With a launch date set for the end of May, The Museum of the Highlands digital learning hub is almost ready for you to explore. MHH Innovation and Network Manager, Nicola Henderson, offers a little background on how we got to this point and the aims of the project.
When the country went into lockdown in 2020, museums across the Highlands (like museums all over the world) looked for new ways to engage with their audiences. Many already had a digital presence, but it was very much secondary to the physical. Now digital was everything. This was particularly true for museum education content. How do you engage with young people and schools when your core asset – your museum – is closed? As a sector, we experimented with downloadable pdfs, online activities and virtual visits, to name a few initiatives. These were very successful, not just with our local audiences but with schools and families across the world. Suddenly, we weren’t just offering resources and activities for our local communities but for anyone, anywhere, who was interested. The potential was huge.
However, many of our small – medium-sized museums already work over capacity. As we began to open up our buildings and demand for in-person interactions rose again, maintaining and capitalising on the opportunity offered by this global reach was challenging.
Museums across the Highlands get together through monthly online ‘Heritage Cafes’ – informal gatherings on Zoom to share challenges, and successes, ask questions and meet with colleagues. The focus of one session was education and our museums. How could we meet this challenge, grabbing the opportunities while maintaining and nurturing local relationships?
Through discussion, we decided that a collaborative approach – a central hub that could host content and point to museums and their unique offers – could be the answer. Sharing the work, sharing the learning, sharing the reach and potential. This idea grew arms and legs. And, thanks to funding from Art Fund and Museums Galleries Scotland, has become the Museum of the Highlands digital learning hub.
Over the last year, we have worked with museums across the Highlands to create a dynamic digital learning hub enabling children, young people and teachers to discover and engage with museum collections in new and exciting ways. Fifteen museums from across the region have collaborated and worked closely with our Digital Learning and Interpretation Specialists by bringing objects from their collections together to create a digital portal into the rich history and culture of the Highlands.
The learning hub will allow users to access museum collections and learning resources related to objects and topics for use at home or in the classroom, with the functionality to contact museums directly to set up virtual or in-person learning visits.
The site is sponsored by Ilum Studio to help with ongoing maintenance costs and to develop new activities in the future. This ongoing support is essential to the project, ensuring that it doesn’t fall to our already overstretched museums to maintain – it will also allow the website to grow and adapt as feedback is received and we are very grateful to the team at Ilum Studio for supporting us through year 1.
The team of Rosie Goodwin and Freya Samuel as Digital Learning and Interpretation Specialists, have led the curation of the objects and designing the associated learning games and resources in partnership with teachers and young people. In the lead up to the launch of the website, Freya and Rosie will introduce you to the process and types of activities you will find on the site.
I am excited to share the project with you – it is no small task working with the collections of fifteen museums and ensuring content and activities meet the needs of teachers and parents. I believe we have created an engaging, fun and, most importantly, user-friendly site that will support schools, families and museums to engage meaningfully with museum collections in the classroom.
Many, but not all, Highland Museums close or reduce their hours during the winter season, giving them time to care for their collections, research new exhibitions and take time to plan for the future. As Easter approaches many of our museums are getting ready to welcome visitors once again.
Whether they close completely, reduce their hours or keep on going as normal, Highland museums always see the Easter holidays as a chance for a re-awakening. A chance to encourage you to rediscover their collections, visit a new exhibition, attend some exciting events or just pop in for a chat. Whether you are a local or a visitor to the area, you can be guaranteed a warm and friendly welcome. We have a handy map on this website that can help you see where our museums are located as you plan your visit and their listings have contact details so that you can reach out directly to see what is happening and when they are open. Visit the map here.
Two of our museums have some very exciting events coming up. Clyne Heritage Society are celebrating 25 years in existence and have an extensive and fascinating series of events to mark the occasion. You can view a full list of what’s happening here.
And just a little further north in Castletown, Castlehill Heritage Centre is launching a new exhibition to also celebrate an anniversary. Mucking in for 100 years! will feature themed displays of stories, photographs, tools and implements from CHC’s local Olrig parish farming heritage. The exhibition is being run in conjunction with the Caithness District Young Farmers Association which is celebrating its centenary this year.
