From India to the Isle of Wight - tracking down our local Force
During the recent spell of very hot weather, despite lethargy setting in for some, the Police Archives have continued to work on various projects and make great progress.
Two of our volunteers have been working hard to trace the family of Herbert Hall, the last member of Gloucestershire constabulary to be killed during World War ll. The search has taken them to India, the Isle of Wight and beyond. Unfortunately our budget does not stretch to actual trips as I think everyone would volunteer for an Archives trip to India if so! However, we believe that we may have managed to track down his remaining family and are keenly awaiting confirmation and hoping to get an actual photograph of him from the family archives.
Another Police volunteer is looking at officers who have died in service, quite a poignant task following the death of on-duty Police Constable Ian Minnett in June. Whilst we hold several lists of officers who have died, often very little is known about their careers and in fact, their lives. We now have much more information following this volunteer's research and over time this will be added to our website.
The Police Archives have an office at Police HQ as well as at the Heritage Hub but we can usually be found at the Hub, Monday-Wednesday 9am-2.30pm. This is a great venue for 'walk-in' visitors who are always welcome although we always suggest that you make an appointment to avoid disappointment because we do go out and about. A few weeks ago we had a nice surprise visitor - the grandson of our first Chief Constable AT Lefroy. At the time we were researching Lefroy for an upcoming talk and so by chance there was a lot of paperwork about him scattered about the office! This was lovely for the grandson to see and we were able to exchange information and put some misconceptions straight about his grandfather.
If you have any police related photographs we are always happy to receive Jpegs via gloucestershirepolicearchives@gmail.com and queries can also be sent to the same email address. We can also scan photographs in our office at the Heritage Hub on the same day. Do come and see us, to learn and share stories about our local force.