Baile nan Gàidheal: Living museum takes visitors back in time for authentic Gaelic experience
CTV
Visitors to Nova Scotia’s Cape Breton Island can go back in time for an authentic Gaelic experience thanks to a living tribute to the rich Scottish heritage that helped shape the island.
Visitors to Nova Scotia’s Cape Breton Island can go back in time for an authentic Gaelic experience thanks to a living tribute to the rich Scottish heritage that helped shape the island.
The Highland Village Museum, or Baile nan Gàidheal in Gaelic, is a 43-acre living history museum overlooking the Bras d’Or Lakes.
The museum is dedicated to Nova Scotia’s Gaelic folk-life, culture, and language.
“The idea for this museum started back in 1959 and it's been growing since that time,” said Shamus Y. MacDonald, the Gaelic language and culture manager at the Highland Village Museum.
“We're now a part of the Nova Scotia Museum family and we tell the story of the Scottish Gales who came to Nova Scotia in very large numbers at the end of the 18th century and the first part of the 19th century.”
The village features 11 historic buildings, including some that were brought to Iona from other parts of Cape Breton.
“One in particular that's quite special to us here is the Malagawatch Church, which was brought here back in 2003 on a barge floated across the Bras d’Or Lakes,” said MacDonald.
