At Bath & North East Somerset Council’s first ever Archives Open Day, the public are being invited to create a banquet based on a real-life Victorian menu from Bath’s Guildhall.
This is just one of the activities for children and adults when the Council’s Archive Service throws open its doors on Saturday 24th October.
Visitors are being offered the opportunity to get creative and make a pretend dish of food using paper and glue, or have a go at calligraphy to design their own royal charter or apprenticeship indenture.
All the activities and events on the day will be based on historic Bath documents kept in the archive collections at the Guildhall, on High Street, Bath.
A film show on view throughout the day has been created by Bath Riverside Youth Hub using records of Victorian criminals and policemen in Bath.
For those whose interest lies “through the keyhole” there will be a rare opportunity to be guided through the underground cellars and vaults beneath the Guildhall to see where three kilometres of the city’s records are stored.
There will also be exhibitions, the chance to watch an archival conservator at work, free refreshments, and a quiz with a prize of afternoon tea at the Pump Room donated by Searcy’s the Pump Room caterer.
The Archive Open Day is free and starts at 10am with the premiere showing of the Riverside Youth Hub’s film, attended by the Mayor of Bath, and activities continue throughout the day until 4pm.
The Open-Day is part of Bath Record Office’s community outreach project Our Heritage, Your Story: Explore the Past with Bath Record Office funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund.
For more information on Bath Record Office, visit its website here: www.batharchives.co.uk.