Glencoe Folk Museum Proposal - view 2 axo looking north east - cropped.grey roof.png

Glencoe Folk Museum's Redevelopment

Our exciting major redevelopment will be the first since the Museum moved into its current premises over 50 years ago!

We’ve been developing the project since 2019 with extensive consultations among the community, local businesses, other museums and the local authorities.

Our objective is to overhaul the Museum site, balancing the much-loved charm of the current attraction with a modern, fit-for-purpose space in which to share the rich history of Glencoe with visitors.

This project will protect and enhance the historic structures while working to secure our environmental and financial sustainability, ensuring the Museum continues to be a tremendous local asset for the next 50 years and beyond!

You can read our redevelopment Business Plan HERE.

The project has been supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, Historic Environment Scotland and other bodies, and as of June 2026 we have secured £2,800,000 to help make our project plans become reality, and builders are now on site.

WHAT WILL OUR REDEVELOPMENT DO?

Make our Museum fully accessible for the first time, and install brand new facilities including accessible toilets.
Improve the interpretation of the historic cottages and collections, taking care to maintain the ‘quirky’ atmosphere that defines our museum with engaging new displays produced by the exhibition specialists Mather & Co.
Replace our external display area with new, fully-accessible and climate-controlled visitor reception and exhibition spaces – creating a much-needed indoor local attraction and making best use of our tiny site! This is being designed by the conservation architects Peter Drummond Architects and will be sympathetic to the current village views, staying below the level of the cottage roofs and being only slightly visible from the street.
Re-roof and convert a byre outbuilding into the Community Gallery, a flexible space for meetings / research / talks which will enable schools and local groups to produce their own displays in museum-standard conditions. This will allow a regular programme of activities to be scheduled, including low-pressure social drop-in sessions – something for everyone!
Increase our gift shop space and our range of unique and locally-produced items relating to our collections and Glencoe’s heritage and landscape
Maximise environmental sustainability through solar panels and air-source heating to reduce our carbon footprint. An organic roof will provide natural insulation while promoting biodiversity (and look pretty!) E-bike charging points will help promote sustainable tourism.

Every penny helps secure the Museum for future generations to enjoy - please click below to donate to our JustGiving redevelopment appeal - or why not Adopt an Object?

Our Exhibitions

The objects and stories in our Redeveloped Museum will be spread across six areas: Our Cottages, Our Place and Our Land in the new exhibition space, and Our Roots, Our Lives and Our Clans in the Museum cottages.

Our Cottages will tell the story of our beautiful cruck-framed buildings and their history as croft cottages.

Our Place will feature a timeline of the history of Glencoe, starting with the formation of the Glen and bringing things right up to date with objects from the Covid-19 pandemic. This area

will be vibrant, colourful and busy, allowing visitors to explore both local and national history through the years and featuring some of our star objects such as the Funeral Boat, the Replica Ballachulish Goddess, and our Covid Rainbow Sign.

Our Land will examine the connection between people and the landscape, featuring topics such as the Highland Clearances, Crofting, and Gaelic Heritage. Object Highlight: Glencoe Coin Hoard!

Our Roots will celebrate the women who founded our Museum, with a particular focus on Barbara Fairweather. Object Highlight: Oil Painting of Barbara Fairweather.

Our Lives will be dedicated to the people of the area and their daily lives in school, work, and leisure, and will include displays on the Ballachulish Slate Quarries and local GP Doctor Lachlan Grant. Object Highlight: Dr Grant's Desk; Doll's House; Wedding Dress.

Our Clans will spotlight the turbulent history of the local clans, featuring the Jacobite uprisings and an immersive AV about the Massacre of Glencoe. Object Highlight: Stuart Chair; Spitalfields Dress; Robert Campbell's Boot.