Melford Memories Project
We are always on the lookout for images or stories of our village, if you have anything you wish to share, please contact us.
Why Melford Memories?
This project was inspired by Melford Memories. Written in the late 1960s by Emily Ambrose, Melford Memories records the recollections of her husband, Ernie Ambrose, a well-known local man, who had been at the centre of Melford life for over ninety years.
This memoir is a heart-warming portrayal of everyday life in the Melford area and describes a vanished world of rural customs and culture, from poaching and bell-ringing to colourful accounts of the annual Whitsun fairs on the village green. As Ernie was also an organist at Borley Church for several years, there’s even a reference to the infamous ‘haunting’ of Borley Rectory. Painted with a gaiety and freshness of observation, the book is an evocative and sensitive memorial to a century of change.
Memories Matter
The centre holds a growing collection of written documents, recordings and audio-visual media telling the stories of local people. This unique collection of reminiscences, stories and photographs is currently being catalogued into the Centre’s permanent collection, and in the future even more items will be available online to researchers and for use in exhibitions and other publicly accessible ways.
We are fortunate to have recollections of both past and present residents, who participated in or observed past events and day-to-day life, and whose memories and perceptions of these will now be preserved as a record for future generations.
An Unfinished Story
We’re committed to doing all we can to tell the stories of the people of Long Melford and the surrounding area that might otherwise be forgotten. By connecting communities through memories, we aim to provide a sense of place, identity and heritage.
This is a living history project, and we continue to seek people with experiences of living and working in Long Melford over the last century.
In the future we hope to hold events where members of our community can gather to explore together their shared memories through:
Oral History Workshops
Memory Sharing Workshops
Storytelling
We are always on the lookout for images or stories of our village, if you have anything you wish to share, please contact us.
