Tain & District Museum

Tain & District Museum is home to an extensive and varied collection of objects, photographs and archives of local, regional and national significance. Because of the relatively limited exhibition space, only a small proportion of the collection is on display at any one time. Material not on display can be viewed on request, if adequate prior notice is given. To get a real flavour of our collection visit 'The Collections' section in our website.

The museum is housed in what was once the caretaker's cottage for the collegiate church and churchyard. It was built in the 1880s following the restoration of the collegiate church. The building opened as the town's museum in 1966 to coincide with the celebration of the 900th anniversary of the town's first charter. Its first curator was Rosemary Mackenzie, who had been gathering local material since the 1950s, and was still actively involved up until her death in a tragic accident on March 1st, 2004.

Among the rarest items in the collection are examples of silverware made in Tain in the 18th and 19th centuries. The earliest recorded goldsmith in the town worked in the mid 16th century and although other silversmiths worked during the following 150 years, none of their work is known. However, between 1700 and 1835 there was a continuous series of silversmiths whose work is represented in the collection. These silversmiths were Hugh Ross (three generations of the same name), Alexander Stewart, John Sellar, William Innes and Richard Maxwell Wilkie. The star items in this collection include a Hugh Ross tot cup made between about 1700 and 1710, a mid 18th century Hugh Ross pepperpot, and a rare three-pronged fork and a gold signet ring by Alexander Stewart.

In 1997 the museum held the first exhibition ever dedicated entirely to Tain silver, consisting of about 150 items from a range of private and institutional owners across the UK as well as from its own collection. A book on the subject, entitled A ballance of Silver, was published to coincide with the exhibition and is available from us by mail order.

Another key theme within the collection is the story of the Clan Ross. Balnagown Castle, built for the Earl of Ross in the 15th century and home to the senior branch of the clan until 1711, situated just a few miles south of the town. People of the name of Ross have played a central part in the history of the area and Ross is still one of the most common surnames here. The history of the clan is illustrated throughout Tain Through Time, in the church and gravestones, in the stories told in the Pilgrimage, and in many of the objects in the museum.