ONE of Gwent's oldest miners' institutes is asking local people to dig out old photographs and mementoes of the building.

The Newbridge Institute and Memorial Hall - known as the Memo - wants old photos to help them build up a picture of its social history. They hope to produce an exhibition in the Memo once it has been refurbished.

They are relying, they say, on local residents hunting around for their families' old pictures.

Two years ago the Memo lost out on a £3 million prize in the BBC2 Restoration programme - but local people have vowed to find the money for the restoration themselves from grants and fundraising.

Howard Stone, chairman of trustees at the Memo, said they are very hopeful of getting the £3.5million they need to restore the building, and want to make the exhibition part of it.

He said: "The Memo has played a huge part in people's lives over the years, and there must be lots of photos showing what it meant to people." They also want information about life when it centred around the Memo, which has been closed to the public for more than 30 years.

Mr Stone said: "When the place is finally restored hopefully they'll be able to produce some sort of archive and exhibition on its history."

The institute was built in 1908, and is unique because it was the only one where the miners themselves took out a mortgage to finance it.

The Memorial Hall was built in 1924, to commemorate the men of the town who died in the First World War, and it contains the best Art Deco theatre to survive in Wales.

Social historian Helen McGowan is now collecting information to build up a picture of the Memo in its heyday.

Mr Stone said: "We want to make it a working business with the ability to show its history. We want to have displays, art work and all sorts of things."

To find out more about the Memo, or to give information, artefacts or pictures, ring them on 01495 243252.