Bedford's History Lives Through Ongoing Video Series

Joan Reeves said she was delighted when Ryk Bullock and Barbara Chagnon approached her with the idea.

The pair, said the co-president of the Bedford Historical Society, came her and the rest of the Bedford Historical Society's Board of Directors with the concept to film a series of interviews with older Bedford residents and the families of some of the influential members of Bedford's past.

"The board members were excited to learn that Ryk has the equipment and time to capture historic stories from community members before this history is lost to future Bedford residents," said Reeves.

"My Father wrote stories about his early days in Bedford and these stories are very special to many of us now," she continued. "Most current residents have no idea about life here for former and older residents. Ryk's video segments will be another way to capture Bedford's history in a way that is not currently available through the Bedford Historical Society; therefore. I believe that Ryk's work with the help of BHS will be a valuable contribution to Bedford."

Bullock said the concept was suggested to him years ago by BCTV Station Manager Bill Jennings, but noted that extra free time was not a luxury back then.

"We liked the idea, but if we were going to do it, we wanted to do it right, and seven years ago, I simply didn't have the time," said Bullock, a native Bedford resident who served as assistant moderator in Bedford from 1972 through 2008, and town moderator into 2012.

Now that he has the time and inclination, Bullock has invested in all the necessary video equipment and has teamed with Chagnon to travel around town, conducting interviews with Reeves and many others with deep Bedford roots such as former police chief David Bailey, who recently sat down to discuss some of the most interesting cases he encountered in his long and distinguished career, as well as some that remain unsolved.

"This is the right time to do it," said Bulluck. "There's a lot of living history in Bedford and, quite frankly, this is something we probably should have done years ago."