Museum to record Covid-19

Warkworth Museum is starting a collection of Covid-19 items and memorabilia to ensure there is a permanent record of how the pandemic has affected local communities.

Museum manager Victoria Joule is calling for donations of photos, videos, artefacts, stories, crafts and objects relating to lockdown, so that in years to come, there is a clear picture of how Warkworth and surrounding areas responded to the crisis.

“We want to create a picture of our community during the pandemic,” she says. “It’s important to keep a record of this time, because people will forget very quickly when life gets back to normal.

“Everyone has a story to tell and we want to hear our communities’ experiences of life during the pandemic and lockdown. We want to safely store these objects and stories so that they can be shared and seen by our community in the future.”

She wants to encourage people, businesses and community groups to all contribute items and memories to get as full a picture of what the impact has been on the local area.

“We have records and information that mention the 1918 flu pandemic, as well as the later polio epidemic,” Victoria says. “Most of the material we hold has been donated to the museum by local families, businesses and groups, so our current aim is to collect material about life during the Covid-19 pandemic for future generations.”

She says the museum is keen to receive items and material from children as well as adults.

“We would like to encourage people to write down their stories, to keep a diary, take photographs or just send us thoughts, feelings and experiences from during the lockdown. ”

Victoria is also looking for material relating to how Anzac Day and Easter were marked and celebrated during lockdown.