The start of a four-year celebration of culture as part of London 2012 is being marked locally with storytelling and workshops at Kendal and Penrith libraries.
The weekend of 26-28 September kicks off the celebration, which is designed to enable the widest range of people across the UK to take part.
To mark the launch, two events called 'Storytelling from the archives' have been organised by the county council's archive service and will be run by Marian Veevers, a local writer, at:
Kendal Library on Saturday 27 September:
A workshop for adults. Using a 'mystery solving' format to get things going, the emphasis will be on exploring how much can be discovered about individual lives and the way in which written sources can spark the imaginative cration of life stories.
Using such local documents as census returns, marriage and baptismal records, apprenticeship records and the like, workshop will look in particular at how these sources can lead people to question what they think they know about life in Nineteenth Century Cumbria.
The event runs from 10.30am to 1pm.
Penrith Library on Sunday 28 September.
This is a workshop for all the family. Its aim is to show families how archives can be used to inspire creating stories. Marian will begin by telling a prepared opening of a story based on one or more documents. The opening will provide a mystery to be solved in the rest of the story.
Encouraging families to work together, and so providing reading support for younger children), Marian will ask them to search through the documents to produce clues and explanations to create an end to the story. The emphasis is on telling a story, rather than writing one.
The event runs from 12 - 2pm.
Both activities are free, but on a first come, first served basis with 10 places on the Kendal workshop and 15 places on the Penrith workshop.
For further information, and to book places, contact:
Cumbria Record Office, Kendal on 01539 713540
For further information about the Cultural Olympiad part of London 2012, visit http://www.london2012.com/about/our-brand/inspire-programme.php (external link)
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Please note: Cumbria County Council's media team telephone numbers have now changed.
Media enquiries to Alison Lister, Media Officer on 01228 226335