DERAILED Posted February 12, 2015 Posted February 12, 2015 I wonder how many here have been following the Foyle Valley Railway saga on IRN here: http://irnirishrailwaynews.yuku.com/topic/676/Foyle-Valley-Railway-Museum?page=1#.VNz2PCxcpgA and it would be great if it could be brought onto this forum. I have been giving out about the demise of the Foyle Valley Railway for years and writing to all and sundry about it but I can't contribute on IRN as it's a 'Parks Free Zone'. To be honest my heart isn't really in it anymore but it does deserve maximum coverage in the hope that even now something can be done! I started a thread about it on Boards.ie four years ago here: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055970708 but I can't contribute to it anymore less my alternative username is spotted by the over zealous Mods. jhb171achill - I know that you contribute on IRN so perhaps you could bring the discussion on here? Quote
WRENNEIRE Posted February 12, 2015 Posted February 12, 2015 Mind yourself Derailed, we seem to have a few of them Mods here Threads shut down for no apparent reason If someone goes slightly askew on a thread Big Brother seems to want to get involved Let the threads go where they go, its supposed to be a bit of fun with some real stuff thrown in now and then I think we should start a Bring Back Anto thread? Quote
Killucan2 Posted February 12, 2015 Posted February 12, 2015 (edited) [ATTACH=CONFIG]17426[/ATTACH] I wonder how many here have been following the Foyle Valley Railway saga on IRN here: http://irnirishrailwaynews.yuku.com/topic/676/Foyle-Valley-Railway-Museum?page=1#.VNz2PCxcpgA and it would be great if it could be brought onto this forum. I have been giving out about the demise of the Foyle Valley Railway for years and writing to all and sundry about it but I can't contribute on IRN as it's a 'Parks Free Zone'. To be honest my heart isn't really in it anymore but it does deserve maximum coverage in the hope that even now something can be done! I started a thread about it on Boards.ie four years ago here: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055970708 but I can't contribute to it anymore less my alternative username is spotted by the over zealous Mods. jhb171achill - I know that you contribute on IRN so perhaps you could bring the discussion on here? IRN is gone,so no need to bring on here as the person on boards was banned. Edited February 12, 2015 by Killucan2 Quote
jhb171achill Posted February 12, 2015 Posted February 12, 2015 I'm replying here since I was asked the question... I do try to limit my input here to what I think might interest modellers, however I do share the great concern on what happens the FVR stuff. In answer, a number of people are doing all they can in the background to at the very least minimise potential damage. Some of these people I know - and for what it's worth I've added my own voice. Others I don't know, but I wish them well and hope they are successful. For those interested as Derailed says, there is a post on IRN which covers the opinions of at least some of those concerned. Let's hope that some sort of solution comes about. It would be a tragedy of monumental proportions if, after half a century of insecurity, a proper long term home could be found for the unique exhibits up there. Quote
DERAILED Posted February 12, 2015 Author Posted February 12, 2015 IRN is gone,so no need to bring on here as the person on boards was banned. It's news to me that IRN is gone - gone quiet but not gone surely? The person (me) was NOT banned if you look at the username on Boards - account closed which is a very different thing and I can't see what that has to do with the sad fate awaiting the FVR. There can be few if any preserved railways in these islands that have/had so much potential as the FVR and it's difficult for this outsider to apportion blame but surely differences can be buried for the common good? A narrow gauge - cross border - steam railway in the North West should be able to rake in grants. Even the C&L was able to cash in on cross border funding and it's far enough from the border. Quote
Georgeconna Posted February 12, 2015 Posted February 12, 2015 Why do you guys talk in riddles of Banned names, Boards.ie, different Login names, Parks Free Zone.....Jesus you would not get this in a james bond film. Is not anto 4472 r summit. just checked and IRN is till there not that I tune in that much nowadays. Sad to see the loco just left out to rot really. Quote
minister_for_hardship Posted February 13, 2015 Posted February 13, 2015 The whole FVR thing is a long drawn out mess. You would expect this 'Down Mexico Way', but N.I. where there's heritage lottery money, proximity of RPSI and DCDR, more interest per head of population etc?...Not so much. Quote
Magpie1951 Posted February 13, 2015 Posted February 13, 2015 (edited) The whole FVR thing is a long drawn out mess. You would expect this 'Down Mexico Way', but N.I. where there's heritage lottery money, proximity of RPSI and DCDR, more interest per head of population etc?...Not so much. Regards Magpie (from somewhere "Down Mexico Way"!!) Edited February 13, 2015 by BosKonay Removed profanity Quote
