Alford Heritage Museum Sponsors
Museum Newsletter February 2024
My name is John Christelow. Last Spring I was asked if I would like to become a Trustee of the Museum. My wife was already a volunteer and gradually I became more and more interested in what went on that big green building on the way up to the Co-op in the centre of Alford. Apart from taking our grandchildren inside four or five years ago neither of us had ventured inside before. They had very much enjoyed it and had pretended to be cattle in the ring waiting to be auctioned! We did not have much time to look around carefully then as we were being swept around by their enthusiasm.
Later in the year and without them, we had another look and became hooked. With so much to see and so much detail to take in we felt compelled to offer to help keep such a marvellous place running. We continue to do so now in our various ways.
There is always so much to do behind the scenes, dealing with the exhibits, keeping the routine administration on track and planning for a secure future for the museum building and the contents. Exciting plans are already on paper but to turn those into reality is a long and complex task for the Trustees to manage and may take three or four years - with the acquisition of the building from Aberdeenshire Council and the search for funding being the most important parts.
We shall update you all as things progress, but we are especially in need of the help of those who have skills that would help us move forward to secure the future of our marvellous building. We need new Trustees to add to our number as well as those who are willing to take on some of the routine (but vital) paperwork and secretarial functions that inevitably arise. If you feel you, or anyone you know, who lives in the Alford Academy catchment area, might be interested becoming a Trustee we would be delighted to hear from you. Please get in touch with us at info@alfordheritagemuseum.com
Whilst there have been several new volunteers over the past 12 months, we have also lost a few whose busy lives elsewhere meant any time commitment became too much. We always have plenty of jobs of all types, whether behind the scenes working to maintain the various collections or on the front desk during opening hours. If you would like to see what we do, and then decide if it is something which would interest you, we should be very glad to offer a chat and a wander round with one of our regulars.
As we have all seen the winter has been a very wet one. The Mart has suffered from the inevitable leaks with buckets dotted around to catch the drips. We had a major guttering problem with water coming down an internal wall because of an overflow. The amount of rain was just too much for the building and we have lost a few items and had to re-think displays, but the volunteers have steadfastly refused to allow such set-backs to put off the weekly work of cataloguing items, rearranging rooms and setting out a newly donated set of items as a major display - one that we feel will enhance the museum and provide a fascinating experience for visitors of all ages.
This is what Historic Environment Scotland has to say about our museum building:
“Alford Heritage Museum has been awarded Category “A” listed status by Historic Environment Scotland (HES) in recognition of its special historic interest as a rare surviving example of an early 20th century livestock auction mart, and an important piece of Aberdeenshire's rural and agricultural heritage.”
The unfortunate fact is that the building was constructed in 1905 but never built for a life of nearly 125 years. We are fortunate that it has survived for so long, but it now requires large amounts of care and attention - and no small amounts of money to be spent on it! Our main concern is to secure the building and its contents for the future, but plans take time to develop when dealing with a fragile and “A” listed building.
On a lighter note - we are a heritage museum, and we thus focus on the past, but two quotes came to mind as I was writing this. The first was from a novel by LP Hartley: “The past is a foreign country; they do things differently there”. The second was from a slightly less serious source, The Vicar of Dibley, and a scene when a character says, “There’s no time like the present” and the retort from the choirmaster is “Except the past. I rather liked that!"
We can relate to both comments as we are the keepers of a vast array of items and information about this land called the past. And both comments are true, with many of our items and displays being foreign to the younger visitor but evoking some very strong memories from the past of the older visitor. Indeed, the word “memories” is the most used word in our comments book.
You can be assured that we are working hard on plans to secure the museum as a continuing asset to Alford and Donside and we are committed to do the best we can to involve the community in those plans. We are very grateful to our volunteers who give a great deal of their time and effort to work behind the scenes when the museum is closed as well as on the front desk when we are open. We would not exist without their hard work. Last, but by no means least, we are especially grateful to all the Members, Friends and Donors who support us from year to year and whose commitment we appreciate greatly. Your support is invaluable.