Museum and heritage representatives will gather in Inverness for our first Highland Heritage Conference. Sealladh will take place at Inverness Creative Academy on the 20th – 21st April, 2023.
The conference will focus on issues impacting our heritage sector. Alongside presentations by delegates from across the Highlands, speakers from national organisations Museums and Galleries Scotland, National Lottery Heritage Fund and Museums Association will share invaluable insights into resourcing our heritage and empowering our workforce.
Anyone who works or volunteers in the heritage sector is welcome to attend.
The event is organised by Museums and Heritage Highland, a charity formed in 2019 to promote collaborative working and provide a supportive voice for the Highland heritage sector. It is supported through the Museums Galleries Scotland Forums Fund project and is made possible with The National Lottery Heritage Fund, thanks to National Lottery players. The event is further supported by Smartify, the world’s most downloaded museum app, and Highland Tourism CIC, who are working with the sector to create a world-leading sustainable destination and premium environmental tourism brand.
Nicola Henderson, Museums and Heritage Highlands Digital Innovation and Network Manager, said:
“The conference schedule is packed with sessions focusing on innovation and digital skills, managing capital projects, caring for collections and fundraising. There are also discussions around tourism in the Highlands underpinned by rich heritage as well as well-being in museums.
“The first session will be a fun ice breaker, where we will learn more about the diversity of skills in the sector, the professional needs of our heritage colleagues and how we bring those two together. We are planning a ‘Pecha Kucha’ inviting delegates to present a project and discuss how they have responded to the demands of the last few years. We will also discuss complex issues such as the decolonisation of museums and how we ensure our collections are accessible and representative of all society today.”
“The event is an opportunity to discuss and develop plans for the future of our heritage sector. That’s where the event name came from, Sealladh, meaning perspective or view in Gaelic.”
Helen Avenell, Museums and Heritage Highlands Projects and Partnerships Manager, added:
“Our network of museums, galleries and heritage organisations reaches from Strathnaver on the North coast to Gairloch, Granton and Glencoe. Over the past few years, we have held regular online meet-ups, this is the first conference we have organised. We are excited to see our colleagues from across the Highlands in person and looking forward to meeting new members. I encourage anyone working or volunteering in museums or heritage organisations to come along.
“Although we are a Highland-based organisation, many topics we will focus on are relevant to every heritage organisation. We hope to attract heritage delegates from beyond the Highland region to Inverness for this event.”
There will be a screening of Dùthchas – Home, a touching and emotive exploration of what it meant, and still means, to people, especially women, to have to leave the island of their birth to get an education, work, and live. In this, the third documentary feature film ever to be made in Gaelic, Co-directors Kirsty MacDonald (Comas Creative) and Andy Mackinnon (UistFilm) explore the effect this movement had on the Gaelic language and culture of the Isle of Berneray in the Outer Hebrides.
Sealladh – Highland Heritage Conference, takes place 20th and 21st April, 2023 in Inverness. Programme info and tickets are available via Eventbrite
More information on our sponsors:
Highland Tourism CIC
Together we will create a world-leading premium environmental tourism brand. With communities, our ambassadors and partners, we will build on the Highlands’ natural, historic and cultural assets and showcase them to the world. We will work in partnership with stakeholders across all sectors to create a dynamic environment in which tourism businesses and their communities are supported and encouraged to become conscious hosts, ready to deliver the exceptional, immersive and authentic experiences that the growing conscious tourism market is now seeking. Ultimately, we will leverage this vision of a sustainable, wellbeing destination to position The Highlands as one of the world’s most inspiring and welcoming places to live, work, visit, study and invest. highlandtourism.org
Smartify
Smartify connects people to art. Trusted by cultural organisations around the world; we entertain, enliven and enrich audiences. Because when we’re inspired, we’re unstoppable.
Smartify’s innovative technology and engaging storytelling makes cultural heritage accessible for a global audience. Our expert creative team delivers the best mobile experiences with highly engaging stories through audio, video and podcasts. Smartify productions are contemporary, thoughtful and entertaining.
