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Former regional editor’s archive digitised for charity project

Bill MitchellA former regional journalist’s archive of photographs and interviews has been digitised as part of a charity project.

WR Mitchell, known as Bill, worked on Dalesman magazine for 40 years, eidting it for two decades, and was also a columnist for the Craven Herald – with his final piece appearing in the newspaper hours after his death in 2015.

Now a scheme run by the arts and heritage charity Settle Stories has seen his archive digitised.

Over the course of his career Bill, pictured above left, collected more than 600 taped interviews with Yorkshire Dales communities – archiving its dialect, as well as local and family history.

The scheme by Settle Stories aims to help unemployed people gain skills and get back into work by learning about the archive, using computers and spreadsheets and learning to catalogue items.

Funded by the European Social Fund, the programme was created by Settle Stories director Sita Brand.

She said: “Engaging in a worthwhile task cataloguing items from the collection and developing a small touring exhibition has provided a fantastic focus for participants.

“They have been learning on the job and in so doing have made an important contribution to Yorkshire’s heritage.”