Katie Mullen, fundraising officer at the Glencoe Folk Museum, was the guest speaker at this month’s Rotary business lunch meeting.
Katie recalled the early days of the museum when local stalwarts Barbara Fairweather
and Rae Grant felt that “they” ought to create a museum to record daily life and tell
the story of this historic village.
As there was no “they” forthcoming, “they” did it themselves.
Many Rotarians remembered Rae and Barbara.
The museum comprises two cottages on the Main Street, restored from dereliction, with whitewashed rubble stone walls and heather thatched roofs. They were built in the 1800s and last lived in in the 1950s.
Thanks to local initiative, the building was rescued, given a new life and purpose, and opened as a museum in 1971.
Katie explained that the museum houses a collection of over 6,000 documents, items
and artefacts and recently closed to allow a substantial £2m upgrade.
Among the collection are Jacobite relics, costumes, paintings, agricultural implements, medical equipment and the unique history of the local area including the infamous Massacre of Glencoe (with one of the riding boots belonging to Robert Campbell when his regiment carried out the massacre).
The upgraded and enlarged museum will re-open in 2025. It will enable the collection to be displayed to advantage, the museum will be better able to accommodate groups
(including school parties) and events, it will have public toilets and will be fully disabled
accessible.
On behalf of Rotary, Past-President John Harvey thanked Katie for her interesting and
engaging presentation and added: “As a nearby resident I haven’t visited the museum
often enough”. Members responded with warm applause.