Auchindrain Township ***

Region: Argyll & The Isles

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© Copyright David Hawgood and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence

Description:

Auchindrain Township is an open-air folk life museum of the West Highlands. Unlike many such open-air building museums, this was a real village. It was the only communal tenancy township in Scotland to survive on its same site and mostly in its original form. Its history dates back over 1000 years.

The houses were designed to hold livestock at one end during the cold months while the family lived at the other end. A kitchen garden provided vegetables and fruit for the family.The buildings have been restored and are furnished in various periods. There is a visitor centre with displays on West Highland life of the past.

The township retains much of the character and layout of a traditional township – a random scatter of simple buildings set in a landscape that has changed relatively little in centuries. The preserved buildings give an authentic insight into how people lived and worked. There’s nothing staged or glossy, and what you see creates a powerful picture of the lives of ordinary people. You can wander freely around the houses and farm buildings. The houses are furnished with everyday objects and you’ll find old farming tools and implements in the barns. It feels as if the people have just gone out for the day.