More than 2 million artworks from the world’s greatest museums have been scanned on the platform, accessed by more than 3 million registered users through state-of-the-art object recognition, digital wayfinding and augmented reality. That, combined with speed, reliability and depth, makes Smartify the world’s most successful museum application. smartify.org
There have been a few changes on the MHH board recently. At the end of last year we sadly said goodbye to our secretary Graham Watson. Graham was a great asset to the organisation and helped us find our feet in the early days. His advice and cander was very much appreciated and we wish him well in his next endeavours. We have had a few free places on the board for a while and so undertook a campaign to encourage new people to join the network – in particular with skills in marketing/audience development, tourism and HR. We received a positive response to this call out and have added 4 new members in recent weeks. Welcome to Ben Thomas, Joe Derry Setch, Sophie Foot and Jason Martin. We are delighted to add such a variety of skills and experience to the board and look forward to working with them on our shared mission of helping Highland heritage to thrive.
Ben Thomas Ben is Research Manager at Historic Environment Scotland, where he undertakes and supports research to understand the values and benefits of Scotland’s heritage. He is particularly interested in community heritage and intangible cultural heritage, and is Principal Investigator on the Arts and Humanities Research Council-funded Outreach to Ownership community research pilot with Historic England. Ben has previously worked at Highlands and Islands Enterprise, and the University of Dundee. In his spare time, Ben is a board member of Gairloch Museum, and the editor of the Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness. He grew up in Gairloch, and lives and works in Inverness.
Joe Derry Setch Joe is a Marketing and Communications Officer at Museums Galleries Scotland (MGS), the national development body for museums. His work at MGS involves creating digital content, planning campaigns, taking photos, and offering marketing advice. He is interested in exploring how museums can improve the accessibility and inclusivity of their digital and physical spaces, particularly with regard to LGBTQ+ history and culture. As a member of the MHH board, he hopes to support museums which are exploring their approaches to marketing, accessibility, and inclusivity. Previous jobs include front-of-house work at National Museums Scotland and a museum assistant role at Inverness Museum and Art Gallery. He has a background in Scottish early modern history, and spends his free time drawing, gaming, and playing badminton.
Joe Derry SetchBen Thomas
Sophie Foot Sophie is originally from the Scottish Highlands, north of Inverness and now lives in The Hague, The Netherlands. Her academic background is in Ancient History and Egyptology, but she is fascinated by most areas of global history, ancient or modern and connections that are visible across cultures and time periods. I moved to Edinburgh for my Bachelors Degree in Ancient History, and then to The Netherlands for my Masters in Egyptology. Sophie brings experience in the creative and technology industries. She is interested in combining technology with history and heritage in innovative ways, to encourage audiences to be more engaged in heritage, especially using immersive technology to allow the audience to feel like they are participating in historical events. Sophie is our new secretary.
Jason Martin Jason recently returned to his hometown of Inverness having lived in Edinburgh for several years. He originally studied MA in historical studies at the University of Glasgow. He started his career in heritage as a volunteer at Culloden battlefield before joining the team as a learning assistant for a season, primarily guiding and working with school groups. Jason went on to work for Mercat Tours, 5 star award winning walking tour company in Edinburgh, before moving on to tour operator with Absolute Escapes, in their operations department planning holidays around the UK. His current position is Destination Development Manager at the Cairngorms Business Partnership, the Chamber of Commerce and they operate VisitCairngorms. Jason is involved in various projects around the National Park, leading the development of CBP climate action plan, product development, business engagement and brings experience in marketing and working with travel trade.
We are very excited to launch our first residential weekend offering peer-to-peer support for Museum Managers and Curators
When Friday 24th February (6pm-ish) – Sunday 26th February (11am-ish)
Where Kirkmichael Apartments, Kirkmichael near Pitlochry What A 2-day professional development opportunity for early to mid career curator/managers in the Highlands.
Curator/managers often find themselves focusing on the organisational aspects of their roles, caught up in a never-ending list of deadlines, unanswered emails, evaluations and budgetary concerns. The aim of this residency is to give them the opportunity to share their experiences, enrich their practice and explore in depth issues, concerns, possibilities and opportunities in a safe non-judgmental environment.