jhb171achill Posted February 13, 2015 Posted February 13, 2015 (edited) It most certainly is, Minister. It's one I've been following with interest (as Derailed had observed!). I am aware that several organisations and many individuals with various expertise or at the very least a sympathetic interest, have been lobbying Derry City Council for tests, to no avail. Many years ago, I had dealings with one gentleman in DCC in relation to an RPSI matter and I quickly got the impression he was a lone voice of reason within; but he has long gone. The stark reality here, as I pointed out on IRN, is that museums cost money to run (ask DCDR, Donegal, RPSI or UFTM; none of which, incidentally, is in a position to directly assist), and no official body either has it, wants to part with it, or both. Even in Britain where they have twelve times our population and a much greater net worth per head, some heritage organisations have struggled for decades to become viable visitor attractions. Look, for example, at the erstwhile Welsh Highland Railway (1964) Ltd.! There's no substitute for a lot of volunteers turning up week after week, year after year, decade after decade, giving all their spare time and not a little of their own cash, to get these things going. Derry just doesn't seem to have the critical mass. What needs to happen in the long run in both Derry and, as another story, Tralee, is that the local authorities concerned hand these things over to volunteers. Until and unless they do, they'll get no volunteers, partly because they wouldn't be welcome, partly because nobody in their right mind would take orders or direction from a local authority without being paid! No volunteers means either shutters and locks, or a wage bill for the local authority. Which means significant financial cost - which means local councillors, especially in these times, will seek to cut costs. So - let's hope imminent storage is at least vandal-proof. That's the best short term outcome, seriously imperfect though it is. Then, maybe - just maybe - lobbying by the general enthusiast community might persuade the relevant bodies to just hand the lot over to a suitable organisation. This, incidentally, applies equally and almost as a mirror image in Tralee, where local authority involvement has completely banjaxed what could have been a great visitor attraction. Funding isn't easy now either. The days of free grant money are gone. Organisations usually have put up match funding of their own. If you've a three mile railway, like in Derry, and it costs say £1million sterling to do the whole railway and loco and so on, who on earth will cough up the half million to match the grant? That's the problem. It's not easy. Edited February 13, 2015 by jhb171achill Quote
DERAILED Posted February 13, 2015 Author Posted February 13, 2015 jhb171achill - Loads of sense in your post. The FVR needs to be handed over to a volunteer based organisation or it's curtains. One thing that didn't exist back when I was active (1978/98) is the internet/Facebook revolution, and what this means is that a new volunteer organisation with literally hundreds of members could be put in place overnight! This, as I know from my own experience, would have taken years previously. I'm happy to pay an annual sub to such an organisation but my presence as a volunteer or a founding member would not be in anyone's interest. Quote
jhb171achill Posted February 13, 2015 Posted February 13, 2015 I think, Derailed, that geographical location has its part to play too. If you or I live in Derry, no probs, we just toddle down to the site in the morning and do a day's work. But - notwithstanding the fact that just about enough people make the half hour or 40 minute trip to Whitehead, Downpatrick or Inchicore to keep the RPSI and DCDR going, Derry is a four hour drive for me, and for many. Local interest is absolutely crucial in any preservation scheme. Even for necessary details like who is the key holder if the PSNI want to advise of a break in. Not much use if every involved volunteer, committed as they are, lives in Thurles, Newry or Manchester.... Local publicity and local people will save and develop the FVR. Absence of same, and the consequences will follow their unfortunate, but realistic path. Quote
DERAILED Posted April 2, 2015 Author Posted April 2, 2015 The Foyle Valley Railway Museum closed for good last Friday 27th March and the future of its collection is still in doubt. I had been dabbling with the idea of starting a Facebook page to see what interest there might be in saving the museum but a glance at what's already online yesterday has put me well and truly off such an idea. Pictured below is what the local youth of the area think of their heritage and the late, unlamented, Derry City Council appear to have been cut from the same cloth. When I first came on the preservation scene in the late 1970s it was the same old story in Derry - bickering within the NWIRS, fighting with the Council and all leading to this inevitable catastrophe. Three generations of my family worked for the CDR but this sadly is not going to be carried on by my generation. Has anybody got any - positive - news? What has happened to all those people from way back such as David Lloyd, Redmond Gallagher, Danny Doherty .... More here: http://www.derryjournal.com/what-s-on/arts-culture/rail-experts-call-for-foyle-valley-museum-artefacts-to-be-safeguarded-1-6663183 Quote
minister_for_hardship Posted April 2, 2015 Posted April 2, 2015 I just don't get this. Any other town or city would kill to have a ready-to-go museum. The priority now is that the artifacts are secured or moved to a secure location before someone decides to hold a bonfire. Quote
David Holman Posted April 2, 2015 Posted April 2, 2015 Sad indeed. Can only hope folk come in with offers to give the stock a new home. Quote
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