Last updated at 20:36, Thursday, 16 August 2012

A museum about Cumbria’s mining heritage has been forced to close because no one will take it on.

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Ian Tyler launched Keswick Mining Museum 25 years ago with his wife Jean.

He plans to retire, and a two-year search to find a museum, local authority or university to take over the collection has proven fruitless.

Now the thousands of exhibits have been split up and sold to private collectors.

Mr Tyler, who lives near Carlisle, said: “Tourism in this county has lost an incredible asset. It is probably the finest mining museum in the country.

“It’s the story of the land, the story of Cumbrian mountains and what they gave us – our roads, our ports and our railways.

“It employed thousands of people and is basically ignored by the establishment.”

Originally from Lancaster, Mr Tyler developed an interest in Cumbria’s mining past through walking the Lake District fells more than four decades ago.

He added: “I got heavily into underground exploration and started to build up a massive archive of mining information.”

With only two books then available for people interested in mining, Mr and Mrs Tyler began writing the first of 12 books on the subject.

The couple launched the museum at Priests Mill, Caldbeck, then moved to Otley Road in Keswick when the collection outgrew its original premises.

Mr Tyler said: “What we’ve got is a landscape and a ruin.

“I have looked at every document in the Carlisle archive, Barrow archive and Kendal archive and other places to build up the picture, which has taken thousands of man hours.”

In summer 2007 Mr and Mrs Tyler decided to retire, but soon afterwards Mrs Tyler was diagnosed with a brain tumour and died six months later.

Her husband kept the museum on as he came to terms with his loss but now the time has come to finally hang up his museum keys for good.

Mr Tyler, the founder and chairman of Mines of Lakeland Exploration Society, said: “I am way beyond retirement age. I want to be on the fells while I’m still relatively fit.”

More than two years ago he started looking for a buyer for his collection, eventually taking the difficult decision to split it up.

He said: “It is soul destroying. It’s my passion to bring to people’s awareness what this is all about so it doesn’t get forgotten.

“I am sad that this collection hasn’t been taken on by the establishment.”

He aims to close by October 1, but could shut earlier as the displays in the museum begin to be collected by new owners.

First published at 19:22, Thursday, 16 August 2012
Published by http://www.timesandstar.co.uk