The residency will include:
Facilitated getting to know each other time
One-to-one skills sharing sessions
One-to-one idea sharing with peer response
Group discussion and problem solving
MHH understands that some participants may have genuine concerns about sharing their ideas or challenges with others. While all participants should know in advance that some degree of sharing is key to gaining as much as possible from the workshops, it is also understood that there is some need for privacy and you will not be asked to discuss anything that you would prefer to keep private.
This residency will be supported and facilitated by Tamsin Russell. Tamsin is based in Fife and has worked in the cultural sector for over 20 years leading on learning and professional development from formal leadership programmes to action learning sets, from careers advice to coaching. Tamsin joins with an understanding of the sector, and the Scottish landscape specifically.
‘I am really delighted to be holding this space for curator/ managers, my philosophy has always been if we all share, we all learn – and this programme is grounded on that belief.’
Eligibility The course will be open to a maximum of 6 curator/managers, who will be chosen by application. Participants will be selected based upon their shared needs and stage of career: it is hoped that participants will be working at a similar level to maximise their opportunities for sharing experiences and learning. The course is open to all those who have some experience working as a curator/manager for at least 1 year. You must also be resident in the Highlands & Islands or Moray at the time of application.
Costs All residential costs (accommodation and meals) will be covered by Museums and Heritage Highland. Participants are only required to pay an attendance fee of £50 (£100 for non-members) and cover their own travel expenses to Pitcairlie House (we will organise car-sharing for this to reduce costs as much as possible).
This opportunity is funded through the Museums Galleries Scotland Forum’s Fund project and is made possible with The National Lottery Heritage Fund. Thanks to National Lottery players.
How to Apply Please send a current CV and personal support statement explaining why you would like to take part (in particular, why now?), think about what you would want to leave the weekend knowing/feeling/being able to do and please state what skills you would like to share and the key issue you would like to discuss with the group.
This opportunity is open to all. If you have any access requirements please include these in your personal statement so that we can ensure your needs are met.
Museums and Heritage Highland (MHH) is a new charity formed in March 2019. We are a strong, supportive voice for heritage in the Highlands. Our members include museums, galleries and heritage organisations of all sizes from across the region. We work to promote collaborative working and capacity building; promoting partnership opportunities that support our members achieve their purpose and to be sustainable and resilient in challenging times.
We are seeking new Board members to join our existing Board of Trustees, which provides support, advice, expertise, and ideas to ensure good governance and healthy practice.
We are looking for people who have experience and skills in the following areas:
Fundraising – public, private and commercial
Marketing/PR
Tourism
Accounting
Human Resources
Strategy development
We want to remove barriers that may prevent people from accessing or participating in our work. For this reason, we encourage applications from individuals from groups that are underrepresented in the sector due to age, disability, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, faith or belief, education, or socio-economic background.
The successful candidates will have:
An understanding of and interest in Highland heritage and tourism
Excellent relationship-building and communication skills
Strong ability to work collaboratively
Knowledge of or interest in MHH work
One or more of the key skills we are looking for (listed above)
Previous Board experience is not essential.
Museums and Heritage Highland Board meets six times a year (mostly online, but occasionally in person meetings may be required, usually in the Inverness area). In addition to attending meetings, Board members are asked to give an additional two days (minimum) of their time over the course of each year towards assisting the organisation in its aims, and to attend events or trainings provided to support the Board’s development or their knowledge of the work of MHH.
MHH is an equal opportunities organisation. We will work with short-listed candidates to ensure their access needs are met during the recruitment process and will ensure that access requirements are not a factor in our decision-making.
Museums and Heritage Highland (MHH) is a registered SCIO formed in March 2019. Scottish Charity Number SC049088.
How to Apply
Please send your note of interest to danieljosephcottam@gmail.com and include a bit about your background and why you’re interested in joining the team. Please also tell us if you are specifically interested in applying for an office bearer position (chair, secretary, treasurer). This should be no longer than 1 A4 page, or 2 minutes audio/video file, sent (via link if a large file) to the email address above.
