Open the Box
Connecting communities through archives
About the project
In 2024 we were awarded a grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund to start working on a project called Open the Box, which aims to engage a wider range of people with the archives preserved at the Essex Record Office.
Over the next three years, we hope to work with communities in specific places - primarily in Tendring - as well as organisations working with groups under-represented in the archive, including younger people, ethnically diverse communities, and LGBTQ+ people.
The project aims to raise awareness of archives, re-interpret collections of relevance to these communities, and start a dialogue to understand how stories can be better captured, preserved and re-told now and in the future.
Fill in our survey
We would love to hear from you! Please fill out our anonymous survey and be in with a chance of winning a £50 Love2Shop voucher!
If you need any support in accessing the survey please email us at openthebox@essex.gov.uk.
An Essex Record Office Pop-up!
The Essex Record Office will be bringing an array of historical records to explore at your local library. Listen to cassette tapes of genuine historical recordings, from radio broadcasts to folk music, and explore our handling collection. We will have activity sheets available for families, so come and say hello! Ask us questions, find out how we can help you with historical research, and let us know what kinds of activities you would like to see from us next.
Saturday 31 May, 11am – 2pm
Canvey Island Library
2 High St, Canvey Island SS8 7RB
Wednesday 4 June, 10am-12pm
Greenstead Library
Hawthorn Ave, Colchester CO4 3QE
Tuesday 10 June, 11am-1pm
Harlow Library
The High, Harlow CM20 1HA
Tuesday 17 June, 4-6pm
Billericay Library
143 High St, Billericay CM12 9AB
The Outhouse 45th Birthday Garden Party
Saturday 14 June, The Minories, Colchester
We will be joining the celebrations with The Outhouse community on Saturday 14 June at The Minories. Come and chat to us about our plans for archiving Essex LGBTQ+ heritage, and share your community memories.
https://theouthouse.org.uk/events/the-outhouse-45th-birthday-garden-party/
Essex Pride
Saturday 21 June, Central Park, Chelmsford
Essex Record Office will have a stall at Essex Pride to share LGBTQ+ stories in our collections and invite you to document spaces of belonging for the queer community in Essex.
