A reporter’s notebook believed to be up to 120 years old has been discovered in a former accountants’ office in Tewkesbury.
The historic notebook was handed in to Tewkesbury Museum along with other newspaper-related documents after being found in the former offices of local accountancy firm Waugh Haines Rigby.
Old-style Pitman shorthand notes and mentions of dates from the late 19th century indicate that the item could be a reporter’s notebook dating from the 1890s.
Now museum bosses are appealing for help in deciphering the notes which they believe could provide a glimpse of life in the town at the turn of the last century.
Anyone able to read the notes should contact curator Maggie Thornton on 01684 292901. She hopes to learn enough about the documents to create an exhibition about them in the museum.
Said Maggie: “There’s no name for the reporter or the newspaper on the notebook but I’m hoping someone can help. It’s very interesting for the museum.”
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Accountants’ office? He must have left it there when he was collecting his expenses!
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I wondered where I’d left it …
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100 years from now can we look forward to a reporter’s iPad being found?
“Ah yes, we know from this that the reporter tweeted quite a lot from a cafe where he was holding a reporter’s surgery…”
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100 years from now, the question is more likely to be “What’s a reporter?”
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Are they still waiting for the splash? (young reporters please note that’s the front page lead story).
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