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Preparations are underway to carefully pack historic military memorabilia currently on display in Durham as part of plans to create a new home for Durham Light Infantry (DLI) collection.

The DLI Gallery: Courage, Comrades and Community has been hosted at Durham University’s Palace Green Library since 2017.

Durham County Council has worked with the university to preserve and display the items during this time, including arranging touring exhibitions for the collection to be enjoyed across County Durham.

From Friday 10 February, the collection will be carefully packed and prepared for its future home at The Story, an exciting new heritage venue.

Cllr Elizabeth Scott, Durham County Council’s Cabinet member for economy and partnerships, said: “We are delighted that construction of The Story is progressing well, and we are now in the process of carefully packing our collections ready to be moved to the new venue, which will provide dedicated space to showcase the important objects and archives from our county’s history.

“We will be running a programme of activities in anticipation of the opening of The Story, so there will be plenty of opportunities for people to view and enjoy the collection in the meantime. People will also have the opportunity to view specific items from the collection as we look to redevelop the former DLI Museum and Art Gallery into an exciting exhibition centre, gallery, café and restaurant.”

The Story will transform the historic Mount Oswald building into a site which will provide a secure future for the DLI Collection and almost six miles of archives, charting 900 years of local history, with the addition of an elegant wedding ceremony venue.

Set to open in autumn 2023, the venue will transform the way the county’s history is told and accessed, with free entry to permanent and temporary exhibitions.

It will show the county’s fascinating journey, of which the story of military lives is a key part, through narratives of working people and the communities pivotal in shaping the area.

Subject to further approval, plans are also progressing to redevelop the former DLI Museum and Art Gallery into an exhibition centre, gallery, café and restaurant. A public consultation on the plans was carried out at the end of 2022.

Professor Janet Stewart, Executive Dean (Arts and Humanities) at Durham University, said: “At Durham University, we are proud to be an integral part of County Durham's outstanding cultural offer. We are custodians of some of Durham’s most historic, and most innovative buildings. And we are home to world-class museums and collections, which we are proud to share with our communities across the county and beyond.  

“Over the last six years, we have had the honour of displaying important and significant artefacts from the Durham Light Infantry collection in Palace Green Library. We now look forward to their onward journey to The Story, a new venue which is set to transform how the county’s history is told and accessed.”

To ensure visitors can continue to enjoy stories and objects from the collection, a selection of previously unseen objects will become part of a touring exhibition telling DLI stories of people and places.

From spring, the items will be on display in public venues around the county such as Clayport Library, Durham Town Hall, Bishop Auckland Town Hall, and Consett Leisure Centre.

The exhibition will be part of a county-wide programme of activities leading up to the opening of The Story to engage with schools and communities and help bring the DLI and other stories from the collections alive. The DLI Gallery will be available for the public to view at Palace Green Library until Friday 10 February. It can be viewed free of charge Monday to Sunday from 10am to 5pm.

The DLI medal collection will be available for the public to view at the Barker Reading Room at Palace Green Library until The Story opens.