A MAJOR community effort to preserve the rich maritime history of the River Tamar is set to take place in Saltash later this month – and organisers are urging local people to help safeguard stories that could otherwise disappear forever.

The Maritime Memory Day, hosted by the Saltash Old Cornwall Society, will be held at Ashtorre Rock Community Centre on Wednesday, May 20, from 2pm to 4pm.

The free community event aims to collect memories, photographs, artefacts and personal stories connected to the River Tamar and Plymouth Sound – waterways that have shaped life, work and travel in the region for centuries.

For generations, the Tamar has served as a vital lifeline for communities on both sides of the river, supporting fishing, trade, ferry travel, shipbuilding and local industry. Organisers say much of that history survives not in official records, but through family stories and the memories of locals.

Now, organisers are asking people to bring along old photographs, keepsakes, documents and first-hand recollections to help create a richer picture of maritime life along the Tamar.

The event is part of the wider Tales of the Tides project, a collaboration between the Federation of Old Cornwall Societies and the Old Cornwall Societies of Callington, Saltash and Torpoint. The year-long programme explores the relationship between local people and the river through walks, talks, workshops, exhibitions, memory days and traditional mummers plays.

Organisers say the project is designed to celebrate the cultural identity of communities connected by the Tamar while ensuring important local history is preserved for future generations.

Refreshments will be available and admission is free – all ages are welcome to attend.

The initiative is supported through the PSNM Blue Sparks programme as part of the Plymouth Sound National Marine Park Horizons project, made possible by £11.6-million from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, funded by National Lottery players.