The clubhouse of an Aberdeenshire curling club has been destroyed in a fire with 140 years of history taken by the blaze.
Vale of Alford Curling Club kept its equipment and memorabilia – including historic photographs and trophies – at its clubhouse by the pond in the village’s Murray Park.
But the wooden shed was yesterday reduced to a pile of ashes after a fire broke out at around 8.15am.
Among the items destroyed in the blaze were 40 sets of curling stones, valued between £40,000 and £50,000.
A dog walker raised the alarm with the club’s ice maker Willie Milne, who raced down with president Andy Travis to survey the damage.
Mr Milne said: “It was just a smouldering heap of ashes by the time we got there.
“The building can be replaced, but everything inside it is lost forever.
“The memorabilia goes right back to the start of the club, we had pictures of various teams through the ages, curling trophies, and a wee kitchen we used for making soup when we were holding events. It’s things that can just never be replaced.
“It’s one of the oldest clubs around, there’s over 140 years of history that has gone up in smoke.”
Mr Travis added: “The clubhouse has been in existence for 140 years and now we’ve lost all our curling stones, all the memorabilia and equipment for the group.
“It’s devastating”.
One fire crew from Alford attended the fire, and managed to extinguish the flames within half an hour.
A spokeswoman for the fire service said there would be no investigation as they “know the cause” of the incident, but could not say if it was being treated as suspicious.
However, a police spokeswoman said: “We are making inquiries in relation to a shed that was damaged due to a fire at Alford Curling Club.”
Mr Milne, who looks after the pond and does maintenance at the site, said he suspected young people had been sitting on the benches in the veranda of the clubhouse with a bonfire on the bank which had got out of control.
He added if this was the case, it would be disappointing as the club has worked closely with youngsters in the village to encourage them to try curling.
“We’ve gone out of our way over these last few years to cater for school kids,” he said. “When it’s snowing and the schools are off, they come down and have a go on the pond. It’s our way of trying to keep the sport going.
“Because we’re in the middle of the woods, there’s no insurance company that would cover us. This is going to be up to the members and whoever else to replace. It’s a huge blow for us.
“But after speaking to Andy, we’re quite sure will bounce back one way or another – it may just take a bit of time.”
The club has about 100 members, including some who no longer play but come along to watch – and who donated their curling stones to ensure others could enjoy the game.
“It’s replacing the curling stones that will be big headache,” Mr Milne added.
“They are worth thousands of pounds, I’d say we’ve lost £40,000-£50,000 worth of stones altogether.
“This is not the first time there has been a fire like this in Alford, the school had an outdoor classroom damaged, but this is the first time that a building has been burnt down.”