Suburban Detectives
We invite all researchers to be a part of our new project to collect and record history on all parts of the BRAC catchment area on our new Reading Room 'crime board'!
Each quarter, we will post a new locality - usually a parish plan section - for suburban detectives to help us add photos, primary records, newspaper references, oral history notes - anything! - that releates to the properties in that section, the people who lived there or the events that took place.
At the end of the quarter, we will collect all the contributions and file them away to make researching districts easier in future, and allow us to tell new and broader stories about our community.
Who can be a BRAC Suburban Detective?
Anyone! You can live anywhere and have any level of research experience.
How can I contribute?
When the Reading Room has reopened, you can add your item to the 'crime board' in person, or if you live outside of the Greater Bendigo area, you can email us .jpg or .doc files with your contribution.
What sort of records can be added to the board?
We'd love for you to find parts of the BRAC and wider PROV collection that relate to the area of study, but we are also happy to accept copies of photos, references from books and newspapers, family collections, ephemera, and notes on oral histories.
How should I add my records?
Your record should include the source but doesn't need to include your own details if you don't wish to.
Pins are available on the board along with string to link your contribution to the property or to other records.
If you don't live locally, you can email your contributions to us.
What will happen to the board at the end of the quarter?
BRAC will make an inventory of documents from the board, add relevant names, house names, and other details to an index and store them for future reference. If a researcher approaches BRAC to research a house or individual in the area of focus, we will have a ready-made research resource to provide.