We will once again be organising a programme of events. These will all be promoted on our web site and social media so be sure to sign up for updates. Ticket bookings can be made via our website . They will include:
Friday 17 May Friends’ evening and AGM 7-9
Due to circumstances beyond our control the Model Exhibition scheduled for Sun 14th April will not take place
Sunday 9 June Tractor Run
Sunday 23 June Summer Fair 12-4
Thursday 25 July Concert – Allan Taylor and Friends 7.30
Sunday 1 September Autumn Fair 12-4
Museum Newsletter November 2023
2023 SEASON HIGHLIGHTS Now that we have closed for the winter, it is time to reflect on another successful season and to
plan ahead for 2024. Overall, our visitor numbers (including events) rose by 7%, which is in line
with other Scottish visitor attractions. Our most successful events included two outdoor markets;
the national Doors Open Days weekend; the annual tractor run; and an evening of traditional music
by Allan Taylor and friends.
The birthday of local poet Charles Murray was celebrated with the Hamewith Concerts when
school pupils and their parents from around the area filled the auction ring with poetry, music and
song. We were pleased to see school, and other, groups returning to the museum this year, and
more requests are in the pipeline for next year.
Events for enthusiast agricultural model collectors and stationary engine operators also caught the
attention of the public, and we plan to hold these events again next year.
MEMORY BOXES
Two of our volunteers visited Praesmhor Care Home with some of our Memory Boxes which
contain museum objects on themes such as schooldays and farming. These help residents to chat
about their memories and how the objects relate to their lives. The boxes can be borrowed by local
schools, care homes or other groups at no cost and we would be delighted to lend them to any
group with which you might have a connection.
EVENTS FOR CHILDREN AND FAMILIES
This year our volunteers ran several successful storytelling and craft events for pre-school children.
These took place when the museum was closed to the public, so the children were able to visit all
parts of the museum with their parents and to enjoy making craft items inspired by the collections.
We were able to offer these events free of charge to local young families thanks to funding from
Magic Little Grants (Postcode Community Fund).
SPONSORSHIP
A new sponsorship scheme for 2023 was well supported by local businesses. This scheme helped
to pay the costs of printing our publicity leaflet and offset concert costs. We plan to extend the
scheme in 2024 and sponsors will have the opportunity to associate their name with some of our
events and activities. You can find the list of 2023 sponsors at the end of this newsletter and we
thank them for their support.
FRIENDS OF THE MUSEUM
We have a loyal band of valued Friends, many of whom have supported the museum for years.
Each year we gain a few new members but, sadly, also say farewell to some of our older members.
If you are a community member, please consider joining the Friends of the Museum. For a small
annual fee, you will receive free admission as many times as you wish, plus the added benefit of
discounted tickets for our events. Membership renewals will be sent out prior to reopening.
FUTURE PLANS
In our last newsletter we reported that we had been awarded a grant by the Architectural Heritage
Fund. This, together with funding from Marr Area Committee enabled us to work with LDN
Architects (Forres) to assess the repair work required to preserve our historic listed building and to
produce design ideas for refurbishment of some areas and the creation of a more flexible interior
heated space. We now have their reports which are being considered by the Board. The list of
repairs is long and costly and will require substantial external grant funding to progress the work.
The small group currently working on the project would welcome any assistance from those with
appropriate skills, interest and experience – such as construction, project work, fundraising and
finance. If you have these skills, and would like to help, please contact us. There is a long road
ahead of us to ensure that the Mart building survives to provide a community space and resource
for future generations of Alford and Donside.
In early 2024 we hope also to be in a position to submit our application for a Community Asset
Transfer (CAT) of the Museum building to Aberdeenshire Council.
VOLUNTEER ACTIVITIES
Every year we say a big “thank you” to our volunteers without whom the museum could not
function. This year we organised an end of season volunteer lunch at Alford Golf Club. We now
have over 30 active volunteers who carry out a wide range of tasks, from welcoming visitors to the
museum; cataloguing and repairing objects in the collection; running our web site and social
media; helping at events by making teas, car park duties or selling raffle tickets; organising
children’s activities; and being trustees on our Board.
