PARAGON REVIEW

Issue 6

EDITORIAL

Old and new

Once again, the articles in this issue of Paragon Review graphically reveal the enormous range of collections held by the Brynmor Jones Library. This is equally reflected in the variety of new collections received during the past year. To mention just a few. In the landed estate area, one of the most interesting items has been a 1753 map (measuring 7 feet by 10) of the estates of Thomas Stapleton at Carlton and Camblesforth. In the literary field, a third deposit has been received from the Trustees of Philip Larkin, whilst a fascinating collection of letters and other items by Sir William and Lady Hetta Empson, with much information on 1930s Japan and 1940s and early 1950s China, has been deposited by their sons. In the political arena, new collections have been received from Roy Hattersley and Sir Patrick Cormack, and additional deposits from John Prescott, Austin Mitchell and Kevin McNamara. More pressure group material has been received from the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants and Liberty. And valuable Quaker papers have been deposited by the Hull and Pickering Monthly Meeting of the Society of Friends. The generous donation to the University Art Collection by Philippa Burrell of paintings by her mother, Louie Burrell (1873-1971), has been matched by that of an equally valuable archive of letters and photographs. Finally, the enormous collection of photographs and other items donated by the late distinguished railway historian WB Yeadon is described at more length on page 30 of this journal.

Information overload

This editor seems to have spent a great deal of time recently filling in forms, questionnaires, and other similar requests. They have all been perfectly legitimate enquiries from responsible citizens and organisations seeking information about the Library's archives and special collections: about conservation, environment, contents, future staffing requirements, rates of disposal, and so on. The record was six questionnaires in one week, followed by eleven monitoring reports in a fortnight. These reports and questionnaires generally seem to disappear without trace, and seldom produce a follow-up or even an acknowledgement. Perhaps it's the way they are written, but someone, somewhere (probably an archivist), must have an awful lot of forms. However did we used to manage before we had all this information?

Hello-Goodbye

We say farewell to three of our staff: Dr Rebecca Johnson has left to take up a new post at the University of Northumbria. Her replacement working with the Larkin collections is Julie Maylon, formerly of Sheffield University. Dr Mandy Capern has finished her contract working on the guide to Hull's collections. The fruits of her labours can now be seen via the World Wide Web or the special terminal in the Archives Reading Room. Meanwhile Kate Hughes has been succeeded as archives assistant by Arwen Tapping, a recent Hull graduate. Two more new staff - Dawn Barnes and Sylvia Donoghue - joined us in September for a year as part of an intensive programme to input as many of our old calendars and lists as possible, so that they will all eventually be searchable electronically. We offer them a hearty welcome.