Anne new chair of Friends of Down County Museum

2 March 2022

THE Friends of Down County Museum has a new chairperson.

Anne Curran was elected at the recent annual general meeting which was held in Denvir’s Hotel, Downpatrick.

A former teacher, living in Downpatrick, she is keenly interested in history, archaeology, genealogy and the origin of place names.

Supporting her on the committee are Dr Patrick Moore, as treasurer, Brian Leathem, as assistant treasurer, Lesley Simpson, as secretary, Jennifer Taggart, as vice-chairperson, Gerard Lennon, Anne Liggett and Noreen Napier.

The Friends of Down County Museum were established in 1989 and were planning a major gift to commemorate their 30th anniversary in the months before the pandemic brought a halt to their meetings.

Despite this, a piece of applied art by Alison Lowry was commissioned and finally installed in the museum.

The purpose of the Friends is to support and promote the museum. They help to develop the museum and its collection and act as its ambassadors within the community. Members organise relevant activities as well as supporting the museum’s own programme of events.

These activities include lectures, tours, literary and musical events, for social, educational or fundraising purposes. The Friends make grants, from their own funds or by acting as a conduit for other grant-aiding bodies who are unable to give money directly to the Museum. Such grants are for curatorial or educational purposes.

At the inaugural meeting of the Friends in 1989 the curator, Dr Brian Turner, spoke briefly about the work of the museum and plans for the future.

He emphasised that community support and participation was vital and was at the root of everything the museum stood for.

The first committee was elected with Patrick Forde as chairman, Dr Maurice Hayes as vice-chairman, Conac Hanna as treasurer and Noel McCann as secretary. Other committee members included Professor Ronald Buchanan, Frank Maxwell and Wendy Osborne. Since then, many other local people have given their time and skills through the committee.

The Friends come from all parts of our community and even further afield. The main source of income is through annual subions, with occasional gifts. However, there is also some capital as a result of a direct grant from the Northern Ireland government in 1990. This was given in recognition of the Friends’ potential for improving community harmony through peaceful exploration of our common cultural heritage. It is estimated that they have given the museum about £100,000 towards a great variety of projects during the last 33 years.

However, perhaps more important is the long-term commitment the Friends have shown to the museum. They give their time, goodwill, skills, knowledge, experience and advice, on a voluntary basis, to help the museum in many ways. With their close association to the Museum they have witnessed the reduction in staff and understood the impact of the proposed restructuring.

Friends in the art world, such as Richard Croft, Betty McCord and Jim Manley, have supported the museum by generous donations of their own work. Some have used their contacts to acquire works with large discounts whilst others have been able to alert the Museum to items for sale in auctions.

The Friends donated Mixed farm, Slievenaman, an oil painting by Tom Carr, to mark the 10th anniversary of the museum, in 1991. In 2001, they donated Mourne Hayfield, a watercolour by Chris Dearden, to mark the 20th anniversary of the museum.

They also purchased Silent Valley, a watercolour by Jim Manley, in 1989, Landscape, Tyrella, an oil painting by Daniel O’Neill, in 1994 and part funded Down Cathedral and Southwell School, tempura on board by Patric Stevenson, in 2007.

The pieces of glass made by Alison Lowry, and which can now be seen at the entrance to the Cell Block, was part funded to mark the 30th anniversary of Friends. The individual pieces are representations of objects associated with the lives of prisoners held in this building. The Friends also supported a residency for Australian artist Christina Henri commemorating women prisoners transported from Down Gaol.

Friends with musical connections have organised tin whistle classes. The Friends also paid for a local harpist to play in galleries on summer Sunday afternoons and for the choral society at a Christmas event.

Keen gardeners have brought plants into the museum to sell and opened a private garden to visitors to raise money.

Car boot sales were another popular method of fundraising and the museum courtyard provided a useful venue for several organised by the Friends.

Technical, photographic and conservation projects have benefited over the years from the Friends’ assistance. Equipment and materials included a laminator, scanner, digital camera and archival storage. A drone pilot course was funded.

The loan of St Patrick’s Head shrine from another museum was only made possible by its prior conservation, which the Friends paid for. One of the most important projects was the initial cataloguing of the D J McNeill Collection, by means of a placement, largely supported by the Friends.

Young people have been encouraged to enjoy learning about history by Friends’ funding for prizes for school competitions, poster packs for schools, and programmes for The Young Archaeologists’ Club. The Education Service was assisted by the purchase of a photocopier and replica pots for children to handle.

Publications have always been an important part of the museum’s work, in disseminating information about the collection, for setting objects in their historic context and most importantly, their relationship to people. To this end, the Friends have match-funded the annual Down Survey, 1997-2011 and 2013.

They assisting with the publication of two townland maps, which were freely distributed to schools and community groups. Books included A man stepped out for death, Thomas Russell and County Down, a collaborative publication to mark the

bicentenary of the United Irish Rising of 1803 and Aspects of Audleystown by Brian Turner, a book designed to help individuals and groups study their townlands. They initiated, researched, wrote and published a recipe book, Food for Friends, in 2017,

with all profits going to the Friends.

Many facets of the High Cross project were supported by the Friends, including filming the whole project and the making of the replica High Cross. Restoration of St Patrick’s Cross and the interpretation panel were financially supported.

Exhibitions have benefited from the Friends’ support; in recent years with a major contribution to the extension at the back of the site was significant. This included paintings for the new Tea Room.

Talks and lecture series have been organised both in in the museum and at other venues with all profits given to the Friends.

And dozens more: from the purchase of trees and shrubs for the garden at the back of the site to the purchase of a Papal bull.

Tweets by @TheDownRecorder