Online campaign calls for new Dambusters museum at Peak District training site

Michael Jickells, 49, a member of the Facebook group dedicated to the lost village of Derwent, hopes public pressure can push Severn Trent and its partners to revive plans for a new museum close to the Upper Derwent visitor in Fairholmes.

The west tower of Derwent dam once housed a privately-owned museum largely dedicated to the Dambusters, who trained over Peak District reservoirs in preparation for their famous Second World War bombing raid – however it closed almost a decade ago amid mounting safety concerns and the death of longtime curator, local historian Vic Hallam.

Michael said: “I think it is vital to reopen this museum either in its previous location or somewhere close such as Bamford village. The frustration felt by some friends and the thirst for knowledge prompted me to start a campaign.

“With record numbers of people visiting Derwent village last year when the ruins were exposed, the 80th anniversary of 617 Squadron’s raids in May this year and the many visitors to the area every day I know that the museum, sensitively introduced in this area of outstanding beauty, would be warmly welcomed.”

In 2018, Severn Trent applied for planning permission from the Peak District National Park Authority to construct a new building at Fairholmes with exhibition space, a café and shop.

At the time, the company said it received around 1,000 enquiries a year related to the Dambusters, showing the demand for somewhere people could come to learn about that history.

By 2021 the project had gone cold, and Severn Trent said it was shelving the idea for “a few years”. There have been no obvious developments since.

This week, a Severn Trent spokesperson said: “It was our ambition to create a new Dambusters museum at Fairholmes, but we took the difficult decision to withdraw the planning application for a new centre following objections and not receiving consent. The collection is safely in storage until a decision is made about what to do with it.”

The former museum contained numerous exhibits, interactive displays, personal narratives, and artefacts, including a model of Derwent village.

Members of the Facebook group believe there is significant educational and tourism value in the history of the dams and the submerged villages, whose fate was documented in the old museum alongside the Dambusters exhibits.

Michael, who lives in Norfolk and has been fascinated by the subject since chancing upon one of Vic Hallam’s books in the 1980s, said: “I also wanted to acknowledge Harry Gill who recognised the loss of Derwent and Ashopton and published books on the subject at the time, and Professor Brian Robinson who sadly passed in February this year and wrote books on the dams and the temporary construction village of Birchinlee.

“It is perhaps testimony today that their books, all now sadly out of print, are regularly advertised for up to £150 in price. This alone suggests there is a thirst for knowledge around the lost villages and the dams.”

To sign the petition, go to https://tinyurl.com/465f5cy9. For more details, join the Facebook group at https://tinyurl.com/4728kubs.

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