The Minack Chronicles

Several of the Trustees of Oliver land were also there and they secured specific  items; namely notes made by Derek in preparing to write his books and a scrapbook of some of Derek’s first newspaper articles when  he was a journalist amongst many others.  One very precious item was the Garden Log book in which Derek had first started to keep a diary of their daily life at Minack;  details of the flowers and vegetables they grew and in which  field or meadow they were  grown.  He also listed the price of buying and selling seeds, fertiliser, bulbs, plants and potatoes;  the weather, plans for each season and so on.  
The bidding for the Garden Log Book started at £50 and rose steadily, finally selling for £850! A treasure of Minack and the early  days.  
The  Morrab  Library  agreed  to  hold this, along with many such items, in keeping, for the Trustees.

The  purchase of  these  items  was  to ensure  their  safety  and  continued existence  for  they  represented  a  special  place  in  the preservation  of  Derek  and  Jeannie's  life at Minack.  The  crowds at the  auction  house ove  those two  days were phenomenal  and included  TV,  Radio and  press  coverage.

Today, readers and fans can visit to see these items. Also  stored at the Morrab Library are letters  (purchased  and  loaned  to  the  Tangye Collection by a private  donor)  written to the Tangyes by Raleigh  Trevellyan,  Howard  & Marilyn  Spring as well as  an invoice for the magnificent  photos,  of  Jeannie, by Baron, acclaimed photographer of  their time.