We are seeking more volunteers to help us reopen with a full-strength team in 2024, so if you are
interested in helping, please let us know. We would especially like to hear from people who might
be interested in helping at the front desk when we are open. Contact details are at the end of this
newsletter. Our current volunteers enjoy finding out about some of the unusual items in our
collection, posting details of, and questions about some of these on our Facebook pages.
WHAT’S COMING IN 2024?
We will once again be organising a programme of events. These will all be promoted on our web
site and social media so be sure to sign up for updates. They will include:
6 April - Car Boot Sale 10-12
17 May - Friends’ evening and AGM 7-9
2 June- Tractor Run
23 June - Summer Fair 12-4
1 September - Autumn Fair 12-4
Over the winter our volunteers will be working on refreshing some of the displays and we plan to
have some new items on show for the first time for reopening at Easter weekend.
ALFORD IMAGES
Some of you may already be familiar with the website Alford Images. As this valuable resource was
in danger of being decommissioned, the Association decided to take over its funding from 2023,
thus ensuring that it is still available for researchers and historians. We hope to add more to this
site over the next few years and we would encourage those with additional family knowledge of
the images to contribute to the site. If you are not familiar with the resource please have a look –
you will be amazed by what you see.
School’s Out for Summer
Have you visited our Victorian school room yet?
New Sponsorship
Alford Heritage Museum would welcome new sponsors for 2024. Details of packages and our offer can be found on the Sponsorship page.
Potential sponsors should contact the museum on info@alfordheritagemuseum.com
Alford Heritage Museum Transformed into an Auditorium for Sell Out Concert
The old mart auction ring at Alford Heritage Museum was transformed into an auditorium on 27th July as a sell out audience of around 130 people enjoyed an evening celebrating the rich music tradition of North East Scotland . Led by Allan Taylor, with Graeme Mitchell on accordion, Neil Dawson on fiddle and singer Joe Aitken, the audience enjoyed a concert of traditional local music and bothy ballad songs including favourites such as Lonely in the Bothy and Alford Cattle Show, from Allan Taylor’s album “I Gaed up Bi Alford”. The band were joined by young singer Corran Hutchison and accordion player Sara Keir. The concert is part of a series of events throughout the year which build on the museum’s collection and which adds a unique insight into rural life in Aberdeenshire. Our thanks go to local businesses, A&B Buchan and W&M Stuart who kindly supported the event.
Alford Images
Alford Heritage has now become the administrator for the popular Alford Images web site. We will be working with the host company to ensure the future of this useful historical resource. The current website can be found at alfordimages.com
Alford Local History Society Meeting
Sharing on behalf of Alford’s Local History Society:
Alford is in danger of losing one of its most popular, well-attended groups – The Local History Society. On average around 70 or more people regularly attend these talks, which is quite unusual for an event of this nature. So the interest is there!
The group has been meeting for many years once a month during the autumn and winter months I.e from Sep/Oct till April/May to hear interesting talks from a variety of speakers on topics of local and the wider NE of Scotland interest.
The present committee, some of whom have been the driving force behind it for about 20 years, are retiring. New blood is therefore urgently required to keep this important part of Alford’s cultural life alive.
It would be great if any interested members of the community could come forward to be involved in helping to preserve and pass on the fascinating history of our area for the future and at the same time offer an enjoyable sociable evening’
A meeting will be held to discuss this at the Alford Men’s Shed on Monday 12th June at 7.30pm. Please come along for more information and let’s keep Alford Local History Society going.
We are now a 3 star attraction!
Museum Trustees and volunteers are delighted to announce that, after their recent quality assurance visit, Visit Scotland (the national tourism organisation for Scotland) have designated the museum a 3 star attraction. This is an upgrade from our previous 2 stars and reflects the work and dedication of our volunteer team to offer visitors a high quality experience. It is nice to end the season with such good news.
BBC Radio Scotland Out of Doors
We were delighted to be featured on BBC Radio Scotland’s Out of Doors programme on Saturday 15 October. Also available later on BBC Radio Sounds Out of Doors – Pink-Footed Geese, The Cabrach and a Woodland Football Pitch – BBC Sounds We were discussing some of the interesting objects in our collection. Do you know what this is ?
