Kettering’s archaeological collection moves into state-of-the-art storage

Boxed artefacts from the Manor House Museum in Kettering have been relocated to new purpose-built storage facilities at Northamptonshire’s Archaeological Resource Centre (ARC) - alongside 24,000 archive boxes from over 3000 sites from across the county and beyond.

The important collection consists of more than 600 archive boxes from various time periods, which would not usually be on display to the general public and were previously located in the Museum’s store room and inaccessible to researchers and the public.

The collection from Kettering documents the history of the town and is a vital tool for researchers. The move to the ARC, where the collection will be stored alongside collections from other museums and organisations throughout the county, means that the researchers will now have more information and archival material in one place. Due to the type of material, it is highly unlikely that they would ever be on view as part of the exhibitions when the Museum is able to open to the public.

Cllr Helen Howell, the council’s Deputy Leader and Executive Member for Sport, Leisure, Culture and Tourism, said:

“Archives like this are vital for ensuring the history of towns are available for generations to come and often have a high number of documents and valuable resources which are perfect for researchers but would not be used in public exhibitions.

“This move to state-of-the-art facilities will mean that the collection is preserved and accessible but doesn’t take away from what the Museum in the town will offer when it is able to open. The collection may now be stored outside the town, but that is all that has changed - they remain part of the Manor House Museum’s collection and will now be even easier for the team to access.

“This move is the culmination of months of preparation and planning behind-the-scenes and is a collaborative effort that involved the Heritage Team from Cornerstone as well as curators and volunteers from the ARC.”

In fact the move will ensure their accessibility and preservation for future generations, with the boxes of stored artefacts now under the watchful eyes of the ARC’s professional archaeologists in state-of-the-art facilities.

Ben Donnelly-Symes, who oversees the archives at the ARC, explains more:

“By moving the collections to the ARC, the Manor House Museum archaeological collections will be far more accessible to the public than ever before. Rather than being in an inaccessible warehouse, these collections will be freely accessible to the public and can be viewed on one of our free public tours of the ARC building that we run most weeks or could be accessed for research by booking an appointment.

“Over the next several years, we will be re-packing, sorting and cataloguing the collections to modern standards to ensure they are preserved for future generations. The collections will be stored in our state-of-the-art facilities and kept at the correct temperature and humidity to ensure their long-term preservation.”

Jason Smithers, Leader of the Council, said:

“As a council, we have a responsibility to preserve our heritage in any way we can, and this move shows teams coming together to ensure that our history is there for the future. The facilities at the ARC are of the highest quality and residents can be assured that all the material that has been moved from Kettering will be well cared for by the dedicated team.”

Whilst work continues on Cornerstone, the team are also working behind the scenes on a renovation project for Manor House Museum and the museum remains temporarily closed during this period.