Ullapool Museum

The Ullapool Museum occupies the old parish church in the fishing village of Ullapool, a small port on the north-west coast of the Highlands. The building stands on West Argyle Street in the village centre, its T-shaped plan facing south. Designed by Thomas Telford in 1829 as one of the Parliamentary churches, it served the community until a new church opened in 1935. The museum presents the history of Ullapool and its surroundings through local artefacts. Exhibits concentrate on fishing and farming, the two pillars of the area’s economy. There is also a town-history reading area and resources for family history research. In 1991 the Church of Scotland sold the redundant building to the Ullapool Museum Trust for one pound, and the museum opened in December 1995. Inside, the former church keeps its tall segment-arch windows and doors along the main front. Harl plaster covers only the gable ends, leaving the rest of the walls in exposed stone. A small bellcote with open louvres crowns the west gable, topped by a short pointed spire. Visitors walk past the simple nave and chancel spaces now filled with displays and information panels.