The archive in its current form was set up by Archivist Dr Helen Blackman, but for the last 8 years has been run by an enthusiastic group of volunteers. Three of our regular team are James, Caroline and Janet.
Caroline volunteered to support The Exmoor Society when she retired in 2010 and was the trustee responsible for the archive from 2013 to 2019. She brings a wealth of experience to the team, having helped to organise our first exhibition of the Hope Bourne Collection in 2013, edited and contributed to the microstudy “Exmoor Chroniclers” and co-authored with John Burgess the book “ Hope Bourne: Eloquence in Art”. She is our expert cataloguer, working through boxes of the collections of Victor Bonham-Carter, Hazel Eardley-Wilmot and now, Dr Ernest Mold.
Janet first joined us when she was looking for advice on scanning her family photograph albums. We offered her use of our scanning equipment, and once she had finished scanning her own material, she moved on to becoming a volunteer for the archive. Jan the Scan, as we call her, created digital copies of the spring newsletters, as well as new donations as they come in. She has been supporting the new Hope Bourne book project by proofreading the West Somerset Free Press columns as they come back from our group of volunteer transcribers. Janet and her husband have a small holding on Exmoor and a passion for bee keeping and orchards.
James grew up at Ovis farm on the edge of Exmoor which his family had worked for generations. Interested in history and archaeology, he joined us as a volunteer in 2025 to support our project to learn more about the Bronze age White Ladder stone row, rediscovered by Hazel Eardley- Wilmot 50 years earlier. James had known Hazel and had driven her over the moor, still working on her archaeological research into her older age. With James’ help, we organised an exhibition at Barnstaple Museum, and a guided walk at the White Ladder. James is currently supporting the ENPA Exmoor Pioneers project.
