William Barnes Fundraiser Update Nov 25

DAT has been working with the William Barnes Society and Dorset Museum and Art Gallery to raise funds to catalogue the archive of the Dorset dialect poet. 66 boxes of material are held at Dorset History Centre.

We are delighted to report that the target for the Barnes For All! fundraiser has now been met. A total of £36,000 has been raised to complete this work.  Archivist Ruth Burton has started cataloguing the Barnes archive and is due to complete the task in July 2026.  We will provide regular updates to let everyone know how work is progressing.  A huge thank you to everyone who has contributed and thereby made this project possible.

Chris Fowler, Chair of Dorset Archives Trust said “It is fantastic news that, we have reached our target with the combined efforts of all of the generous people who contributed to funds for the project. We could not have done this without you."