Closure threat to Brixham museum

By PRSD, on Tuesday, January 6, 2009

posted by Cptn

Torbay mayor Nick Bye’s master plan for The Bay could be under threat with the possible closure of Brixham’s museum.

Mayor Bye, who has inspired the Facebook group I F**king hate Nick Bye, was looking to create a artistic and cultural enclave in the fishing town – a kinda South Coast St Ives. But Torbay Council budget proposal to cut the museum’s grant – half of the museum’s running cost – from September could see the end of such pretensions, along with the demise of a valuable cultural, historic and educational resource.

Last year, for example, the museum organised an archaeological dig for youngsters at Berry Head as well as work inside the museum itself.

“Over its 50 years, Brixham’s museum has amassed an important collection of artefacts, documents and photographs entrusted to us by the people of Brixham connected with and portraying Brixham’s social and industrial past,” said volunteer manager Stephen Bardwell.

“We have complete lists and histories of trawlers and other vessels built and registered in Brixham since the early 1700s.

“We have an active archaeology research group investigating the Berry Head Napoleonic forts and history of its garrison.”

The budget cut, which will save £11,000, and see the end of the tourist attraction, will come before the scrutiny committee on January 14.

• Should local history be preserved as a resource for residents and a draw for tourists?

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Come and enjoy Devon – book a hotel and get away!

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Doc

£11,000 is a small amount to pay to maintain the culture and history of a community. We should be cerebrating the distinctive parts of Torbay, and not surrendering to the idea that all towns should be clones of each other. Museums and local history projects are ways of celebrating the richness of our society, and of maintaining a few islands of distinctiveness in the rising tide of the monopolies of national chains.

Museums preserve the old and inform us of battles lost and won. The William statue is just a nice piece of carved stone, if no one knows that it is hard evidence of one of the most significant social and political changes in world history. They also exploit new opportunities: Now the Bay has Geopark status, how are we letting residents and visitors know about our unique geology if we close down our museums?

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