Highland Homecoming project gets underway
A programme of special heritage events to celebrate the heritage of the Highland and Moray Council areas during Homecoming Scotland 2014 is to be launched this Thursday (13th February 2014) at the National Trust for Scotland’s Culloden Battlefield and Visitor Centre.
The programme – “My heart’s in the Highlands – will see around 80 events taking place around the area aimed at exploring what makes the area special to people from the Highlands and around the world as well as the development of a new app to promote museums and heritage sites in the area.
The project is being run by the Highland and Moray Museums and Heritage Partnership, a new group bringing together The Highland Council, High Life Highland, the Highland Museums Forum, Moray Heritage Connections and the National Trust for Scotland.
Highlights of the programme will include:
• “Needed on a Journey”– a new exhibition touring the Highlands, exploring what those who left the Highlands took with them, from physical objects to things people carried in their minds such as stories, songs and recipes. There will be lots of accompanying activities and workshops, including displays being put together by local communities, storytelling and ceilidhs.
• “How to find your ancestors” – workshops on ancestry research taking place at various venues around the Highlands.
• “Culloden Homecoming” - kids’ activities, living history, traditional music… an event for the whole family. Culloden Battlefield and Visitor Centre, Saturday 6th and Sunday 7th September 2014.
• Over 30 special local homecoming events at museums and heritage sites across the Highlands and Moray.
• “My heart’s in the Highlands “selfie sessions” - a chance for people to record and upload their thoughts on what the Highlands mean to them.
• The development of a new “My heart’s in the Highlands” app – an easy-to-use iPhone app, due for launch in mid-April 2014, which will help people to find out about museums and heritage sites in the area.
Convener of The Highland Council, Councillor Jimmy Gray said: “This is an exciting and imaginative programme which aims to explore how the past has shaped the Highlands today and given the area a very distinctive cultural heritage which is treasured by many, whether they live here, have family roots here or just like coming here. The project's title is taken from the poem by Robert Burns which includes the lines "My heart's in the Highlands wherever I go". Exploring what has made the Highlands so special in the hearts of so many people is what this project is all about.
“This is the first time that such a range of heritage organisations have worked together in the Highlands and Moray. The focus of the project is not only on running very special Homecoming events but also on providing training and networking opportunities for all the museums and groups taking part in the project to help them increase visitor numbers and attract new audiences.”
The “My heart’s in the Highlands” project has received funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund, Museums Galleries Scotland, the Highland Culture Fund, The Highland Council, the Highland Museums Forum and the National Trust for Scotland. Further details can be found on www.hearthighland.org.