THE Museum of Dartmoor Life has a new manager. following the retirement of long-time curator Maurie Webber.

Maurie has left her post after more than 15 years. She joined the museum after working on a history project in Okehampton, looking at the town council's records before they were sent off to the Devon Record Office. The project stimulated her interest in Okehampton and the history of the area.

She worked on the project with the museum's first curator, Alan Endecott, and originally started working for the museum as a volunteer.

After Mr Endecott decided to leave the museum, Maurie was asked to step in due to her background with historical projects and dealing with finances.

Since starting at the museum she has become an associate of the Museum Association, and gained a post-graduate degree in management.

She said: 'I think when people come to work in museums they come to work here as a job, and it ends up becoming a vocation — it becomes part of you.

'What I still hope for is that people actually recognise this museum for what it is. You get people who come, write in the visitors' books and say to you how it is a fantastic museum, and yet it has to be appreciated.

'If you don't appreciate something you lose it. You could lose something very very important, not just important to the town, but to the whole area because of its history and what it represents.'

Among the projects she has overseen is a major refurbishment project, for which the museum raised £750,000, including a £250,000 grant from EU?Objective 2 funding.

Maurie will act as curatorial advisor to the museum, with Andrew Thompson taking over as manager. Andrew has taught archaeology and history at universities in London and Cambridge, and at UCP Marjon in Plymouth. He also ran his own business, providing adult education specialist tours and holidays in history and archaeology.

His plans for the museum include encouraging groups to visit, developing a schools programme, creating events to become part of the Okehampton social calendar, and engaging openly with the community.

Andrew said: 'I am very conscious that this museum has had two curators over its 31-year history who have devoted enormous amounts of their lives to this place. It's not just been about being a job.

'What I want to do is bring my own ideas to a place that clearly has a very significant history of its own, and I am very conscious of that and what has been achieved here.'

Robin Brindley, the museum's chair of trustees, said: 'I think Maurie has instilled an enormous amount of passion and interest in the museum over the years.

'Without her I don't think we would be here anyway. She's a difficult act to follow, in a way. But Andrew, I think, has quite a good vision of what is to be done ahead of us, to continue to try and improve.'

If you would like to volunteer with the museum, or are involved with a community group that would like to engage with the museum, call 01837 52295 or e-mail [email protected]">[email protected]