Library Library News Library Review - Spring 2009
Library Review - Spring 2009
Book Sale
The lead up to Christmas began on 7th November with the preview to the book sale held for Section Members. The book sale was in planning for over a year, with Bibliography Section and various other members checking items which had been donated or bequeathed in 2006, and which were duplicates not required for the collection. It was an excellent opportunity for a final check that all the items for sale were reasonably priced and knowledgeable members were able to give advice as to value. The object of this exercise was to raise funds to purchase items which may not already be held and could prove a valuable addition to our collection.
The book sale which took place the following day was not as well attended as we had hoped. However, Peter Le Rossignol provided an entertaining auction and through his valiant efforts we raised over £2,000.
January Closure
The fortnight closure allowed the Librarians to undertake the task of back-accessioning and cataloguing items for the collection which will increase public accessibility. The reason for the backlog was due to problems with the previous catalogue, as the work done by Brenda and volunteer, Joy Bell, over the past 3 years had brought the catalogue to the point where the back accessioning could begin. It was decided to begin this work as the new website was already online and we wanted to make an updated catalogue available. This exercise brought to light just how time-consuming a task this is, and although we were pleased with the results we felt we had not achieved the target we had set.
World War 1 Scrapbook
The discovery of the World War 1 Scrapbook at the Town Hall by Marie-Louise Backhurst, which was scanned by Photographic Archivist Gareth Syvret proved a popular item. Gareth provided a CD to the Library and the JEP led an article which resulted in many members of the public wishing to search the CD to discover relatives.
Trident and Highland Students
Again this year we have been extremely lucky in the standard of students we have received for work experience. In February Matthew Jones from Hautlieu and Toni Barbet from Highlands made excellent additions to the team and achieved a lot in their short time with us. We have two other students booked for March and June We have been told by organisers and students alike that the Société has a growing reputation as being a "good choice". Where many of the student’s contemporaries return complaining of being bored and only allowed to tackle menial tasks, the library students are always motivated and excited by their experiences. This is a sample from the ever growing file of thank you letters.
"One of the best memories of the work experience is the time when I had the chance to interact and discuss issues with public and members, this proved to be interesting and exciting at the same time" - Matthew Jones, Hautlieu.
"I am writing to thank you for your support of the Trident scheme by providing work experience for local students in 2008: in appreciation of this I have pleasure in enclosing a "Thank you" certificate" - Sue Walsh, Trident Manager.
Both Anna and Brenda feel it is important to continue to support this very important scheme as it benefits both the youth of Jersey and the Société.
Volunteers
Our volunteers remain indispensable and we would like to give our ever grateful thanks to all our regulars. We also have a new recruit in Peter Douglas, who whilst contacting relatives in Australia, began to reminisce about the past, and particularly about Jersey. In the course of a conversation, Roger in Australia mentioned he had in his possession some sketches of Island scenes. The artist had briefly visited Jersey in the 1860s and had made the sketches at the age of 17. A scanned copy of a couple of them was sent to Peter and he telephoned the Librarian to see if the Société would be interested to see them to which of course he received a very positive response. We hope there will be more to report in the near future. After some discussion Peter agreed to volunteer. With a keen interest in local current affairs and feeling the need to get out more, he came and volunteered his skills and knowledge, taking over Douglas Hooke’s role as our library Jersey Evening Post "filleting and filing man".
Research
In the course of the Armistice 90th Anniversary events held locally, the Société and other organisations banded together to provide historic information for the event. We received the comment below in gratitude for this:-
"Indispensable in the local research for commemoration of the 90th Anniversary of the end of the First World War was the Alexander Coutanche Library. The librarians and volunteers went literally "over the top" in painstaking research and their enthusiastic co- operation, this has spawned a number of ongoing projects." - Howard Butlin-Baker.
Brenda Ross – Librarian
Anna Baghiani – Asst Librarian
