History set to come to life at new museum
Artefacts and insight in OldTown Hall
Trustees of local group Crieff and Strathearn Museum will officially unveil a new heritage showcase inside Crieff’s Old Town Hall this weekend.
The new museum will be open in the High Street venue from 10am until 4pm on Saturday, May 4, and noon until 4pm on Sunday, May 5.
It is then hoped it will be open every Friday, Saturday and Sunday until the end of October.
Entry is free but organisers have said that donations would be appreciated.
Ahead of the opening, Crieff and Strathearn Museum trustee Dorothy Jones said: “The trustees took over the lease for the building in September, 2023, and have been working hard to develop the space ready for it to be opened.
“We are pleased to show our hard work over the last few months and we have developed an exhibition using the donations we have been given to date.
“We would like to thank all involved in getting the museum to this stage, and especially our volunteers and the people who have donated things to the museum – without them the museum would not be ready to open.”
Dorothy continued: “The museum will highlight the diverse culture and history of Strathearn.
“There is so much to choose from but, initially, we will have a display showing the social history of the early 20th century with donations from the Martin Boyle Collection.
“We also have a display on the burgh history, which includes the Provost’s chair and other council memorabilia.
“No museum of Strathearn would be complete without some information on the Drovers’ Tryst, which was held annually in Crieff in the 17th and 18th centuries.
“There are displays of the more modern history of Crieff, as well as the ancient monuments and stocks of Crieff located in the old police cells.”
Dorothy went on to add: “Upstairs, in what was the old council chamber, we have an exhibition of the old railways of Crieff and Strathearn, a children’s corner and a variety of books to browse through on Scotland donated by Peter McNaughton of Canada – whose father lived in Comrie.
“The room will also be used for meetings and events.
“We are still developing the museum and hope to have funding in place to renovate the council chamber over the winter period.”
Annual membership of the Crieff and Strathearn Museum Trust, which is a registered charity, is £12 per year.