If you have any questions about the role or would like to speak with a member of the team, please email Dan Cottam at danieljosephcottam@gmail.com
The Clan Macpherson Museum, situated at the south end of Newtonmore, tells the story of the Clan and its people. It has housed the relics and memorials, from ancient Highland history to modern computer science, for over 70 years.
The newly refurbished exhibition tells a story of land and landscape, family and belonging, loyalty and rebellion. You will find fascinating Clan treasures like the Black Chanter sent down from heaven, witness stories like the one of Macpherson’s lament and Jamie’s broken fiddle, or learn about the reinvention of the Highlands by James ‘Ossian’ Macpherson.
Clan-history is told by a long line of tradition bearers and storytellers, part of the oral culture of the Gaelic world, the Gàidhealtachd. From Clan Chiefs to crofters, the story of the Macphersons and the area is told through books, poetry, songs, piping and fiddle music.
We invited Catriona, curator at Glencoe Folk Museum, to talk to us about the journey they have been on with the Steps to Sustainability programme.
In 2021, we were successful in our application to take part in Steps to Sustainability – a programme run by Social Enterprise Academy and supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
The aim of the programme was to support organisations through a specific project of their own choosing, through a combination of workshops, facilitated sessions, discussions and networking. Following successful completion of the programme – and delivery of a presentation outlining plans, costs and profit – each organisation was awarded £5000 towards their project, with a further £5000 promised further down the line, provided we could evidence that our project was a success.
We chose to focus our project on our gift shop. An issue we have always had (and maybe something other Highland Museums can relate to) is a lack of funds at the start of the season to invest in shop stock, and not wanting to risk spending money on products that might not sell well. The money from this programme allowed us the freedom to experiment with new lines, commission our own bespoke products based on objects from the collection, cover high “minimum spend” for new sellers, and put in much larger initial orders to keep us well stocked.
With the first £5000, we commissioned Paper Houses Design to create a pattern inspired by our Spitalfields Silk Dress (as featured in Highland Threads), which we then had printed on tote bags, tea towels, mugs and silk scarves. We also invested in local artist Lilli (Discover & Draw), who uses the local landscape to inspire her work, and sells items including mugs, bags, cards, stickers, water bottles and coasters. Finally, local model-maker Jodie created Ballachulish Goddess keyrings for us, based on our replica. These were probably the most popular out of all of these items – a completely unique and quirky souvenir of the area and the museum! Seeing how each of these products sold allowed us to determine how to spend the remaining £5000. We could see that visitors appreciated unique items which had a strong Glencoe connection – whether to the museum, the community who created them or to the landscape. Our most unique selling point is our museum cottages, so we decided to commission “museum bothies” – little thatched ceramic double-cottages in the style of our museum. These were created by Glenshee Bothies, and we also invested in their pre-existing coloured bothies, tin-roofed bothies and single-cottage thatched bothies.
We also invested in some local businesses: we bought a range of soy candles from the Glencoe Candle Company, local heather honey from Jahama Estate, a selection of loose-leaf teas made just along the road in Mallaig and jewellery by a local crafter. We were also able to stock up on more Ballachulish Goddess keyrings and more items from Discover & Draw. Finally, we expanded our children’s range. This is something I feel that the gift shop has been lacking for a while, but sellers seemed to have quite large minimum orders and minimum spend for new retailers. The funding allowed us to stock a wide selection risk-free. We opted for Living Nature soft toys of local wildlife and a range of retro ‘pocket-money’ toys such as slinkies, cup-and-ball, pick-up-sticks and spinning tops.
I have to admit that I found the programme itself a little time-consuming, though I was the only member of staff at the time (colleague was furloughed) so was trying to juggle a lot of balls and hadn’t quite realised what I was signing up for. It consisted of two back-to-back full day Zoom sessions each month for 3 months plus extra optional courses on things like marketing or retail, one-to-one mentoring sessions and also time spent preparing the presentation. It was all really useful stuff though, and for organisations with dedicated members of staff running e.g. the gift shop or café, this should be much more manageable and shouldn’t cause any issues! The organisations taking part in the same round as us – which included the Andrew Carnegie Birthplace Museum, Dundee Transport Museum and Mary Burgh Halls – all agreed that it was extremely useful to be able to connect with other museums running similar projects, and to get advice and discuss problems with peers. I also found that our mentor was extremely knowledgeable and full of great ideas for taking things forward after the end of the programme.
