Our museum was
founded by The Scottish Tartans Society (STS), which was established in
Scotland in 1963 to maintain a worldwide membership and museums in Scotland
and abroad, to create and maintain the Register of All Publicly Known Tartans,
encourage research into Highland Dress, and to provide a design service for
new tartans. Currently the STS no longer maintains an active membership
or a tartan database, but the Scottish Tartans Museum continues in its work to
promote Scottish Highland dress and educate the public about tartan.
Originally established in Highlands,
NC, in 1988, the museum has been in Franklin
since 1994 where we have both educated about tartan and Highland Dress
as well as served as a general Scottish Heritage Center for the region.
Click here to make a
tax-deductible donation to our museum.
Curator Talks and Tours
Our museum curator
is Matthew A. C. Newsome, FSA Scot. He is a member of the Guild of
Tartan Scholars, and writes a monthly column for the Scottish Banner
newspaper on Highland dress. He is available most week
days at the museum to answer questions and give tartan advice. He also
travels to local area schools to give talks in historic dress about the Scottish
people.
Matthew Newsome also travels for the museum to various Highland Games and
Scottish Festivals in the area. If you are interested in having the museum
provide a tartan information table at your event, or want to schedule a lecture
or seminar, please contact us.
Guided Tours
Also available for guided tours are Walter J. Taylor and Carl McSween.
You will regularly find these two gentleman at the Museum showing families and
individuals around, looking up tartans, and answering general questions on
Scottish history. The museum has a fine staff of
volunteer historians who also lead tour groups and visit classrooms.
Although tours are generally available to the
public, if you are bringing a large group, or if you wish to ensure that
a guide will be available, please call ahead and make a reservation.
The Friends of the Scottish Tartans
Museum
Our museum
has a Friends organization that provides us both with volunteer muscle and
moral support. The Friends help organize our annual Taste of Scotland
festival in June, as well as plan events throughout the year, such as Robert
Burns Dinners, Tartan Day activities, and other heritage events. Friends
membership is open to the public. They also represent the Museum at
various Highland Games and other Scottish festivals in the region. The
Friends meet at the Rathskellar Coffee Haus (behind the Museum) on the first
Tuesday of each month at 6:00 pm.
The Great Highland Bagpipe 
All material on
this site ©1994-2008 Scottish Tartans Museum