Significant progress has been made to the restore and protect the Casemates Barracks and Upper Ordnance Buildings, The Royal Gazette can reveal.

The National Museum of Bermuda has helped to waterproof and stabilise the historical buildings, thanks in part to its $10 million fund raised by The Future of History campaign.

Elena Strong, the museum’s executive director, said: “It is the museum’s mandate to save, preserve and repurpose the historical buildings under its care for future use and future generations.

“We are committed to historic preservation and reimagining derelict buildings as public resources.”

She added: “Restoring the Casemates complex is a major undertaking.

“I’d like to thank all the volunteers who have put in thousands of hours of dedicated pre-restoration work and to our recent partners and donors to The Future of History campaign for funding the capital investments necessary for saving and stabilising these historical buildings.”

The Casemates complex was built in the 1830s as a barracks to house soldiers manning the Royal Naval Dockyard’s fortifications and ammunition storehouses.

Occupants over the centuries have included the Scottish Black Watch battalion, British military officers, the Canadian Navy and even incarcerated men when the complex served as a maximum-security prison between 1961 and 1994.

A NMB spokeswoman said the complex’s buildings and tunnels were “exceptional records” of architecture and military technology in the 19th century.

This included thick limestone walls to protect against bombs, and roofs that served as false targets for incoming attacks.

Casemates was left abandoned after its stint as a prison, and it fell victim to the elements and invasive plants.

The NMB spokeswoman said the museum had been attempting to restore it since 2006 through efforts that included clearing debris and mapping the complex.

The Government transferred full responsibility of Casemates to the NMB, then the Bermuda Maritime Museum, developing the museum into what it is today.

After a philanthropic cash injection, the museum started restoration work earlier than planned.

The work included replacing the layer of asbestos asphalt that covered the roof of the barracks with six inches of concrete to protect it from water damage.

The NMB also preserved the complex’s prison-era furniture, and Ms Strong said: “As we work to restore and repurpose these historical structures, we will not forget the many past lives of Casemates.

“It is important to us to ensure that all histories — distant and nearer past — are preserved and shared.

“Our team aims to record oral histories from those who had relationships with Casemates as a prison in the coming years to add to the historic record.”

The work has been overseen by Bermuda Project Management and conducted by Island Construction, Crisson Construction and Gray & Co.

Next year, the NMB will look to complete other tasks, including the pointing of the roof parapet, repairing damaged chimneys, adding new drainage systems and fixing damaged walls.

KPMG has also created a business plan to fund a long-term strategy in repurposing Casemates into a research institute.

The NMB spokeswoman said the museum hoped to create an international hub for Atlantic world studies with other research institutions and universities.