Exhibition Panel Closeups

For those not able to attend, this is the exhibition material which was on display.  It consisted of panels and posters using archival data, our own photos, and personal donated photos.  These photos from the event were kindly provided by Barney and Jude's photographer, Colin Smith, who also helped us research much of the material.  

A view of the final panel setup the night before the event launch

Welcome poster at the Barney and Jude's main entrance

The Foundations of Sandyford (single panel)

Industry and Trade (double panel)

Education and Worship (double panel)

Crime (single panel)

Residents and Demographics (double panel)

 The Future of Sandyford (single panel)

A photo of 'The Future of Sandyford' with visitor input included 

Thank you poster near the exit

Samples from the exhibition comment book

The Sandyford Lives exhibition team and our module leader for History Curatorship

Event Launch Update

This update is a bit behind considering the event launch occurred last month.  Overall we were pleased with the outcome.  Visitors ranged from schoolchildren to young adults and elders and so we believe the goal of attracting an intergenerational audience was moderately successful.  Since the majority of our contacts and living sources were elders from the Vintage Club community, much of the content was curated according to their input – they were the primary demographic of interest due to their wealth of regional knowledge. 

It is estimated that roughly 80 people attended the opening throughout the night.  This is quite a success by our standards as we had no idea if anyone would come at all.  Music was playing, food and drink were available, individuals were reading and chatting, the atmosphere felt lively and positive.  We are especially grateful for the assistance of Chip and Diane for helping us set up and providing food for the event, additionally for getting the word out.  Colin Smith generously took photos of the event, and we were happy to see our friends and colleagues in attendance.  Hopefully something positive can be constructed from this experience and the project can be taken forward by a new cohort.    

Here are a few photos from the event, our next post will have closeups of the exhibition material for those  not able to attend. 

Here's a photo of us (the exhibition team) winding down after a long day of preparations. Thank you to all who came and supported us. :)

Getting the Word Out

Firstly, thank you to council members Arlene, Felicity and David who helped promote our event launch within the local area via mention in a community flyer.  

In an attempt to get the word out beyond online means, we designed a flyer and printed out copies for distribution.

Some of the businesses targeted for promotion include Soundware music store, Runwell, Starbeck Bakery, The Sandwich Company, Sapori Café, Blue Bell pub, etc.  Overall we found owners and employees to be friendly and supportive – all were happy to allow our flyer to be displayed and distributed.

 Thus, our advertising consisted of Facebook, Twitter, email, mentions in council flyers, self-distributed flyers, and word-of-mouth (Vintage lunch club, Student Life, colleagues, professors, friends).   

Gratitude for the local support

Vintage lunch club at Barney & Jude’s has proven to be our greatest source of knowledge and local input.  In an earlier post, we relate how reverend Colin offered to drive us around the area for a quick tour—this post will focus other individuals who have also offered their time and support.  Firstly, Florence is an incredible anchor, relating her personal stories and networking us with other members of Vintage.  She introduced us to Mrs Appleby who later brought in personal photographs, two dating before WWII and another form the 1960’s.  These will be featured in the exhibition. 

Additionally, Eric consistently humours us by sharing his memories and perspectives on Sandyford; he gives a personal touch to much of the research.  Something particularly fascinating is that he forages and makes jam from the findings.  Eric produces pounds of jam at a time, usually giving it to various churches for them to sell.  Last Thursday he unexpectedly brought in two jars of his homemade jam for a colleague and me, this was quite touching.

Today we met up with Michael at Sapori café in on Starbeck Ave.  He chatted with us and kindly bought our drinks, after which he led us to St. Dominic’s church on New Bridge St. There we were introduced to John, then had a comprehensive discussion on the history of the church and its influence on the congregation – those of which include Sandyford residents.  Michael and John, thank you for the lovely tour and for sharing perspectives on church, social life, and worship.  

