a re-print from “The Record”
By Frank Nixon
Two members of Brome Lake’s cultural committee, Judith Duncanson and Yves Lamarche, have embarked on an oral history project which will form an important part of the town’s cultural policy.
They want seniors to tell their stories from the seven villages that comprise Brome Lake – Bondville, East Hill, Foster, Fulford, Knowlton, Iron Hill and West Brome — which were amalgamated in 1971 to create the Town of Brome Lake. The cultural policy, once completed, will be submitted for approval and adoption by town council.
“The radio station has agreed to tape the interviews – in English and French – which will take place in the coming weeks,” said Duncanson. “We will also give transcripts to the Brome County Historical Society so that they have the oral histories.”
“Our main interest is in having a complete history of the ‘culture’ of the towns between the wars, which seems to be the weak link in the research so far,” continued Duncanson. “The fact that the station is going to use the interviews, with copies being given to the museum, are just wonderful offshoots of our cultural policy. It’s a wonderful example of various parts of the community working together to accomplish a common aim.”
Duncanson suggests that seniors bring their old photo albums along with the interviews. “I was involved in a similar oral history project when I was a resident of Cooperstown, New York,” she recalls. “We found that the albums brought all kinds of folks and situations, long forgotten, into people’s memories and made for much more lively discussions.” The discussions and interviews will be taped at Centre Lac-Brome with the technical assistance of CIDI 99.1 FM.
If you wish to participate or require further information, please call 450-242-2491.
Tags: Brome County Historical Society, Cultural committee, Judith Duncanson, Yves Lamarche
