THE Museum of Dartmoor Life wants to hear first hand from residents in West Devon their personal 2020 story to help capture history as it happens for future generations.

Trustees are collecting stories about everyone’s experiences in these unprecedented times, to compile a data source for the future.

Trustee Richard Jennings said: ‘Unthinkable changes have occurred in a matter of weeks which affect every single person — some lives dramatically and some hardly at all. The Museum of Dartmoor Life wants your story to help capture history as it happens.

‘Future historians will want the breath of real life to illustrate the statistics and data of these momentous times. It is vital to capture feelings, thoughts and experiences now, in the heat of creation, not in the coolness of reflection. They will form part of the collection that tells the story, as it happens to you, your community and the local world in which we live.’

All data and submissions received will form part of an historical record which will be held at the Museum of Dartmoor Life and potentially The Devon Record Office.

Material can be in any format: photograph, video, audio recording, letter, drawing, other paper items and should include information about the item such as what it is, where/who it came from and date and place, including: ‘We were out for a walk when we saw…’; ‘We had a street party under social isolating conditions and here is the invite written by .... aged xxx’; ‘This is a video recording from a relative in a care home in after 12 weeks with no visitors’.

All submissions should include name, age or date of birth and contact details. Stories and submissions should be made to [email protected] or The Museum of Dartmoor Life, West Street, Okehampton, EX20 1HQ.