The Moving Blog

Back in February of this year we processed the last major collection to be accessioned here at our City Central Library location. SD 2012, as it's now known, is a collection of 77 Methodist baptism and marriage registers from churches in the north of the city - including Baddeley Edge, Fegg Hayes, and Smallthorne, for example - and we couldn't let it slip into the safety of our strongrooms without capturing the moment for posterity.

Of course, we were still very much aware that interesting items wouldn't stop being offered to us simply because our move preparation tasks had begun, and in a few exceptional circumstances this has meant taking in items which the depositors were unable to keep for us until our 2024 re-opening. Wherever possible however, we've worked with anyone who's approached us with a view to donating or depositing material to place these accessions on hold until the move is complete - and this has included requests from within the City Council too. One such example, which we received a few months ago, related to items held in Hanley Town Hall, a building only a few streets away from the City Archives. Because of this close proximity we were able to organise a quick in-person visit, where we helped pick out the volumes and papers of interest to us here at the Archives. These are now awaiting the completion of our move when they'll be transferred to us and, along with the items from the rest of our on-hold approaches, will be part of the first batch of material to be accessioned in our new location at The Potteries Museum & Art Gallery!