LIBRARIAN AND ARCHIVIST’S REPORT

The George Williams Memorial Library is located in the ringing chamber of Winchester Cathedral and is available for readers and borrowers by appointment. The system for loans provides a standard loan period of eight weeks with a liberal renewal policy for serious research and special problems. The only exceptions are the archive material and the Guild’s annual and triennial reports for which, because of their unique importance, loans are solely at the discretion of the librarian. A catalogue of the printed books and of the complete archive is maintained on the Guild website. Part of our collection of archive material, held at the Hampshire Record Office in Sussex Street, Winchester, is available for consultation only. The collection there has the call-number 20M94.

Since writing last year’s report a year ago I have, with the much-valued help of Andrew Glover, overhauled and substantially updated the inventory and alphabetical hand-list of the Library’s holdings, and added to stock a set of The Education Column from The Ringing World. Work is in hand on the rebinding of The Ringing World, with most if not all of the volumes to 2024 bound by the time this report is presented to the AGM. Research has been undertaken on early recordings of bells, the formation of the Alton and Petersfield District, and the Heathorn ringing dynasty of Surrey.

The Guild’s online archive has the minutes of the Guild Annual meetings and Executive Committee meetings from 1980 to 2000, and since 2013 (Minutes since 2001 are also available from the Guild’s Document Repository) and a collection of historical articles from The Ringing World about Guild people, places and events. These are all maintained by Tony Smith, to whom I am duly grateful.

I am always pleased to assist Guild members and others with an interest in the Guild with their researches. I should like to thank my colleagues within the Guild and the Winchester Cathedral band for their continuing support.

Bruce Purvis