The Avon Works Archive Project began when former Avon Rubber workers donated memorabilia and photos connected with the factory, and began to write about their workplace memories, following a meeting organised by Jim Lynch in April 2015.
After reading an article in the Wiltshire Times in March 2016, Margaret and Andrew Shipley, former-workers of Avon Rubber, Bradford on Avon, were appointed to not only look after the donated material, but also to take forward and control an Avon Works archive, which included research into material from the factory now stored at the Wiltshire and Swindon History Centre in Chippenham. They have since spent many hours cataloguing their findings from the rows and rows of storage boxes on an Excel spreadsheet, and Andrew’s colleague has photographed many items for use both on this website and in a newspaper project about the factory by students at St Laurence School. They also identified factory plans and photographs of use to Trowbridge College IT students tasked with developing the digital, 3D Avon Rubber factory.
If there is information or material that any reader would like to add to the archive please contact us through the contact page.
A permanent home needs to be found for the material but as yet no home has been identified.
Pictures and plans will be uploaded from the archive when time allows to allow the general public to view them.
See factory aerial views
See factory photos after closure