Campbeltown Heritage Centre facts for kids
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| Established | 1995 |
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| Location | 3 Big Kiln St, Campbeltown PA28 6JF, United Kingdom |
| Type | Museum and Heritage Centre |
The Campbeltown Heritage Centre is a fantastic museum and heritage centre located in Campbeltown, Scotland. It's the main place to discover the social history of the Kintyre Peninsula, showing how people lived from around the 1700s right up to today. A group called the Kintyre Amenity Trust runs this interesting centre.
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Discover the Centre's Story
The Kintyre Amenity Trust (KAT) started in 1998. Their goal was to take over the old Lorne Street Church and turn it into a heritage centre. This new centre would show off the social history of Campbeltown. It would work alongside the existing Campbeltown Museum, which focused more on ancient history and nature.
How Campbeltown Became Successful
With help from grants and local people, the trust created a museum that highlights Campbeltown's past success. This town once had the highest income per person in all of Scotland! This wealth came from many things, like the busy herring fishing industry, coal mining, shipbuilding, whisky making, and farming. Many local people donated items, making the museum's collection truly special.
The Tartan Kirk
The building itself, the Lorne Street Church, was built way back in 1868. It was designed by an architect named James Boucher. What makes it really unique is its stripy pattern on the front. Different coloured stones were used, which quickly earned the church the nickname "The Tartan Kirk" – like a Scottish tartan!
New Additions and Displays
In 2012, the Kintyre Amenity Trust opened Campbeltown Backpackers. This hostel helps bring in a little money to support the museum's activities. In 2016, the centre celebrated "The Year of Scottish Architecture." They showed old pictures of important Campbeltown buildings. These photos were taken by the McGory Brothers, who were pioneer photographers in the early 1900s.
What You Can See at the Centre
The Campbeltown Heritage Centre is packed with exhibits about the social history of the area. You can learn about the ships that visited Campbeltown, including steamers and navy vessels. The town used to export many things, like coal, whisky, and herring. Shipbuilding was also a very important industry here.
Coal Mining and Railways
People have been mining coal in Kintyre since the 1400s! Even though the coal wasn't the best quality, it was still a popular export. You can see a cool model village that includes a light railway. This railway used to run between Machrihanish and Campbeltown.
Farming Life
A special farming display shows 400 years of farming in Kintyre. It highlights the dairy and meat industries, which are still very important for the area's success today.
Famous Local Artist
You can also learn about William McTaggart. He was a very popular artist and one of Scotland's best landscape painters. His beautiful artwork was inspired by the amazing coastal views around Campbeltown.
The Minenwerfer Display
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In 2016, a very rare German 17 cm mittlerer Minenwerfer was put on display outside the heritage centre. A Minenwerfer is a type of bomb thrower or mortar. This particular one was carefully preserved. It's thought to be one of only about eight examples left in the entire world!