So, despite the long sessions, this programme was absolutely worth it for us. Our gift shops sales and profit have increased remarkably; in June 2022, we saw a 190% increase in profit from the gift shop compared to June 2019, and every other month has been at least 50% up on 2019. I put this down to having a retail offer that is unique, thoughtful and local, giving visitors the opportunity to purchase souvenirs that they can’t get anywhere else – and we wouldn’t have been able to create this offer without the funding and support from the Steps to Sustainability programme.
Round 3 of the Steps to Sustainability programme is starting in October 2022. You can find out more here.
A Podcast series run by XpoNorth with support from Museums and Heritage Highland will share stories of remarkable women from the Highlands.
A jewel thief, a witch, a doctor and an inspirational teacher are just some of the stories of incredible Highland women which will be revealed from museum archives and broadcast to audiences around the world in a new ten-part podcast series set to air later this year.
Run by XpoNorth, the support mechanism for creative industry businesses across the Highlands and Islands, in partnership with Museums and Heritage Highland and supported by the Year of Stories 2022 Community Stories Fund, the series will be presented by freelance BBC producer, reporter and podcaster, Pauline Moore.
Pauline Moore, freelence BBC producer, reporter and podcaster
As part of her research for the series, Pauline and the team from XpoNorth will host events across the Highlands to share stories with communities, interview the ‘keepers’ of the tales, and hold information gathering sessions to help complete the picture. The importance and relevance of the tales uncovered will be discussed, and the first event will take place on Tuesday June 21 at the Highland Museums of Childhood. At this event the story of the notorious Mary Marjory MacDonald will be told. The only child of a local Gaelic speaking fishing family, Mary was orphaned in her teens and took to London society, travelling across Europe to become a very successful jewel thief. Gaining the trust of the ladies she worked with, Mary stole from them and was caught and tried a number of times. The event will hear Pauline in discussion with Siobhan Beatson, curator at Ullapool Museum, and Morven Macdonald, curator at Highland Museum of Childhood, to uncover Mary’s story.
Other events will take place on June 23 at Brora Heritage Centre where an audience will learn about Megan Boyd, one of the best salmon fly fish tyers to have lived, and about Caroline Ross, a single schoolteacher who concealed her pregnancy and delivered her illegitimate child alone in her lodgings in a rural community in the Scottish Highlands in 1930. Caroline was arrested and charged with child murder and the case was widely reported at the time.
An event in Castletown on June 24 will discuss Margaret Swanson who influenced the education of generations of girls with her interest in the physical and mental development of children. The story of Orkney doctor and photographer, Beatrice Garvie (1872 – 1956), will be told on June 28 at an event which will be held on Zoom from the Orkney Archive Centre, and the story of ‘The Witch of Auldearn’, Isobel Gowdie, will be explored on June 30 at Nairn Museum.
Julia Jeffrey drawing of Isobel Gowdie
Nicola Henderson, heritage specialist from XpoNorth said, “It is a real joy to unearth these tales of remarkable Highland women and the podcast series will be a brilliant mechanism in which to do so. We are very much looking forward to bringing the stories alive and it will be fascinating to discover any forgotten memories about the six women when we visit the communities to re-tell their stories.”
This event and podcast series has been supported by the Year of Stories 2022 Community Stories Fund. This fund is being delivered in partnership between VisitScotland and Museums Galleries Scotland with support from National Lottery Heritage Fund thanks to National Lottery players.
Marie Christie, Head of Development at VisitScotland, said, “We are delighted to be supporting Unforgotten Highland Women through the Year of Stories 2022 Community Stories Fund. Events play an important role in our communities as they sustain livelihoods and help to celebrate and promote our unique places, spaces and stories. Themed Years are all about collaboration and Museums Galleries Scotland, National Lottery Heritage Fund and VisitScotland are pleased to work in partnership to create this fund to showcase community stories. By supporting events taking place within our communities, including Unforgotten Highland Women, new opportunities with be provided for locals and visitors to come together and find out more about the diverse stories, past and present, that our communities have to share.”
