Roberta Hewitt was more than the wife of writer John Hewitt. Whilst family history is often channelled towards celebrated figures, our volunteers uncovered how she was a thinker in her own right.
The Lost and Found in the Archives volunteers spent the last month delving into the Hewitts Papers (D3838) to bring Roberta’s remarkable story forward through an e-book and a short animated film.
The group took part in five Zoom sessions and two in-person sessions and gained digital access to a selection of material from Roberta’s collection. They went on an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour of PRONI during which staff Lynsey Gillespie (Archivist), Sarah Graham and Maud Gallagher (Conservation), Joy Carey (Reprographics & Digitisation) demonstrated how Roberta’s collection is looked after, preserved, and made digitally accessible to the public.
They also took part in a transcription workshop with Lorraine Bourke (Private Records), guest talks about Roberta by writer Kelly McCaughrain and researcher Frank Ferguson (John Hewitt Society) and an animation workshop with filmmaker Dan Wilson.
Here you can see how everyone got on over the past month:
Since the end of the programme, the volunteers have continued their engagement with PRONI and Roberta’s collection and are currently working in pairs to transcribe Roberta’s diary covering the years 1951 to 1974.
Robert’s diaries document her daily life, giving a very personal insight into her thoughts, feelings and relationships, particularly her marriage the renowned poet John Hewitt. They also provide a fascinating commentary on social and political affairs, reflections on literature and the arts, and chart the development of the nursery school system in NI through her work as an advocate and volunteer in the sector for many years.
The e-book and the animated film will be launched on 26 May.
The transcribed and scanned diary will be available online at the end of the Summer.
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