The Otter Valley Association was founded in 1979. Since that time the OVA has held many meetings and been involved in a great number of activities, all which have all been documented and the paperwork retained. The archive now contains scrapbooks, newspaper cuttings, artwork for the early newsletter covers, copies of publications and leaflets, AGM and Executive Committee meeting minutes, and the Constitution, amongst a great deal of other paperwork.

In recent years these documents have been distributed to various committee members and stored in their homes, while the file has continued to grow in size.

Recently, to save space in peoples' homes and to prevent the archive being broken up or destroyed, it was deposited with the South West Heritage Trust at the Devon Heritage Centre in Sowton, Exeter. It amounted to three large boxes of paperwork plus a complete set of newsletters from 1979. The OVA archive has been deposited as a permanent long-term loan, meaning we still own it. It can be accessed at the Devon Heritage Centre during their normal opening hours.

An inventory of the deposit was provided to the Heritage Centre and a copy retained by the OVA for reference.   A copy has also been posted on the OVA website under ‘About Us’, ‘Policies & Documents’.

The Heritage Centre will now accession the collection and all documents will be sorted and stored in archive-quality files and folders. It will then be placed in the Heritage Centre's store, where temperature and humidity are controlled. The Heritage Centre team confirm they are pleased to hold the archive, and state that it is an important record of the OVA and will be a useful form of reference for researchers in the future. 

Martin Smith