Shirley and Andy Newton
Who are you?
Shirley and Andy Newton
What is your job?
We’re volunteers at the Dartmouth Museum – a small part of a large team who deal with the public, look after the exhibits and keep the building clean and tidy. We consider ourselves very much the juniors in terms of our experience, but we like to help out where we can.
How long have you worked there? We started shortly after we moved to Dartmouth.
Do you live nearby?
We’ve had a house in Clarence Hill for 10 years and we live here for alternate months, sharing our time between here and a house in London.
Can you tell us about your family?
Our children and grandchildren all live in London and that’s why we keep going to and fro – we love living near them but we love living here too!
What do you like to do when you are not at work? Well, we became involved with the museum after joining the Dartmouth History Research Group to find out the history of our house. The History Research Group has a person based in the library in Dartmouth most Thursdays to help members of the public with their own research projects, and we have helped occasionally with that too. The group has helped us find out that our house was part of the Seale Estate, and is on the Tithe map. It’s very old! We’re also interested in old photographs and street names. It is interesting to discover the history of local street names, in particular why some names have been changed. We’re collating this information for the Dartmouth History Research Group Web Site “The Dartmouth Archives”. It’s good to think we are helping to keep Dartmouth’s heritage alive.
What is the best thing about your job?
There is always something new to discover every day – an exhibit you hadn’t noticed before or information you hadn’t spotted. The building is as interesting as the exhibits! It is lovely meeting people who visit the museum, and being part of the team who look after this important place.
First Published December 2009 By The Dart