Chapter House Museum and Archives

The museum is housed in the Cathedral Chapter House, which was built in 1457, and served as a sacristy and meeting place for 100 years.  After the Reformation, when the Dukes of Atholl became responsible for the upkeep of the church they used the Chapter House as their Mausoleum and it still contains some magnificent monuments and memorials.  The Atholl coat of arms is mounted above the entrance door and former members of the family lie buried in an under floor vault.

The present museum, which was refurbished by the Friends of Dunkeld Cathedral in 1994, is a permanent local history exhibition telling the history of the town and the redevelopment of the reformed church. Mention is made of the connection with the Atholl Family and also notable local people; Niel Gow, the fiddler, Sir Donald Currie the benefactor and Beatrice Potter, the children’s author who spent summer holidays in Dunkeld and wrote the Story of Peter Rabbit there.

 The Archive Room is situated in the room above the above the museum that was originally used for storing vestments and church valuables. Opened in 1995, it contains a fast growing collection of photographs, records and memorabilia relating to the Cathedral and community of Dunkeld and Birnam. Including census records and tombstone inscription of the graveyards in the parish. The regimental records The Scottish Horse are also held.

The Chapter House Museum is open except when services are taking place

                         April-September      9.30am – 6.30pm
                         October-March        9.30am – 4.00pm

                                                Admission is Free

The archive room is open on the every Monday  10am-12noon.  When visitors are welcome to browse and the stewards would be pleased to try and help with particular enquiries.

Visits may be made or enquiries met at other times by arrangement. Contact:
                Ted Carr  29 Druids Park, Murthly Perth,  PH1 4EH, Tel 01738 710654

The archives regret that they do not have sufficient staff to undertake individual family research but anyone interested are welcome to carry out their own research

Possible family history sources are:
            AK Bell Library                                    http://www.pkc.gov.uk/archives
            Tay Valley Family History Society     http://www.tayvalleyfhs.org.uk
            North Perthshire History Group         http://www.npfhg.org

 

Tours
For information on guided tours and the handheld audio guide of the Cathedral and grounds refer to the Guided Tours page of this site.

Lectures
The museum and archives volunteers would be pleased to give talks on the history of the cathedral and Dunkeld to interested clubs and societies