20/07/04 - New Archives office for Carlisle

A state of the art archives office for north east Cumbria and a new lease of life for a listed building in Carlisle are envisaged in a scheme being developed by Cumbria County Council. Lady Gilford House, overlooking the River Petteril in Harraby south Carlisle, has been chosen as the ideal location for a popular county council service. 

The site has good public access, enough space to store tens of thousands of archives and has room for expansion. It was chosen after a year long feasibility study which considered dozens of sites around the city to modernise a service that has been in Carlisle for over 40 years. The council will put in a bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund to help with the costs of the relocation of the present service from the Castle. 

County Councilor Tim Heslop Cabinet spokesman for Archives says: 

"The present accommodation at the Castle is simply not big enough to meet the public demand. We also need to modernise our storeroom facilities to protect the thousands of archives we hold and can't do that given the historic monument status of the Castle. 

Lady Gilford House and its grounds are a wonderful solution. A new archive office that will serve north east Cumbria for years to come and an opportunity to protect one of the Carlisle's important buildings. Its an exciting project. One that will improve services to the public and support the regeneration of south Carlisle." 

County Archivist Anne Rowe says: 

"We have seen a real explosion of interest in archives over the last ten years. Thousands of people visit the office in the Castle every year to find out about their family, house or local community. I'm sure the new location with modern facilities will encourage even more people to get involved with the raw material of their own family history." 

The new office will give access to a wide range of local historic documents dating from the twelfth century to the present day. Ideas are being developed for exhibition space, educational facilities for schools and adults, and a new community archive covering the history of local people, the industries of Carlisle and the surrounding countryside.