Wick's World War II pillbox project to be unveiled
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A NEW date has been set for the unveiling of the World War II pillbox in Wick after wet weather at the weekend played havoc with the original plans.
The open day at this recently transformed defence building located above the town's North Baths will now take place on Saturday from 10am to 4pm.
The volunteer manager of the project, Denny Swanson, will take visitors on guided tours of the pillbox which has three lookout holes in the wall.
He said: "The volunteers have done a fantastic job on it. We have taken it back to what it looked like in 1942."
During the war the structure was manned by five soldiers 24 hours a day.
In the downstairs part the volunteers have made three replica Bren guns. They also have some shells on display and an old lamp sitting on the table with a candle in it – similar to what the soldiers sat round during their four-hour shifts.
During the earlier stages of the project, Denny was helped by the other volunteers – Tommy Munro, Derek Bremner, Leslie Sutherland and Charlie Bain – to remove a large amount of rubbish from the pillbox, clear the steps and returf the roof.
Our plans for next year are to turn it into a proper museum.
They were able to source camouflage paint for the exterior of the building after a Facebook appeal and the volunteers have also been busy collecting items to go on display inside.
A raffle will be run during the open day with bottles from Pulteney and Wolfburn distilleries among the prizes. Refreshments will be available with a stash of sweets and juice on hand for the younger visitors.
Denny said: "Our plans for next year are to turn it into a proper museum. We have been promised lots of stuff from people for putting on display."
Reminiscing about his school days, Denny, who lived in Willowbank, said: "We played in that place. There were 11 steps going down to the dungeon, and on both sides going down there are hundreds and hundreds of names scratched in the wall. Some people have found their names that they scratched there."
The project also involved the placing of a bench and a new flagpole.
Parking for the visitor attraction is available in the old car park at the dry dock.
