Opening a new museum and archive dedicated to Greenwich could be an economic boost to the borough, a historian and former councillor has said.
Mary Mills spoke as Greenwich Council responded to a petition calling for a “properly functioning” archive and museum service following the sudden closure of the Greenwich Heritage Centre in 2018 to make way for Woolwich Works.
The council had pledged to bring the centre back to the Royal Arsenal by 2023, but reneged on the promise and installed the immersive theatre company Punchdrunk in the space instead.
Six years later the museum’s items and archive remain in an industrial unit in Charlton, where access must be booked in advance.
The Royal Greenwich Heritage Trust, which runs the archive, is planning to open a reading room facility in the spring which will be open for four consecutive days each month.
Mills, who runs the Greenwich Industrial History Society and was a Labour councillor from 2000 to 2014, said: “I’m not in this to ask for a lot of money because we think that running an archive is a lot cheaper with professional staff than using a lot of consultants and a lot of other things.
“In fact, we think that a proper professionally-run museum and archive could be of economic benefit to the borough.”
She added: “We’ve got museums in Greenwich and we’ve got a tourist offer, but there’s nothing about us, there’s nothing about the people of Greenwich.
“There’s nothing about the contribution, the amazing contribution historically that has been made by Greenwich technology, education and everything else.
“The world is a different place because of things that happened in Greenwich and we’re telling nobody whatsoever about it. We’re telling nobody about our diverse and interesting population and its background. And that is something we are failing at very badly.”
Mills also suggested that a new museum could honour Neil Rhind, the historian and president of the Blackheath Society, who died earlier this month.
More than 2,100 people signed the petition, which Adel Khaireh, the cabinet member for culture and communities, said showed that “a lot of people want to come to our archive, which is brilliant”.
But he made no commitment beyond the new reading room at the archive’s current home in Anchorage Point, and reviewing progress regularly.
Another cabinet member, Pat Slattery, said that she was in touch with “historians who really lament the passing of our archives”.
“I’m not going to comment one way or another because money is an issue,” she said. “But I think it is something we should all support if we possibly can. It’s super important. Everybody’s heard of Greenwich, but they’ve often only heard of Henry VIII and a ship. I would support whatever is going to get the archive back on the road.”
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