HAMPSHIRE Record Office, located on Sussex Street in Winchester, holds more than 1,000 years of history from medieval charters to cinefilm.

On Wednesday April 18, 6.30pm to 8.30pm, members of the public will be given the opportunity to go behind the scenes to see some of the amazing records we hold.

You’ll be guided around the building by an archivist who will explain the unseen work which is carried out to preserve, and make accessible, Hampshire’s heritage.

The tour will include a wide-ranging display of documents from our collections, including Winchester’s oldest charter, c1155, in which Henry II grants to the citizens of Winchester freedom from toll, passage and custom. Among the witnesses is Thomas Becket, Chancellor of England from 1155 to 1162.

You will also be able to read the diaries of Clifford Stark, aged seven, an evacuee from Southampton to Penton Mewsey in 1940. The diaries record the Second World War from a child’s perspective, including the building of air raid shelters and the loss of France.

Read Isaac Newton’s letter about planting apple trees and making cider, Jane Austen’s fake marriage entry and a pamphlet from Alton filled with signatures supporting women’s suffrage in 1894, amid the other documents, photos and maps which will be on display.

You will be shown how you can access such documents and the facilities available at Hampshire Record Office which can help you with your research.

A visit to our conservation department will reveal what happens to documents which are damaged by mould, water and vermin. We’ll explain the delicate work and processes which are carried out to repair damaged documents and bring them back to life. Furthermore, you will also be shown the climate- controlled strongrooms where the precious documents are securely stored and cared for.

After all that you can sit back and relax in our cinema and watch a short archive filmshow. The screening will highlight the collections of Wessex Film and Sound Archive, including film of a torpedo being fired in a practice drill by the Royal Navy off the coast of Portsmouth in 1897, scenes from Petersfield in 1919 and Arthur Conan Doyle speaking in 1927.

The tour costs £10 and advance booking is essential by phoning 01962 846154 or by booking online.

Hampshire Record Office also offers behind the scenes tours to groups and talks on subjects such as family and house history, as well as a variety of filmshows. Find out more by visiting our website www.hants.gov.uk/archives.

Matthew Goodwin,

Archivist,

Hampshire Archives and Local Studies,

Hampshire Record Office,

Sussex Street,

Winchester