We've met some truly kind people on this journey to creating our first ever exhibition.  We will give the event and panels our best effort for those who have been so helpful.     

A Guided Tour of Sandyford

Two weeks ago we had sent an enquiry email for a meet-up with individuals who had shared their contact information with us.  We were able to meet with several of these people on Thursday, which proved to be quite a lucrative day.  This post is an overview of our meeting with Colin, from whom we gained further insight into neighbourhood history and residential controversies.  So on Thursday 27 Feb, we made an early appearance at Vintage where Colin generously offered his time to share his books, maps, and knowledge of the area with us.  After we made notes and took a few pictures of these resources, Colin offered to drive us around the Sandyford area for a guided tour.   

The group ended up discussing such sites as Ouseburn River, Jesmond Vale, Heaton Park, and Armstrong Park among others.  It seems that the relationship between Sandyford and the neighbouring areas of Byker and Heaton share common histories dating to the advent of Industrialization.  Big names responsible for the regions modern development  were frequently brought up which include Armstrong, Stephenson, Dobson, and Grainger.

We learned that there are various housing options in Sandyford, yet the current demographic consists primarily of young University students.  As it stands, the student population has slowly and only recently overcome that of the local long-term residents -- something that has caused somewhat of a stir between these communities whose values occasionally conflict.  We plan to develop a further understanding of this residential dichotomy on a panel exploring controversies within the area.  

Something particularly charming we noticed about the area are the small corner shops throughout.  We’re additionally working on compiling a list of the various businesses within Sandyford past and present, the goal being to incorporate a varied approach towards business and trade.  Research collection is still in progress, so contributions to any of our categories mentioned in the last post are very welcome.   

Thank you Colin for your help and generosity. 

Visit to Newcastle City Library

On Monday Feb 18^th we visited the Newcastle City Library where we toured the Local History and Family History Centre on the 6th floor. Sarah introduced us to the resources of the centre, a repository full of local newspapers, maps, materials...etc.

Their archives cover family history, architectural history, trades, cultural events, etc. which are cataloged by administrative districts. After touring the collections and facilities of the centre, we had our first look at a few resources relating to the history of Sandyford. 

At this stage we are considering dividing our research into several categories: 
1.beginnings + foundation 
2.business + trade
3.buildings + architecture
4.education + worship/social groups
5.crime + controversies
6.residents + demographics
7.present + future

….any thoughts on what we should include or remove?

On a side note, can you see what Phil is pointing out? We’ve come across a record that Charles Dickens had performed in a self-directed show at the Assembly Rooms, Newcastle. Not exactly related to our research but still interesting nonetheless.

Now here is a lovely picture of our team hard at work. Thank you Sarah for the suggestions on how to carry out our research, we took notes on several useful books and archives and will be back soon. 

First Consultation at Barney & Jude's

We managed our first consultation on 11 Feb from 7-8pm  at Barney & Jude's. It was conveniently scheduled after a bin meeting, so many of those lovely individuals were in attendance.  A special thank you to City Councilors David, Felicity, and Tom who helped get the word out beforehand and encourage participation throughout.  This flyer had been sent a week prior to all Sandyford residents to inform them of the meeting.  

Coffee, tea, and snacks were provided in an effort to make the atmosphere more casual and social.  Chip and Diane, who run Barney & Jude's, kept bringing out warm brownies for which our snacks were no match.  They were absolutely delicious, we should have taken a picture of them as well - ha! 

The consultation began with a 5 minute PowerPoint introduction about ourselves, our project, and our aims.  Afterwards we had a group discussion about ideas and themes for the exhibition.  We really appreciate all of the individuals who shared their contact information with us.  As of now, we hope to incorporate information gained from future interviews into the exhibit -- these contacts are a great help for achieving that goal.  We are still open to suggestions and will be researching for a few weeks, so feel free to comment or contact us.

On 13 Feb at 5pm the module is meeting to go over what was discussed during the consultation.