Our newest exhibition is here and on display at the Heritage Centre! Focusing on the Ardrossan Castle Heritage Society, come and learn all about this wonderful volunteer group who are now celebrating their 10th anniversary. “We were invited to set up as an organisation as the castle was in a state of disrepair and NAC were looking to work in …
Titanic Exhibition: Your Last Chance To See It!
Our hugely popular Titanic exhibition is almost done and you only have until the end of the month to see it! Saturday the 27th of May is the final Saturday of the exhibition and Wednesday the 31st of May is officially the final day of the exhibition. If you haven’t had a chance to see it then this is your …
The ‘Stories’ Section Is Now Filterable By Location
Another new update to our website is the addition of locality-categories in our ever-popular ‘Stories‘ section. You can now filter our stories via a specific town: useful if you are conducting research on an area or if you just want to find out more about your home town! The filters include: If you are searching for one of the smaller …
John Galt Lecture: ‘A “wrong resenting” race? Characterising Popular Protest in John Galt’s Scotland’
Our friends at the Harbour Art Centre in Irvine are hosting a talk on John Galt on the 5th of May. If you are interested in this famous North Ayrshire figure, then why not check it out? A lecture by Professor Christopher Whatley, followed by a buffet supper with a glass of wine. Born in 1779, John Galt was a …
Castles of North Ayrshire: Lochranza Castle
We have added another castle to our ‘Castles of North Ayrshire‘ section and this time it is Lochranza Castle! Lochranza Castle sits in the north of Arran, on a peninsula at Loch Ranza. The castle dates from the 13th century when it was likely built for the MacSween family and it would play a role in different important events in …
Our New Joseph Russell Stained Glass Windows
Have you seen our two beautiful stained glass windows that we recently installed? We want to share with you their fascinating story and to do so, we have to tell you about an e-mail we received and then go back to the 19th century. In 2019 we were contacted by Dr Andrew Russell, who explained that we had some stained …
Castles of North Ayrshire: Brodick Castle
We have added another castle to our ‘Castles of North Ayrshire‘ section, this time it is Brodick Castle! A fortress has stood on the location of Brodick Castle since the 5th century and by the 10th century, the site was under the control of Norse forces until they were driven from Arran following the Battle of Largs in 1263. The …
Wallace Hartley: Titanic Exhibition
Maria Robinson was the fiancée of Titanic’s bandleader, Wallace Hartley. Wallace gave Maria this brooch and locket which contained his photograph on the occasion of their engagement. The brooch is gold with an inlay of pearls in the form of a “W” for Wallace. In April 1912 Wallace Hartley was offered the position of bandmaster for RMS Titanic, a position …
Our Latest Exhibition is Here! Titanic: Honour & Glory
Visit our Heritage Centre in Saltcoats to see our latest exhibition: ‘Titanic: Honour and Glory’, which follows the history of one of the most infamous ships ever made. From construction in Belfast, to the fateful maiden voyage, the exhibition features video interviews and a wide variety of artefacts including some of the beautiful china dinner plates upon which meals were …
Heritage Centre Closed For Christmas
As of today (14th of December 2022) we are now officially closed for the Christmas holidays at our Heritage Centre in Saltcoats. In the new year, our latest exhibition ‘Titanic: Honour & Glory’ will be waiting for you when we re-open on the 9th of January. Featuring fascinating videos and a wide variety of objects from (and relating to) the …