A FASCINATING new community project unearthing the human stories behind an early West Devon social housing scheme is appealing for family histories.

Simon Thompson, lead researcher for the Life Stories Project based on residents of Tavistock’s famous Bedford Cottages, would like past and present residents and relatives of people who have been, to turn history detectives and contact him with their tales.

The project launches at a public gathering on Tuesday, October 11, at 11am, in the Anchorage Centre, Tavistock. The project is asking for citizen historians to join in both physically and online to contribute to ambitious plans to include virtual reality tours of a typical cottage in the past.

Simon, a former achaeologist, said: ‘This is an important project in terms of Tavistock’s social history but it is far from a dry academic exercise, this is covering the real lives of people who lived in the Bedford Cottages, but we need people to become history detectives themselves.

‘Among the many stories uncovered so far, are those that include ex-patriots nationwide and worldwide which has raised the wider significance of the housing and their economic and social context. We’re now uncovering the existence of a wider Tavistock diaspora through their roots in these cottages. The reasons for moving were often to do with jobs and stretch to Australia from Dolvin Road cottages and the workhouse (now Russell Court) and St Rumon’s School.

‘There was a lot of comings and goings of residents within families among the cottages. So we will be listing surnames and asking people if they recognise their family name and can do a bit of digging to add to the history we have now. It’s a bit like a combination of Who Do You Think You Are? and the House Through Time TV programmes.’

Especially intriguing are mysteries which include that of a female workhouse worker who died in the workplace and astonished undertakers preparing the body when they discovered she was in fact a man and had been living as a woman for about 40 years.

Simon has been looking at Lamerton records for births of boys, but needs help in finding out who he was and his background for clues as to why he transformed himself.

Another ex-resident set up the former Plymouth School of Navigation, having taught younger children at Dolvin Primary School aged only 14. The 276 cottages, a well known landmark, were built in the 1800s for 276 workers by the main landowner the Duke of Bedford responding to widespread concern over living conditions as the town’s infrastructure (including dealing with lack of housing or how to deal with human waste), failed to keep up with a rapidly swelling population.

They were revolutionary in their time with occupiers having their own clean running water and toilet for the first time. They were also able to grow their own food and have the then luxury of relief from overcrowding.

Simon Thompson can be contacted with more details of how to contribute to the Life Stories Project on [email protected]