Angus Dunn was Borough Librarian and curator of the Blake Museum for Bridgwater from 1956 to 1974. The following biography had been kindly provided by his son, Alex.
Angus Dunn LGSM FLA was born in Keighley in 1923. His family, father Horace, mother Lillian, siblings Kathleen and Peter moved to Skipton where he attended Ermsted’s Grammar School.
On Leaving school he worked at Skipton Library before being called up to serve with the Signals in WW2. He never spoke about the war; he served in the Middle East. He spent five years doing national service, he became Skipton Chief Librarian in 1948 on completion.
He was a very keen musician and studied music at the Guildhall School of Music in London after a short time in Skipton and then went to Loughborough where he studied to become a Librarian and became a Fellow of the Library Association, hence the FLA and the LGSM on his business card. After the war there many opportunities for people to get training or attend university as they had missed out on this because of the war.
He worked in London as a librarian before getting the job of Borough Librarian in Bridgwater in 1956. This role included being curator of the Blake Museum, close by. He retained these two jobs until local government changes in 1974 meant that Somerset had one Chief Librarian, rather than six Borough Librarians so he was able to retire.
In Bridgwater he was involved with various classical music groups and musicians. Books, playing the piano and Bach were his passions. He was a judge at the carnival concert for three years. He met Jack and Berta Lawrence who introduced him to my mother Joan, nee Dyer. Jack Lawrence was Deputy Head at Dr Morgan’s teaching History; he built the diorama of the Battle of Sedgemoor in the Museum. Berta was a writer and wrote the book ‘Coleridge and Wordsworth in Somerset’ amongst other books. On Sundays through the 60’s and 70’s we would often go on trips round Somerset looking for historical artifacts that the museum might acquire.
I remember he was always concerned that the library basement might flood and it did occasionally. He was very proud of the extension to the library that was built in 1970. He was particularly excited that Jennie Lee the first Minister for the Arts would open it but Labour lost the election in 1970 and she didn’t come, she might have brought her husband!
When comprehensive schools were created in Bridgwater in 1973 he was a governor of Haygrove School and came up with the name. Maps show there was a Haygrove Farm nearby.
We moved to Bristol in 1975 and a few years later he returned to Skipton where died in 1993.
Additional notes
Angus Dunn was particularly interested in preserving the Town Hall Tapestries.