About XpoNorth
XpoNorth is Highlands and Islands Enterprise’s (HIE) specialist year-round support mechanism for creative industry businesses based across the Highlands and Islands. The project delivers a range of responsive programmes to encourage the continued growth and innovation of the creative economy throughout one of the country’s most diverse regions. XpoNorth also produce a well-established annual conference connecting our business base with some of the most influential networks in the global marketplace.
XpoNorth is funded by Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) and is delivered by IronWorks Venue.
About Museums and Heritage Highland
Museums and Heritage Highland (MHH) is a membership organisation for museums, galleries and heritage organisations from across the Highlands. They exist to strengthen the heritage sector in the Highlands for the benefit of everyone living in and visiting the Highlands. Projects are drawn from their membership with the key aim of helping museums and other heritage organisations raise standards, engage with more people, collaborate with each other and be sustainable and resilient.
Further information about each event
Unforgotten Highland Women – Mary Marjory MacDonald, Ullapool
21st June, 10.30am Highland Museum of Childhood, Strathpeffer
How is a notorious story which would have been thought of as shameful and shunned at the time remembered now? Mary Marjory was the only child of a local Gaelic speaking fishing family who had a successful business in town. She was orphaned in her teens and took to London society, travelled across Europe and became a very successful jewel thief – gaining the trust of the Ladies she worked with in high society circles. She was caught and tried a number of times, including on the platform at Strathpeffer Old Railway Station where this event will be held.
Pauline will be in conversation with Siobhan Beatson, curator at Ullapool Museum and Morven Macdonald, curator Highland Museum of Childhood to uncover Mary’s story. There will be opportunities to explore the platform where she was caught, look at the museum display in her memory, enjoy some tea and cake and to be interviewed for the podcast, giving your thoughts on the story.
Unforgotten Highland Women – Megan Boyd and Caroline Ross, Brora
23rd June, 1pm Brora Heritage Centre, Brora
Megan Boyd – fly fisher (born 1915)
Though she never fished herself she is regarded as the finest tier of fishing flies in the world. She took to the craft of creating fish flies under the supervision of a Sutherland gamekeeper. She won her first award in 1938 at the Empire Exhibition in Glasgow and received the British Empire Medal in 1971. Discussions are taking place about commissioning an art installation in her memory and erecting it at one of the gateways to the village of Brora. The move came after a Norwegian angler and Megan Boyd devotee made a pilgrimage to Brora to pay homage to her, but was shocked to find nothing about her there.
Caroline Ross (1904-1985)
Caroline Ross was a 26-year-old, single schoolteacher who concealed her pregnancy and delivered her ‘illegitimate’ child alone in her room in her lodgings in a rural community in the Highlands of Scotland in 1930. The child was discovered dead the same day.
She was put in custody and charged with Child Murder and appeared in court three months later. The case was widely reported in the papers at the time. Writer and historian Nick Lindsay writes that – ninety years on and the sense of the stress and tension of the terrifying court case in which she spoke not a single word of evidence, is tangible. The medical evidence appeared damning; the cause of the infant’s death was throttling, but the jury delivered a verdict of ‘Not Proven’. An absolute cliff-hanger to the end! It’s an extremely sad story with a tragic outcome but it illustrates a lot about attitudes and lack of support for young woman who found themselves pregnant at the time. The court case was a media sensation at the time. How can stories like this be remembered and reflect on changing attitudes?
Pauline will interview Nick Lindsay, author and chair of Clyne Heritage Society. Pauline and Nick will be joined by Mary Warrier for Megan’s story and by Wattie and Angela Macbeath for Caroline’s story. There will be an opportunity to look at objects related to the stories and enjoy a cup of tea.
