UNITE Rural life
A powerful story waiting to be told
Streetlife Museum, Hull
More museums are reaching out to the Gypsy Roma and Traveller community to record their distinctive lives to help their visitors and the general public to understand how these ethnic groups have contributed to British society – and rural communities particularly – for centuries.
The historical, economic and cultural contribution of Britain's 300,000 Gypsies and Travellers is slowly becoming recognised.
When Robin Diaper, whose work as the Curator of Maritime and Social History at Hull Museums and Gallery involves overseeing, amongst other sites, the Streetlife Museum of Transport became aware there were stories about the history of the gypsy and traveller community in the city and its surrounding areas he sought help.
“During Covid we tried doing things
remotely. A man called John Cunningham in the Hull Pals Battalion had earned a Victoria Cross for his bravery during WWI. He was a
Romany gypsy. I had seen that Violet Cannon at York Travellers’ Trust (YTT) had written a blog on him but as she was having a baby at the time, she was unable to write a panel on him for the Wilberforce Museum, which is next
door”, explains Diaper, who then was able to get in touch with Cunningham’s great nephew Charles Newland who was good enough to provide all the necessary information for a permanent display of a powerful story that was just waiting to be told.
“That was great and as we had pockets of unused space at Streetlife and understood that perhaps we were not covering the heritage of the gypsy and traveller (G&T) community we asked Violet if she would be willing to help us develop this and to facilitate contact with communities too,” said Diaper. “What we wanted to do was make a permanent addition and a meaningful change.”
YTT chief executive Cannon, who is a Romany Gypsy who spent her childhood roadside at a time when land was not as scarce as today and legislation, which eventually forced her family to move into a house, was less restrictive, was inspired by what she heard to get involved.
“I felt it would recognise the permanency of Gypsy and Travellers (G&T) families in Hull where many families have strong links to York. I have worked in the voluntary sector from an early age and I am keen to
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remove the obstacles that I faced for future generations of my community,” many of whom are no longer travelling round the country.
Asked to describe the situation facing today’s G&T community, Cannon said recent research by Birmingham University exploring Islamophobia and prejudice against Muslims found that it was exceeded by negative perceptions towards G&T.
Cannon facilitated workshops with members of the G&T community who decided what items would go on display to represent them. This includes a life-sized model of a piebald horse, information boards on diverse subjects and lots of photographs, many taken by George Norris who is strongly linked with G&T.
There is also a unique painting by Charles Cooper Henderson (1803-
1845) who is considered one of the greatest coaching painters of the 19th century and whose works are on display at, amongst others, the Tate Gallery. Amid the grandeur of Henderson’s painting of the Hull and London Royal Mail coach around 1835 there can be glimpsed in the corner a gypsy tent with a small ass resting alongside.
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