Mrs Merrick

This story developed from an old newspaper article found by Gracie during a visit to Shropshire Archives, which related how Mrs. Merrick of Apley Manor had been hurt in the first railway accident in Shropshire, The story was developed and told by Christina.

To make the kamishibai slides above, Christina scanned and merged images of the horse & carriage, trains and room she had found in a reference book on the Victorians, together with an iconic Station Master from a children’s book and her own drawing of Mrs. Merrick.

You can find out more about making and using kamishibai here.

This story was brought back to life by young people as part of a Heritage Lottery Funded Young Roots project. They researched in Shropshire Archives and the local history collections to find records of stories they felt should be part of the region’s oral heritage. The project was facilitated by Mythstories museum and supported by Shropshire Archives and Telford & Wrekin Libraries.

The Club met in Wellington. It is Shropshire’s oldest market town at the foot of The Wrekin with its Hillfort. It is also part of Telford, a still-evolving late-20th century ‘New Town’. As one club member said:

“They have pulled down my primary school, my secondary school is being rebuilt, the Colleges are merging next year. There will be nothing left of my childhood!”

So Club members decided to research and retell some of the stories of Wellington, to fill the void between the past and the present.