Livingstone Birthplace Project Fun Day

The David Livingstone Birthplace Project team has organised a free Community Fun Day at Rutherglen Town Hall on Friday, October 19 from 11am until 4pm.

The drop-in event is one of many planned throughout Lanarkshire to keep locals informed and engaged with multi-million pound refurbishment of the nearby David Livingstone Centre.

The Community Fun Day will feature face-painting, badge-making and crafts, plus there will be the chance to see the exciting new ‘pop-up’ touring exhibition which features key moments in Livingstone’s life and reveals details of the ongoing redevelopment of the David Livingstone Centre.

Additionally, there will be talks about the Birthplace Project at 12.30pm and 2.30pm, plus a number of fun interactive activities including a “selfie wall” where visitors can insert themselves into famous moments of Livingstone’s life, including the jaw-dropping occasion when he was attacked by a lion during his first outpost at Mabotsa in 1844.

Elena Trimarchi, Learning Manager, David Livingstone Trust, said: “We are incredibly excited about the redevelopment of the David Livingstone Centre and this Community Fun Day is a great way to share details of the project with the public while the centre is closed.
“We hope that people will visit Rutherglen Town Hall to find out more about David Livingstone’s story and our plans to turn the centre into a 21st century visitor attraction which will showcase our collection in new and exciting ways. If you would like to get involved in the Birthplace Project there will be opportunities to find out more.”

Construction work started in August on the much-anticipated Birthplace Project to transform The David Livingstone Centre in Blantyre into a world-class visitor attraction. In the meantime, museum staff have been re-located to the Burgh Business Centre in Rutherglen for the duration of the project.

Clark Contracts is the main contractor on the £6.1 million operation to restore and renovate the 11-hectare Station Road site which includes the iconic Shuttle Row mill-workers’ tenement where the Livinstone was born and raised.

The project will include the renewal of the historic buildings, a newly interpreted exhibition which will showcase artefacts from the Trust’s collection of 3000 objects, and an upgrade of visitor facilities such as the café and shop.

The Birthplace Project is jointly funded by The National Lottery through The Heritage Lottery Fund (£4.1m), the Scottish Government (£1.3m) and Historic Environment Scotland (£575,000).