A NEW exhibition room at a well-known local attraction has been officially opened by the Mayor of Saltash. Thanks to funding of £1000 from the town council's Community Chest and 18 months of research, the exhibition is now open to the public as an addition to Elliott's Store in Lower Fore Street. Based around the Elliott family and their grocery store, it includes many local and social history items, including photographs which help give an insight into their family life. Mr Elliott's accounts of his experiences during World War One, along with photographs of the shop dating back to the 1930's also provide a fascinating snapshot of history. Frank Elliot, born in January 1859, was the first member of the family to run the store and was keen that memories of life then should be passed on after his death in 1952. Kevin Proctor of the Tamar Protection Society said: 'It was always Frank's intention that the building should remain as a museum, and we feel that he would have approved of the work so far. 'He left a vast number of items behind, and we were especially pleased to find some photographs of the rear of the property before, and during, the building of the Tamar Road Bridge.' These show the back garden, part of the kitchen, the storeroom and stables all of which had to go to make way for the road when the bridge was being built. Research into the Elliot family tree has put the TPS in touch with both sides of the family, with some members of the late Mrs Elliott's relatives coming from London and the United States to visit the store last November. 'Assistance from relatives in this country and America has proved invaluable in providing pictures and details of family members and, with their help, we have traced the Elliott's ancestors to Ohio and California in the West, and Shanghai in the East,' Kevin said. 'The grant from the Community Chest was the launchpad for the project, and input from Plymouth City Museum's Social History and Graphic Design teams was of massive importance. Assistance from the South East Cornwall Museums, Colin Squires of the Saltash Heritage Centre, and the Royal Cornwall Museum, as well as help from the TPS volunteers was also much appreciated.' With Elliott's Store featured among 'the top ten alternative tourist attractions in Cornwall' by a leading local magazine last summer, it is hoped the exhibition will make 2007 another successful year. The store will be open from 10am to 3pm tomorrow as part of the town's May Fair celebrations, and normal opening times are on Wednesdays from 2pm to 4pm and Saturdays from 10am until mid-day. Anyone wishing to volunteer as a steward can contact Kevin Proctor on 07767 444816.