You could always rely on finding friendly faces: Ormlie Lodge Club closes after 68 years
A Thurso social club has closed its doors after being "an integral part of the community" for 68 years.
The Ormlie Lodge Club was founded in October 1955, at the start of the atomic age in the town, but has fallen victim to a combination of declining membership, changing social habits and rising costs.
The club was originally based in the main building at Ormlie Lodge before relocating to the nearby foreman's cottage in Brownhill Road in 1989.
After a farewell night for members on Saturday, the bar was open for the last time on Tuesday evening, when seven members attended for the final time. The premises are up for sale.
Club secretary Jackie Johnson said it had played a huge part in the lives of people who moved to Thurso to work in the nuclear industry.
Originally the club was for Dounreay employees only, but that changed many years ago. Before the pandemic there was a membership of around 250, but this has fallen to 92 and of those a core of about 30 have tended to be in weekly.
Mrs Johnson said: "Membership has fallen, especially since the pandemic, and people just do not go out the same any more. We first noticed this when the drink-driving laws changed which really resulted in people not drinking when they had work the next morning, resulting in us only opening at the weekend for the last few years.
"Over this last year in particular, our costs have risen significantly to the extent that we could no longer cover the costs with fewer people using the facility. The building is currently up for sale and we’d love to see someone taking it on as a club or pub."
Ormlie Girls, a subsection of the club, began in 1999 and raised around £25,000 for charity over the years.
Mrs Johnson explained: "Ormlie Girls was originally a group of the wives of the men who formed a core group of active members who decided they wanted to have fun too. The girls met monthly and raised money for many local charities by organising fun events throughout the year."
Mrs Johnson believes the club and what it represented will be missed now that the last drinks have been poured and the remaining members have said their farewells. It will be remembered as a focal point in the social life of Thurso at a time when the town's population was on the rise, and for many decades after that.
"The club played a huge part in the lives of the men who moved to Thurso to work at Dounreay," Mrs Johnson said. "It gave them a home away from home and allowed incomers to form friendships which have lasted over the generations.
"It also allowed the wives to get to know people when they eventually moved up and were housed in the new housing stock.
"Over the years the club was an integral part of the community and encouraged family events. It was not unknown for generations of the same family to be members.
"You could always rely on finding friendly faces if you popped in, no matter what night, and I can honestly say that those who still use the club will be lost without it."
- Do you have memories of the Ormlie Lodge Club? Email editor@nosn.co.uk