If you regularly haunt the Belfast waterfront, you’ve maybe noticed the lovely old Dutch barge – the Confiance – which is now permanently moored behind the Waterfront (just along from the woman with the hoop).

The barge – or Lagan Legacy to give it its proper title – is now open for business, so I popped in today to have a look around.  (This was strictly work, you understand – I was doing research for the Dock Business Plan, and the Confiance is going to be one of the case studies.  It’s a tough job….etc)

The boat is gorgeous. (Yes, I did covet…)  Originally a Dutch coal barge, it was sailed over to Belfast before undergoing a full restoration, including constructing an extra deck to increase the usable space.  This means that the whole downstairs area can be devoted to the museum, while the upstairs is due to open as a cafe in a few weeks’ time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The museum itself kept me happily pottering for ages.  Telling the story of the Belfast docks, focussing on all the history not to do with the Titanic (since I guess that gets plenty of coverage elsewhere!), it’s full of fascinating stories, artefacts and bits and bobs from Belfast’s recent past.  There are lots of video clips of oral history – stories from the shipyards which could soon be lost if not preserved in places like this.

It was fascinating to see the videoclip and pictures to do with the “God squad” – the group of dockers who used to meet at lunch break to look at the Bible together.  Prompt at the whistle at 12:30, they sat on rough planks around a glowing metal plate, chatting through scripture while toasting their ‘pieces’ (that’s their sandwiches in case you’re worried) on the hot metal.  The gent on the video even emphasised how much variety there was in the church backgrounds of the group… The Dock has a legacy to live up to!  And I loved the way he answered the interviewer’s careful question, “So -were these meetings weekly? Monthly?” with a horrified “No! Every day!”

As well as being really useful for the Dock case study – the Confiance is a perfect example of  a boat being well-used as public space and community resource – the visit was a great day out.  Highly recommended!

Check it out here