A museum dedicated to railways and a barbershop may sound like two things that have no major connection, but come to Enniskillen and it may just change your mind.
Headhunters Barber Shop was first opened in the Co Fermanagh town by brothers Gordon and Nigel Johnston in 1981.
However, the brothers’ interest in the lost railways of the county led to them opening up a museum inside their premise celebrating the train system.
Co Fermanagh had its railways for more than 100 years before all its links were severed in 1957, but the brothers along with a handful of volunteers have strived to keep its memory alive.
Step inside the museum and you will find thousands of artefacts which have been donated and gathered over the years, and you can finish it all with a short back and sides.
Alan Devers is one of the volunteers which keeps the museum ticking, while both Gordon and Nigel still cut hair in the barbers.
“It began as a barbershop but over time the boys were very interested in railways and collected artefacts,” Alan told MyFermanagh.
“The collection began to grow so eventually they decided that this was a good place to put the artefacts.
“The railway museum really couldn’t function without the barbershop because Nigel and Gordon Johnston, the two brothers who are the barbers, they provide round the clock personnel here.
“We wouldn’t have enough volunteers to man everything.
“What normally happens is if a visitor comes in, if one of the boys are free they will answer questions or give you a quick guided tour.
“If they’re busy you’ll just guide yourself around.”
Alan added that it was important to keep the interest in rail links in the West alive, with all train stations in Fermanagh and Tyrone having disappeared since the 1960s.
An all-island strategic rail review has just closed to the public, with the North West highlighted as being a key area for both Stormont and Dublin governments to investigate.
He added: “We do get a certain amount of railway enthusiasts in to get their hair cut, but there are a lot of regulars.
“People who have always come in here, we get a lot of children, their parents bring them in and then the next generation get introduced to the barbers here at Headhunters.”
As the barber shop celebrates 40 years in business in Enniskillen, with as many visitors ever coming through its doors.
An impressive model train system sits in its own exhibition upstairs at the museum, As Alan remarked that local people exploring their heritage has led to a surge in visitors since the beginning of the pandemic.
“I think since Covid a lot of people have gone in for staycations, so there has been a lot of home tourism.
“More people from Northern Ireland now are visiting and seeing their own country maybe for the first or second time.
He concluded that for many people visiting the museum, it brings them back to happy times during their early days.
“When I come here it sort of rejuvenates me, it brings me back to my childhood and it’s always great to come back.”
