This project has been initiated by the Tain and Easter Ross Civic Trust, and they are paying particular attention to the information that rests within local resources, and in the memories of people living in and around the burgh, today.  

 

The ‘Remembering Hidden Tain’ pilot project, developed by ARCH, at the request of the Civic Trust was funded by the European Community Highland LEADER 2007-2013 Programme, the Tain Common Good Fund and the Highland Council.  The aims of this oral history collection and recording venture have been to determine the local community members’ levels of interest and engagement with the proposed ‘Hidden Tain’ investigations and also to record locally held knowledge  regarding three areas of potential future investigation in particular. These are:

The Remembering Hidden Tain sessions, facilitated by Cait McCullagh, from October to December 2012 were all well attended, and the enthusiasm of the participants made each occasion a delight. In total 91 individual records regarding aspects of Tain’s archaeological and built heritage were collected. From these, 49 entirely new records have been generated for future entry into the Highland Council’s Historic Environment Record (HER); and 40 sites, buildings and features that are cited in the HER can now be updated with new information.

 

The format of each session allowed people born in the community and people who had moved to the area to collaborate in new ways. Additionally, people have appreciated coming together in a social environment, where their memories are valued, and their knowledge is appreciated. The overwhelming response has been that participating in the sessions was a positive experience. For example, all of those responding felt that they had gained a better understanding of their local heritage and that they felt more part of their local community.

 

When considering what skills and knowledge they felt they had improved through participating in the sessions, many said that the sessions had enabled them to apply their improved skills to learning more about their local heritage. Here are a few of their comments:

 

 

Thanks to all the information contributed by the community it is believed that the new and augmented record generated by Remembering Hidden Tain will enable further, targeted investigation of the archaeological and built heritage. To see all the information from Remembering Hidden Tain download the report.