Unforgotten Highland Women – Margaret Swanson
24th June, 1pm Castlehill Heritage Centre, Castletown
Margaret grew up in Castletown, Caithness, the daughter of the village cobbler. Despite her humble beginnings she went on to influence the education of generations of girls. After early schooling at the local school, Margaret was sent to board with an elderly lady to allow her to attend Wick Academy for further education. She became a pupil teacher in the town and embarked on teacher training in Aberdeen. She stayed in Scotland when her family emigrated to Nova Scotia. It was her interest in the physical and mental development of children which allowed her to change the “Code “ or requirements for sewing on the School Curriculum. The emphasis at the time was on the fineness of stitching on a delicate white material. This Margaret declared to be as meaningless as using black chalk on a blackboard. She became an instructor in the Glasgow school of Art, Charles Rennie MacIntosh was among her associates. She developed the “ Margaret Swanson System of Educational Needlework” revolutionising its teaching in Britain and abroad. Children were encouraged to choose the bright colours of thread they preferred , learning to stitch on unbleached calico with wool and cotton. Older girls were shown how to make their own embroidered garments, allowing imagination and creativity . Margaret continued to travel, research ,lecture and learn until ill-health put an end to her devotion to her craft.
Pauline will interview Muriel Murray who first learned of Margaret’s story. There will be an exhibition of objects related to Margaret on display for everyone to peruse over the tea and cake break. We will also be joined by the local school and local crafts groups as the audience is invited to make their own ‘sampler’ in Margaret’s memory
Unforgotten Highland Women – Beatrice Garvie
28th June, 11am – Zoom from Orkney Archive Centre
The Orkney Doctor and Photographer – Beatrice Garvie (1872-1956), was one of the earliest women to qualify as a doctor, and worked in Glasgow, India, and London. She understood the links between poverty and ill health, and was prepared to champion equal entitlement to healthcare, even when it meant putting herself on the line. Beatrice spent 15 years on North Ronaldsay as the GP in the 1930s, and 40s. She was a keen photographer and took lots of pictures of everyday life. Local people were well used to Beatrice and her camera, and would ask her to capture the important moments of family life for them. This work is now an important and unusually privileged record of island history.
Pauline Moore, BBC producer and reporter and experienced podcaster, will be joined by Fiona Sanderson, artist and researcher, as they talk with special guests linked to Beatrice directly. This event will be held on Zoom and recorded for use in an upcoming podcast series. Link details to follow
Unforgotten Highland Women – Isobel Gowdie
30th June, 1pm, Nairn Museum, Nairn
The Witch of Auldearn – Isobel Gowdie (17th century) The story of Isobel Gowdie is embedded in the world of academia as part of the Scottish Witch Trial accounts. Her story has also featured in a music composition by James McMillan. And most recently an American novelist (Nancy Hayes Kilgore )has recently published a novel – Bitter Magic – based on Isobel’s life. What makes Isobel’s story different is that she confessed her witchcraft without the usual torture imposed. She was regarded as a great story teller and her story has influenced later studies of witchcraft.
Pauline will be in conversation with Melissa Davies, curator of Nairn Museum, Andrew Grant Mackenzie, Highland Historian and Helen Wright who designed the mural to Isobel that can be found in Auldearn. There will also be an opportunity to view some objects related to withcraft from the local area.
The Witch of Auldearn – Isobel Gowdie (17th century). The story of Isobel Gowdie is embedded in the world of academia as part of the Scottish Witch Trial accounts. Her story has also featured in a music composition by James McMillan and most recently an American novelist (Nancy Hayes Kilgore )has recently published a novel – Bitter Magic – based on Isobel’s life. What makes Isobel’s story different is that she confessed her witchcraft without the usual torture imposed. She was regarded as a great story teller and her story has influenced later studies of witchcraft.
Pauline Moore, BBC producer and reporter and experienced podcaster, will be in conversation with Melissa Davies, curator of Nairn Museum, Andrew Grant Mackenzie, Highland Historian and Helen Wright who designed the mural to Isobel that can be found in Auldearn. There will also be an opportunity to view some objects related to witchcraft from the local area.
This event has been supported by the Year of Stories 2022 Community Stories Fund. This fund is being delivered in partnership between VisitScotland and Museums Galleries Scotland with support from National Lottery Heritage Fund thanks to National Lottery players.
