The Devil’s Porridge Museum was selected as the best heritage tourism experience in the west of Scotland at the Scottish Thistle Awards.
Ten museum volunteers and staff attended a glittering awards ceremony in Glasgow last week, which saw the Eastriggs attraction see off competition from major establishments to take home the trophy.
And the Devil’s Porridge was also a nominated finalist in the Best Visitor Attraction category, narrowly missing out to Glasgow’s Kelvingrove Museum.
Museum trust chairman Richard Brodie said: “This is a great accolade for the Devil’s Porridge and is a testament to the fantastic efforts of all those who have been involved with us for the past 22 years.
“Only five years ago we were struggling away in a cold agricultural shed but we are now in our five-star premises, receiving rave reviews from visitors and achieving recognition from the tourism industry for telling our amazing story to the world.
“It is quite incredible to believe that we have taken on big hitters from Glasgow and taken the prize.”
The museum will now go on to the Scottish finals, where the team will be up against top attractions like Edinburgh’s Mary King’s Close and Oldmeldrum’s Glen Garioch Distillery in the hopes of bringing further glory back to Dumfries and Galloway.
Museum manager Judith Hewitt said: “This award is a fantastic tribute to the dedication, knowledge and enthusiasm of our volunteers.
“For over 20 years they’ve worked to raise awareness of Eastriggs and HM Factory Gretna’s contribution to WWI and their endeavours are being rightly rewarded.
“The Devil’s Porridge Museum is a first rate visitor attraction, we now have an award that proves it and we look forward to the next round.”
