Strathnaver Museum launch fundraising appeal to raise £30,000

Strathnaver Museum need £30,000 to help realise their vision of creating a world class visitor attraction and community heritage hub for north west Sutherland.

The regionally important B listed historic building which houses Strathnaver Museum is in urgent need of repair and maintenance to prevent it falling into disrepair. Trustees are concerned that the deteriorating condition of the building could threaten the collection and see it having to be removed and put into storage.

The £30,000 the group hope to raise through Crowdfunder.co.uk will be used alongside secured grant funding to refurbish Strathnaver Museum and create a community heritage hub. Alongside the much needed repair and maintenance work, the project will see the creation of more public gallery space, a research room, and the building of an annex to house agricultural exhibits and a workshop space.

Strathnaver Museum is a popular visitor attraction on the North Coast 500 and welcomed over 6,000 visitors in 2019. Opening in 1976 it is a community run fully accredited local history museum telling the story of the Highland Clearances and the social history of north west Sutherland.

Located in the former Church of St Columba, Strathnaver Museum’s building is an important piece in the story of the Highland Clearances. It was here that eviction notices were read out to members of the congregation and later where crofters gathered to give evidence to the Napier Commission. This eventually led to the crofters gaining security of tenure.

The project will help protect the future of the building by removing the cement render from the exterior of the building returning it to how it would have looked when it was built. The team are excited about what they might find hidden below the render which could include decorative stones around the windows. A bridge link will be erected to join the west and east upper floors and recreate the view that would have been afforded to those in the galleries which were removed in 1882.

The project will improve the visitor experience by making the building more accessible, installing new displays and interpretation panels, increasing access to the collection by creating a public research room and installing heating to make the museum more comfortable for volunteers and visitors.

At the heart of the project is the need to ensure the museum is economically sustainable. The project will enable Strathnaver Museum to welcome more visitors throughout the year and create a larger retail area as an outlet for high quality local produce which will be developed exclusively for the museum. 

Fiona Mackenzie, Project Manager says “For over 40 years the hard working volunteers at Strathnaver Museum have been delivering museum services to the local community and visitors alike but they now need help to continue. The investment in the museum will help create a warm and inviting space for visitors and ensure the museum continues to protect and promote the local heritage of north west Sutherland for generations to come”.

The team are offering some exciting rewards as part of their Crowd Funder from money off vouchers, exclusive behind the scenes tours and the chance to have your name displayed in the refurbished museum. You can contribute to the Crowd Funder here: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/refurbishment-of-strathnaver-museum