Marshall Cubbon OBE

Marshall Cubbon OBE

2002

The 2002 Reih Bleeaney Vanannan Trophy was awarded to a former director of the Manx Museum: Marshall Cubbon OBE. He was Culture Vannin’s choice of the people nominated by the public for providing the ‘greatest contribution to the Island’s cultural heritage’.

Marshall Cubbon, of Douglas, was presented with the trophy by the (then current) President of Tynwald Noel Cringle, and chose the Isle of Man Natural History and Antiquarian Society as the local cause to receive a donation of £500 from the foundation.

Marshall was appointed director of the Manx Museum and National Trust in 1957, and held the post for almost thirty years. During this period he extended the work of the museum by completing the library wing and considerably enhancing pre-existing galleries and creating new ones. In 1950, he almost single-handedly saved the Old Grammar School in Castletown (the oldest roofed building in the Isle of Man) from destruction, literally pinning the preservation order to the door as the bulldozers approached.

As keeper of ancient monuments, Marshall carried out some significant excavations, most notably at Killeaba, a site which covered a period from late Neolithic to early Bronze Age. He was also instrumental in helping the trust to acquire land at Maughold Head, Eary Cushlin, Spanish Head and the Chasms, Fort Island and other significant stretches of Manx coastline.

Following his retirement as Director in 1984, Marshall became a regular lecturer with the University of Liverpool’s Department of Continuing Education.

At the award ceremony, Mr Cringle said:

‘Mr Cubbon has made an outstanding contribution to Manx cultural heritage, both in his profession as a teacher … by his personal dedication to Manx societies and by his educational role in increasing the awareness of Manx heritage among the people of the Isle of Man. He contributed to the research into Manx history and culture, by the publication of many articles in journals both within and outside the Island and he served on committees of such organisations as the Society for the Preservation of the Manx Countryside, the Advisory Council on Planning and the Natural History and Antiquarian Society, of which he has been president more than once.’

In 1975 Marshall was awarded an OBE for his services to the Manx Museum and National Trust, which he viewed as an honour for the work and standing of the Trust.

Marshall Cubbon passed away in 2012. His legacy is a tremendous body of work to preserve the Manx archaeological, historical and cultural record, for which modern curators and scholars are deeply in his debt.