News

Well known in Lochaber, being married to Andrew Foggo and as Business Manager with the Fort William Branch of the Bank of Scotland for 25 years, she is actively involved in cycling.  She has competed in mountain biking races and on road and is a member of the West Highland Wheelers.She brings local knowledge combined with her enthusiasm and looks forward to the challenge of the job!

At the end of January we will say goodbye to our Curator/Manager Mairi – who has overseen the major changes in the Museum over the last year. Mairi is taking off travelling and we wish her all the very best.We are presently in the recruitment process for her replacement.

At a meeting of the Trustees on 24 November 2011, the painting by Henry Tanworth Wells, “Letters and News at the Lochside”, was discussed. Last year the Trustees had considered the sale of the painting, which currently hangs in Arisaig House, to raise funds for the Museum – to acquire land for access to build an extension.Richard Sidgwick, Chairman of the Trustees reported that “when the decision to sell was made at the end of last year, we were unaware both of the strength of local feeling and the perception of its importance as part of the Museum’s collection, for which we can only apologise”. For those reasons, we have decided to reverse the decision to sell and are looking again at our long held view that we do not wish to displace existing exhibits to make the necessary space available.Display of the painting in the Museum, or in a planned extension, will secure its long term future and it will be appreciated by the thirty thousand visitors that we are now able to anticipate annually.We have been in touch with the secretary of the Community Council and the owner of Arisaig House. There are no immediate plans to remove the painting and, as previously promised, nothing will change until we fully discuss the position with Arisaig Community Council.”

The Museum will be closing for some essential works for the months of January and February. We will reopen in March next year and anticipate an embryonic Commando Exhibition. More information to followhellip;hellip;

Our 1997 “Longest Strip the Willow in the West” DVD is now available!The “Strip theWillow” was organised to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the Museum, just as we reopened after a major refurbishment.Were you one of the 3,000 on the High Street on 23rd May 1997 when Fort William danced the night away on a perfect May evening?Did you hear the kilted gentleman in Cameron Square, who should know, proudly observe “This is the best band to have played in this Square for one hundred years”?Did you see the two grinning Japanese girls who asked “Is it like this every night inFortWilliam”?For all those who were there – and for many who wish they had been – this is a must – and this years DVD is available for purchase at the Museum for £8.

All members and volunteers will shortly receive their invitation to an evening at the Museum for the “premiere” of a DVD made in 1997 at the time of the Museum’s 75th Anniversary. Three thousand people gathered in Fort William’s High Street on that occasion  and by courtesy of the families of the original producers we are able to revisit that memorable night  both for the Museum and the town of Fort William. The “Longest Strip theWillow in the West” DVD will be available for purchase @ £8.Cheese and wine will be served and we are very pleased that, after the DVD, Ian Abernethy will take us on a visual tour ofFortWilliam’s High Street in times past. Please pen the date in your diary – we all look forward to seeing you.The evening is free to Members and volunteers but non members are very welcome if accompanied by a small entrance fee or a large donation!

Our ‘splendidly idiosyncratic’ * Museum will start  2012 with a new Manager as  Mairi Mooney, our Curator/Manager,  will leave at the end of January to pursue new ideas – we will be wishing her well.  The closing date for applications has now passed and we are in the selection process.* ‘The Rough Guide to the Scottish Highlands & Islands’ – 2011

Receiving feedback on the Museum is always valuable. Better too when the reports are as good as those on TripAdvisor recently!October 2011: “Some of the best mementoes of the Jacobite era that I have seen. Also original documents relating to Culloden and the Glencoe massacre.”September 2011: “Because it was raining, we went into the museum. What a pleasant surprise!! Everything was so interesting and well laid out. We spent more than an hour going through all the rooms and reading about the history of the area. Well worth a visit.”September 2011: “Extremely well done to this nice little museum. A nice way to spend an hour or two looking at some of the local history. Free entry is such a nice touch these days in this money grabbing world!!!!!” (But we need donations too! – Webmaster)September 2011: “A great welcome with clear instructions of which way to go round the museum. No admission fee requested, but a request for a donation for the upkeep is well worth it. A small guide was provided. Although it is only a small museum, it has a great history to share with everyone. Very detailed information with all exhibits. Ten out of ten!!”September 2011: “We left it far too late in the day to visit and ran out of time so don’t make the same mistake! Staff are very pleasant and the exhibits interesting and informative and all for free.”August 2011: “I have been to Fort William on many occasions and never set foot in this venue. My mistake, as it is full of information, artefacts and heritage, all arranged in a logical order and more importantly it stimulates you to go and find out more. Don’t leave a trip to this Museum to the bottom of the list, or pencil it in as a wet weather ‘maybe’; make it a destination attraction. Well done to all.”

The museum is currently home to two motorbikes on loan from the Scottish Six Day Trials Association. It is expected that the motorbikes will remain in the museum over the summer season.  Some photographs and memorabilia are also on display.

On Saturday 13th May 1911 a Model T Ford, driven by Henry Alexander of Edinburgh, reached the summit of Ben Nevis.  That event was commemorated almost exactly 100 years later, on 18th May 2011, when  a 1911 Model T was carried to the summit by a party of over 60 volunteers, which included one of our Trustees.  That Model T, which has been kindly loaned by Neil Tuckett of the Model T Ford Register of Great Britain,  is now on display in the Museum and will remain here for a year.