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Shipbuilding archive aims to preserve memories

Evie LakeNorth East and Cumbria
News imageShipyard Heritage Museum An old colour photo which looks to be from the 1980s. It looks glossy like it a photograph of a physical copy. There are two men looking into the camera while standing in front of a large crane which has rusted. There is a large metal chain on the right. The man on the left has short brown hair which sweeps across his forehead. He is holding a cigarette and is looking into the camera with a straight face. The man on the right has grey, short hair and is wearing a flat cap. He is smiling. Both men are wearing blue overalls and brown thick gloves. Shipyard Heritage Museum
A shipbuilding archive has been launched as a stopgap before the physical museum opens

The friends and families of former shipbuilders have been urged to record their stories before they are forgotten

Bronwyn Mogie, 33, from Jarrow, has been leading the campaign to establish a shipbuilding heritage museum in South Tyneside, a former hotspot for the industry.

While plans and fundraising for the museum are in the early stages, Mogie feared many stories could be lost before a spade has been put in the ground.

To counter this, people across north-east England have been asked to sit down with loved ones who once worked in the shipyards to contribute to the Shipyard Heritage Museum's online living archive. The archive is open to stories from the rivers Tyne, Wear and Tees.

Generations of Mogie's family were involved in shipbuilding and her dad was part of the last generation of workers before the yards on the Tyne were closed.

She is working alongside Andrew Leslie, the great-great-great nephew of the founder of Hawthorn Leslie shipyard in Hebburn, which closed in the 1980s.

News imageBronwyn Mogie Bronwyn Mogie standing with her father at the old Hawthorn Leslie building. She has her arm around him and is smiling brightly. She has long brown hair and is wearing a light brown coat and white shirt. Her father has very short grey hair and is wearing a black puffer jacket. The tall building behind them is made of red-brick with a white concrete facade at the front.Bronwyn Mogie
Bronwyn Mogie said her father was the last of generations of shipyard workers in her family

"We wanted to do it properly, have funding for it, but people are just getting older and it's just not possible," Mogie said.

"I don't know how long we'd have to wait for the funding."

Voice recordings, videos and photographs can be uploaded to the museum's website.

"Sit them down and then let them talk," she said.

"Time's running out. One day they're going to be all gone and we'll never be able to get them back."

She hopes listening to family members' stories will provide an opportunity for younger generations to learn more about their heritage and area's history.

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