Reorganising Occupation books kept Priaulx staff busy
The Priaulx Library will reopen on Monday, following several weeks of behind-the-scenes work.
The local record centre closed for three weeks in January to allow time for ongoing projects.
‘Occupation resources have been rearranged and reclassified depending on the subject,’ said chief librarian Sue Laker.
‘It’s taken a good solid two weeks to reorganise the shelf with our Occupation books.
‘We have reclassified it so people will be able to find books on civil administration, nursing, police, or different aspects of life.
‘The Occupation section is probably the most heavily used resource in the library, especially as the school curriculum tends to include either Victorians or the Occupation.’
The photo project has been halted temporarily as necessary supplies to pack the slides have run out.
‘We’ve processed over 600 plates so far and they have to be cleaned, but only on one side,’ said library assistant Mike Lowe.
‘Once they have been cleaned they are put into special archival paper wraps and they are all listed with a reference number and some of the slides have been photographed by Paul Chambers.’
The slides contain images on all different topics.
There is a mixture of church silverware photography, images from the Boer War, and before-and-after images of when dolmens around the island were excavated.
Many slides contain images of Victorian bird photography.
‘It’s amazing how lucky we got with the condition of some of these slides, especially when they are people’s holiday photos and have been stored in an attic for years,’ said Mr Lowe.
‘We’ve also come across some of the interior of Victor Hugo’s house.’
Members of the Priaulx Library can borrow up to eight non-reference books. Membership is free to all Bailiwick residents, but while non-members and visitors can use the library’s facilities, only members can use the lending library.
The library is still in the process of digitalising the Guernsey Press. So far the process is up to 1982.
