Moon Stories
An oral history project recording Derbyshire people’s stories of the Moon and the 1969 Moon Landing
Adverse Camber received a National Lottery Heritage Fund grant of £20,000 for the Moon Stories project which saw Derbyshire people’s memories of the 1969 Apollo 11 Moon Landing recorded and archived so future generations can witness the impact this historic event had on people living in the county.
The Moon Stories project built on the success of Adverse Camber and Derbyshire Virtual School’s Stars and Stories project where young people in care and care leavers worked with a professional storyteller and an astronomer to develop their skills, experience and confidence which resulted in a brand-new performance which entertained and informed over 250 people at Wirksworth’s Star Disc as part of 2018’s Wirksworth Festival.
Below this you will read about how the Moon Stories project was planned, however the project was interrupted by the Covid-19 Pandemic and instead became the project, Moments in Time.
Moon Stories ithe s an exciting creative project which was driven by young people in care and care leavers from Derbyshire. Carrying out research at the Derbyshire Records Office and online, the project participants discovered that, despite the fact Derbyshire possesses a rich aerospace industrial heritage, there are no records of local memories of the 1969 Moon Landing and very few well-known local stories about the moon. And yet, many local people the project has spoken to have very vivid memories of this historic event, so a project was devised to capture these stories before they are lost.
Ten young people will collect and record over 40 stories and memories of the 1969 Moon Landings and stories about the moon from people in Derbyshire aged 55 and over. This work will result in the creation of a comprehensive archive plus exhibition at Derbyshire Records Office, Matlock. Building on the storytelling skills developed through the Stars and Stories project, the young people will also develop and perform new stories based on the new archive collection and the experiences they have gained along the way. Through this work, they will learn valuable skills and a better understanding of heritage, oral history and storytelling in addition to creating an important and engaging archive of material for people to enjoy for generations to come.
The Moon Stories project will run for a year and has been made possible by money raised by National Lottery players. The project launched on Tuesday 16 July 2019, the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 lift off!
If you live in Derbyshire and have a Moon story or Moon Landing memory to share, please do get in touch with us, we’d love to hear from you!
Moon Stories is being developed in collaboration with Derbyshire Virtual School and has also received support from Foundation Derbyshire, Ashby Fund and the Royal Astronomical Society so young people can learn more about lunar science. Adverse Camber is also grateful for support from Derbyshire Records Office, East Midlands Oral History Archive and Scopes4SEN.
Main image courtesy Steve Strange