Guide Book
The Museum has a new illustrated guide book for 2022. This tells the story of the building and the exhibits with a little bit of local history thrown in as well. Priced at £4.00 it can be purchased from the Museum shop.
We also have new range of greetings cards featuring scenes of past rural life.
Community Membership
All residents over 16 who live within the Alford Academy School Zone are invited to become Community Members of Alford and Donside Heritage Association (SCIO 050799) – the charity which oversees the running of Alford Heritage Museum. There is no charge for this membership – you will be demonstrating your support for the museum simply by signing up and agreeing to support our Purposes, which are :
- To promote and maintain the Old Mart Building at Alford and the collections held within it.
- To advance the Arts, Heritage and Culture.
- To advance citizenship or community development, including rural regeneration.
Please help us by becoming a Community Member using the attached form which can be downloaded and then posted through the museum letterbox.
Listed Building Status Application
In February 2021, Museum Trustees, after consideration, submitted an Listed Building status application to Historic Environment Scotland (HES) in respect of the old Auction Mart building, which is now over 116 years old. As with many things, there are pros and cons with regards listed building status, however we believe, in this case, the pros far outweigh the cons, including helping to protect the building into the future.
There are three categories of listed building, ranging from lowest, Category C, up to highest, Category A. Earlier this week, HES advised us, as the Auction Mart building is considered of national significance, and taking into account its rarity and completeness as an example of its building type and date, that category A was the most appropriate level of listing.
Prior to granting of the listed building status, a three week period of consultation is in place. The consultation documents are available via HES’s online portal
We have changed our charity number and status
Alford and Donside Heritage Association has changed its charitable status to SCIO -Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation. We now have a new charity number which can be found at the bottom of our home page. The Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation is a legal form unique to Scottish charities and is able to enter into contracts, employ staff, incur debts, own property, sue and be sued. It also provides a high degree of protection against liability.
A to Z of Alford Heritage Museum
While the museum is closed we thought we might share with you an A – Z of items from the collection. Each letter will have a photograph and a link will be provided for a quiz related to the item.
Please find the A to Z posts on our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/AlfordHeritageMuseum/. You are able to see our Facebook page without a Facebook account.
Video Experience
A new TV has been installed in the museum over the winter where visitors can watch a selection of new films that have been made. The films can also be purchased on DVD from the museum for £5. An interactive quiz about Alford Heritage Museum and the wider local area is also on the TV.
The films are:
- Alford Documentary – A documentary about the village of Alford, created by the community in late 2019. It is an excellent guide to Alford and the surrounding countryside and contains interviews with the folk that love Alford.
- Scotland’s High Streets and Town Centres – With the high streets always changing, shops coming and going, it will be interesting to look back on this film to see how Scotland’s high streets were between 2016 and 2019. Towns from all over Scotland are featured from Aberdeen to Ayr to Duns to Dundee.
- Scenic Scotland 2019 – Enjoy some Scottish scenery that was all filmed in 2019. Many locations feature, from Glen Rosa on the Isle of Arran to the wilds of the Cairngorm mountains.
Tullynessle School’s Poem
Tullynessle School wrote this super poem about their visit to Alford Heritage Museum.Exercise Book Donation
We recently received an exciting new donation all the way from Montana, USA. This donation came in the form of an old Exercise book donated by Janet Austin, the granddaughter of Alexander Lawson who attended the now closed Gallowhill Public School in Alford. These books date back to the 1890s and belonged to Mr Lawson who went on to become a Gordon Highlander and fight in the Boer War. These books will be displayed in our school room and we cannot wait for you all to come in and see them. We would like to thank Janet and her family for donating this wonderful piece of history.
Local Legends
A quick reminder to everyone about the local legends exhibit that has been on display since the beginning of the new season. This is a fascinating exhibition featuring some famous and not so famous people who have become legends in the Alford area. From war heroes to shopkeepers, from ministers of religion to rural ladies, we tell their life stories in this display which is accompanied by an illustrated booklet (£5). Some other famous locals who were already featured in the museum, such as William McCombie of Aberdeen Angus fame, Charles Murray the Alford poet, and Sandy Gray, farmer and highland games athlete are also remembered. Come along and see them and think who you might nominate as your local legend.