hanging celebrating Carterton's Heritage. They thought about Carterton's origins and its connections with the raf. The Heritage Tapestry was completed and unveiled in February 2005 and has been displayed at various local venues. It is on permanent display at the carterton Town Hall.
2. A Writing Project
A professional writer and reminiscence worker led this project with a number of older people. The writer supported the reminiscence process to enable those taking part to contribute to the production of a high quality publication which captures and celebrates memories of carterton. carterton Pride was launched on 30th September 2005 at a Heritage Lunch at the carterton W.I. Hall attended by all participants.
3. Oral History
A group of volunteers were trained in interviewing techniques and relevant technology and have interviewed seventeen local people. The interviews were then professionally transcribed. Some of the material has been used for the publication - and all of it will remain as part of the archive of carterton's Heritage. We are very grateful to those who shared their memories with us.
4. Making the Heritage Accessible
Volunteers collected, catalogued and assessed heritage material, including photographs, publications and objects, to make them available to the other parts of the project, and in the longer term to the community. A resource box for the local schools will also be put together. There are also plans for volunteers to work with a professional website designer, to enable some of the information to be available on the Town Council website.
5. Making Displays
Members of the Heritage Group are working with a professional designer to develop a six-board mobile display and a group of wallboards to promote and disseminate information about carterton's Heritage. They will also plan a programme of events and opportunities to use these boards.
| Grants: |
Heritage Lottery Fund: £21678
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