Windrush in the Far South West

The Box in Plymouth is the city’s museum, art gallery and archive all housed in one building. An initiative by one of its Community Engagement Officers, Tony Davey, is “Culture Club” and this programme sees communities and groups invited into The Box to interrogate its collections through a particular lens.

The most recent iteration of the group was designed to allow people from the Global Majority to look at what was there. The group were particularly struck by images from the 1950s showing people of Caribbean ancestry arriving at Millbay Docks in Plymouth. The members of the group had been unaware that this had taken place in Plymouth and became instantly interested in the stories of these arrivals. Did they stay in Plymouth? Did they move elsewhere?

What followed was a period of research, looking at ships logs and passenger lists, looking to establish who had disembarked in Plymouth. While it became obvious that many people had passed through the city on a journey to elsewhere in the UK a significant number had stayed in the city.

See also our award winning entry for CAHG’s Group of the Month.