The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Cutty Sark museum project is shipshape
Gourdon developer on board as strategy pulls together historic threads
An ambitious project to develop a virtual museum celebrating the Mearns’ links to the Cutty Sark has started 2017 on the crest of a wave.
Managed by Mearns Heritage Services, the project has been working in partnership with local schools since last summer to highlight Inverbervie’s position as the birthplace of Hercules Linton, the designer of the famous clipper now berthed in Greenwich.
After objections led to plans to site the museum in Inverbervie being dropped, a new strategy is being pursued to pull together a variety of historic threads, including the Mearns’ connections to Robert Burns, William Burnes, the Bard’s father, Linton and the Cutty Sark.
Bervie, Glenbervie and Auchenblae primary schools have been working with Mearns Heritage Services on projects to develop the integrated Cutty Sark project in the form of an interactive virtual museum, with information, design, audio links, graphics and photography informing the final design and size of the museum building.
Gourdon company Fotheringham Property Developments has come on board and project director Dave Ramsay said the support extended well beyond the firm’s generous financial backing.
“What we have through this sponsorship is access to high-quality, specialised, architectural and property development and project management to industry standards,” he said.
“When it comes to the final specification of the museum, and identification of a building to suit our needs, we then have the expertise of a highly experienced property development team who can assist with all the specialist information required for grant funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund and other funding bodies.”