Organisers of an exhibition which looks at the things Margate has lost are inviting people to share their stories of Margate’s iconic Scenic Railway, after Dreamland’s owners chose to close the historic ride.
The exhibition at Pie Factory in Broad Street opens on Thursday 5th February from 2pm-5pm, and curators Connor Sansby and Dan Thompson are inviting anyone with old photos of the Scenic Railway to bring them to the exhibition that afternoon to be digitised.
They will also create a Scenic Railway Memorial Wall, which will be in place for the duration of the exhibition. People will be invited to add their own memories of the ride, which opened in 1921 and welcomed over 1 million visitors that year.
“We were already going to include the Scenic Railway in the exhibition, as it has been missing in action for a couple of years,” says Sansby, “but it feels even more important now.”
Thompson organised an event to mark Dreamland’s move into public ownership in November 2013, marking the beginning of the site’s restoration. It was attended by over 2000 people, including the artist Banksy. And Thompson went on to write a series of history pamphlets, telling the whole story of Dreamland, for the Dreamland Trust.
“The Scenic is more than a rollercoaster,” he says, “it’s a living, clanking, rattling monument to a working class way of life, of seaside holidays and of childhood and of youth culture and of pure fun, and I don’t think Live Nation have understood why it’s so important.”
The Lost Margate exhibition includes artwork by Ellen Harvey, Gérard Uféras, Lucy Lyons, Imogen Naomi Herd, Alexandra Wilkey and others. It also includes rarely-seen objects like the Blue Plaque marking Turner’s time in town from the old Ship Inn, a collection of photos from the storm of 1897, and a piece of timber from Margate’s old pier (known locally as the jetty). A programme of activity to accompany Lost Margate includes workshops, talks, and a history walk.
Lost Margate is at Pie Factory, Broad Street, Margate from 5th-9th February.
Does it take a major catastrophic accident with deaths to change people’s minds? This a thing waiting to happen. Re-purpose it –
Your line of argument requires the whole of Dreamland to be closed and re-purposed.
Everything from the Bog Wheel to the Carousel falls into the same category.
There have already been two deaths linked to the music concerts.
What other purposes can you suggest ?
Fascinating!
And the 2 Organisers (Connor and Dan) were most attentive, knowledgeable and really helpful. On offer to all Margatonians, local history in the making.