The Keep

The Keep is the name of the new East Sussex archive which is currently being built near Falmer, just outside Brighton.  It will replace the current record office which is at the Maltings in Lewes.  It won't be open for another year (at the earliest) but I got to see around it earlier this week and its looking good!



The main entrance (hidden by scaffolding)

Shelving in the repository - there will be 6 miles of shelving in total!














More shelving - this time for maps













and much more shelving













The walls of the repository are thick to help maintain the temperature inside in order to protect the documents.

The hallway - the entrance to the search room is on the right.

There should be seating here so that you can eat lunch and have a drink. 

This will be the searchroom - to the left of the photo is the same space again separated by glass to make a more secure search area for viewing original documents.








There is a lot of shiny stuff which will run the building, helping to keep the repository at optimum temperature - there is also a separate building with a bio mass boiler.

This is the room which is of particular interest for me.  This is where the library for the Sussex Family History Group will be located, just off the search room.
(apologies for the photo quality)

For more information on The Keep see the East Sussex Record Office website.