Thousands of convicts worked on it. At one time it provided 15 percent of all income in Bermuda and it was a symbol of British power.

Now 200 years since British sailors moved into the Royal Naval Dockyard and it became a strategic port to withstand the Americans, this point at the west end of Bermuda will become the Island's national museum.

But not happy to rest there, Dr. Edward Harris, the executive director of the Bermuda Maritime Museum (BMM), said they would try to list the Dockyard and all Bermuda fortifications as UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

"These buildings are of international importance and we intend to approach Government to apply to UNESCO to include the fortifications at Dockyard and all the other fortifications outside of St. George's."

According to Dr. Harris not only should Dockyard strive to be part of UNESCO but also the forts that line the forested pathways along the Island.

Dr. Harris said Dockyard started out being built by freemen and slaves bringing lime, but there was not enough manpower.

"So from 1823 onwards there were 9,000 convicts that came in and out over a 200-year period. All these buildings are built out of Bermuda stone — hard rock on the Walsingham formations. The Dockyard is the only place in Bermuda where the hard stone was in great quarryable amounts.

"And so there were hills and mountains of hard stone all blasted away in 1809 giving a clear yard for the dockyard and the fortifications."

Construction started in 1809 and continued until 1875, but before construction could begin those living in the area had to be moved out — though they were paid for their land.

But it was not all bad news and because of the massive construction project the area became a source of income for those living nearby, creating a building boom not really seen until recent times.

More than 1,000 Bermudians were employed here at one time in the 19th Century and accounted for more than 15 percent of Bermuda's income.

It was not only the rock beneath their feet, but the wind in their hair which promised the west end tip of Bermuda would become a bastion of British power.

"The prevailing wind is from the West so the enemy entering from St. George's would have made their way up to Dockyard against the prevailing wind," said Dr Harris.

"The fleet sitting here at Grassy Bay could bear down on them quite quickly. The advantage is never having to get out of the harbour quickly."

These winds also led to the creation of the Bermuda Rig, which is world famous in sailing circles and which was created on the Island in the 17th Century.

That was not the only first for this end of the Island Commissioner's House was the first house in the world to use cast-iron framing.

But more than a history lesson, the National Museum and the Dockyard environs can provide a lift for tourism, according to Dr. Harris.

He cites the work done by Parks Department planner Andrew Pettit on Fort St. Catherine, which is being renovated, to put it back on the tourist map.

"People are delighted it's going to become a public museum. We should be doing anything we can to open these sites.

"The heritage sites are the reason people come to Bermuda and I include in those the natural heritage. Unfortunately we just haven't put the energy in preserving them.

"Other places make a big deal about preserving their building work and making it accessible to the public. These are the things the man in the family want to see.

"If you want to keep people in Bermuda (for example) the forts of Bermuda will take three days to see."

Government transferred Casemates Barracks and adjacent buildings and fortifications to the Bermuda Maritime Museum to evolve into a new National Museum of Bermuda. Here Robyn Skinner talks to Dr Edward Harris about the work involved.

Fallen doors, rusty lights, decaying fences over stairwells, an overturned oven and desperate murals painted along the walls.

From infamous Casemates prison to cultural icon, the former soldiers' barracks are being restored to their original state with the skill of Dr. Edward Harris.

The executive director of the Bermuda Maritime Museum is tasked with taking these 200-year-old structures (in some places) and transforming them into a showcase for the Island's heritage.

A daunting agenda for some — an intriguing project for this archaeology and history buff — whose eyes sparkle when talking about restoring these historic buildings to their inception in 1809.

He said: "We started the renovations three and a half years ago with volunteers on Saturday mornings and cleared the place up and removed more than 1,000 casuarinas.

"We have a small team of ten and then whoever joins during those weeks. There are also days out from work with XL Insurance (for example) and their Global Days of Giving.

"(During one of these sessions) Someone made the suggestion that we turn this into a National Museum and get it donated by the Government.

"So when Col. (David) Burch became the chief at WEDCo we approached him with the project and he gave us a grant."

Last year, to get the project going, Cabinet approved the handover of Casemates Barracks and its surrounding buildings to the Bermuda Maritime Museum (BMM) on a 99-year lease from the West End Development Corporation (WEDCo) to form the Bermuda National Museum.

To begin the expansion of Maritime to National Museum, Dr. Harris said he hoped that in the next few months the northwest rampart (the wall that runs behind the ship building yard) and the bridge connecting the wall with the keep would open.

This walkway, which was a lookout for soldiers before becoming a water catch in the 1930s, will allow visitors to walk to the walls of Casemates, but not enter.

Not only will the passage return to its historic roots, but will provide a modern amenity — a route for the new fire trucks too large to enter the museum's main gate.

The Casemate Barracks is the second oldest building in Dockyard after Commissioner's House. Started in the late 1830s, it housed the soldiers of the Royal Marines Light Infantry.

From the early 1960s until 1994, the building served as the cellblock of Casemates Prison.

It will take another five to seven years, however, to restore the main prison building and the surrounding buildings because the BMM rely on volunteers and donations for funding, according to Dr. Harris.

When completed, Dr. Harris hopes the outside buildings will be for mixed use while the main Casemates building will develop through partnership with groups like the National Trust, which need more space for exhibits.

Some of the areas that could be covered in the new buildings include decorative arts, architecture, archaeology, transportation, music and dance, agriculture, civil rights and the Dockyard defences.

Furthermore the area could provide additional housing for researchers from abroad and get a tremendous amount of work done on archive and museum work.

The handover of building from WEDCo will bring the total acreage of the Maritime Museum from about ten to slightly more than 15 acres under the National Museum title.

However, to update these buildings in the manner necessary for a museum will mean monetary help.

Dr. Harris said: "We are very fortunate that these buildings and the fortifications are still there. It's too bad that we have lost the foundry buildings.

"We are lucky Dockyard is still intact, though. Restoration is done by interpreting the building so we can restore it and use it for modern purposes.

"We've had tremendous support from the community. It could not have been done without the Government to get this to point."

l If you would like to volunteer to help with the restoration of these buildings contact Dr. Harris by email at: director@bmm.bm.

— The area was established when Britain was defeated in the US War of Independence and left without an operational base between Halifax, Nova Scotia and the West Indies.

— To do so the Royal Navy purchased 200 acres on Ireland Island and in 1809 work began on what was then called the North America and West Indies Station.

— During this time the area employed about 1,000 Bermudians and supplied 15 percent of the Island's income.

— In the summer of 1814, 5,000 troops and Royal Marines left Dockyard to attack Washington, D. C. and Baltimore during the War of 1812.

Nearly 600 vessels were repaired in Dockyard during the First World War and the Second World War and German soldiers passed through Dockyard on their way to POW camps in Canada.

— The Royal Navy left the main Dockyard in 1951 though the base was not officially closed until 1995.

— In 1963 Casemates' soldiers' barracks was turned into a prison, which it remained until 1994.

— In 1982 the West End Development Corporation (WEDCO) act was passed and more than $60 million went towards restoring Dockyard.

— Until 2009 the Maritime Museum included: The Keep, the Queen's Exhibition Hall, Dainty Exhibit/Westminster Palace Stone, Shifting House 10 Artefact Conservation Laboratory Shifting Office, Commissioner's House, Shell House, High Cave and Magazine, Forster Cooper Building, A to G Bastions A to G and Magazines, Boatloft and Dolphin Quest.

— The National Museum will include all these buildings as well as the northwest rampart and the nine bastions, and the Casemates Barracks which is three buildings.