Streets of Bournemouth, a virtual museum devoted to Bournemouth's past, will be funded through a £440,000 grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund and is due to be launched as part of the town's bicentenary celebrations in 2010.

Bryson, who used to live and work in the area, said: “Bournemouth has a rich and varied history and its preservation via the internet will make that history accessible to audiences around the world.”

Local residents are being called upon to help with research into local history, copyright clearance of images, cataloguing information about the images and transcribing tithe map apportionments. People of all ages and backgrounds are invited to volunteer and full training will be provided.

Bryson described the project as: “a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the people of Bournemouth to participate in the creation of the town’s first centralised history of the town.”

Bryson, who cut his journalistic teeth writing for Bournemouth’s Daily Echo, is one of Britain's foremost non-fiction authors. His best-selling books include A Short History of Nearly Everything and most recently The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid.

If you would like to volunteer for the Streets of Bournemouth project please contact:
Bournemouth Heritage Zone on 01202 454844,
email heritage@bournemouthlibraries.org.uk
Patricia Gargan on 01202 965476,
email pgargan@bournemouth.ac.uk