We were commissioned by the National Tramway Museum to develop and implement a suite of interpretation for the Woodland Walk, Wakebridge Lead Mining Collection and a cabmen’’s shelter at their Crich Tramway Village.
Interpretive planning
This project implemented some of the short-term recommendations from the Crich Tramway Interpretation Strategy, which we produced in 2018.
We produced a project interpretation plan with the Education Officer and volunteers from the Peak District Mines Historical Society. To inform the plan, we consulted with staff, volunteers and visitor groups, and carried out visitor observations looking at different visitor groups’ favourite activities, locations and dwell time in different areas. The interpretation plan identified an interpretive theme for the two areas, the interpretive aims and objectives, and which stories would be relevant to different locations and for which target audiences.
Historical sources
We were provided with a pile of books, journal articles and management reports. We researched local lead mining traditions and eye witness accounts, the uses of displayed mining machinery and the ecology of the woodland to develop scripts and text.
How interpretive writing was used
We wrote a series of new interpretation panels and physical interactives, scripted and recorded motion-triggered audio of lead miners for two replica mine shafts, and commissioned a vast kinetic art installation about lead mining engineering.
We invited local schoolchildren to ‘road test’ the playful new activities, sculptures and signage. We then commissioned the children to write site- specific flash fiction, which we recorded them reading and installed on the hand-cranked audio listening post.
Details
Client: National Tramway Museum
Project Manager: Jan Barrett, Education Officer
Duration: November 2018 – March 2019