Glenesk Folk Museum is a museum located in the Glen Esk valley, in Tarfside, Angus, Scotland.[2] It is about 9 miles (14 km) north of the village of Edzell. It is housed in a former shooting lodge, known as 'The Retreat',[3] which used to belong to the Earls of Dalhousie.[4] The museum contains artefacts and documents related to the history of the surrounding area. It also has a shop selling locally produced gifts and a tearoom. The museum organises demonstrations of local skills and crafts.
The Museum was established in 1955 by Greta Michie, a local schoolteacher[5] who was inspired by folk museums in Scandinavia. The building used for the museum, known as 'the Retreat', had been constructed as a retirement cottage in the 1840s by Captain J.E. Wemyss.[6][7] It was later expanded and used as a shooting lodge, and later a summer house by the Earls of Dalhousie, before falling into disuse. Lord and Lady Dalhousie assisted with the establishment of the museum on this site.[6]
The museum was refurbished and expanded in 2007.[7]
The museum's artefacts are arranged thematically into rooms, including spaces covering music and costume. There are reconstructions of rooms from the 1850s, including a children's room.[8] The museum also has a document archive for genealogical research, including Census records from 1841 to 1891 and a partial record of births, marriages and deaths in the Glen and the parishes of Edzell and Lethnot.[6] This room has computers.[8]
The museum has a small collection of musical instruments, highlights of which include a trapezoidal Savart-style violin that was played for many years on the streets of Aberdeen by an itinerant musician, and a coach horn known to have been used locally as late as the 1930s on one of the last horse-drawn stagecoaches operating in the United Kingdom.[9]
Since its foundation, the Retreat has sold locally produced goods, and this continues in the gift shop. There is also a cafe offering light refreshments.
The Retreat also has conference facilities, a function room, a nature trail and a children's play area.
Regular craft workshops are run on-site, along with other events which have included music recitals and storytelling.[10]
