'Fingers on the buzzers!' as pubs back Gairloch museum drive
A WESTER Ross community pulling together to establish a new museum and cultural centre is gearing up for its latest fundraiser tomorrow— a pub quiz in Poolewe.
Gairloch Heritage Museum has outlined ambitious plans to flit to a new £2 million facility that would become a visitor draw and benefit the wider community.
The Heritage Lottery Fund has awarded an initial £32,600 to allow the community to progress with plans to establish a new base for Gairloch Heritage Museum in a blast-proof former radar building which is a relic of the Cold War.
The museum is currently housed in a small group of single-storey, stone-built fishermen’s cottages in the village, which has no cafe or toilet, and the lease was renewed recently to run until the end of 2018.
The heritage company has a commitment from Highland Council that it can buy the former anti aircraft operations base - which was most recently used as its local roads depot - once all the funding is in place.
A full application will be made to the Heritage Lottery Fund next year with efforts now focussed on raising 10 per cent of the estimated total required. Community fundraising currently stands at around £70,000. A pub quiz in Gairloch last month pulled in £500 with a valuation event led by an expert from Bonhams matching that amount.
The next pub quiz is set to take place at Poolewe Hotel this Friday evening at 7.30pm. Others are planned for Badachro Inn (January 15, 2016), Aultbea Hotel (February 19) and The Old Inn, Gairloch — billed as the grand finale — on March 18.
The stated ambition is “to provide a centre for cultural heritage and education and a landmark visitor attraction that will help Gairloch parish develop and flourish in the 21st century.”
If you would like to be involved in the project, please contact Gairloch Heritage Museum at 01445 712287 or rosalyn@gairlochheritagemuseum.org.
