Baile nan Gàidheal: Living museum takes visitors back in time for authentic Gaelic experience

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 Gaels 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.

Costumed animators are pictured at the Highland Village Museum in Iona, N.S., on Aug. 2, 2024.

Visitors will be transported back in time thanks to the costumed animators, who demonstrate skills like spinning weaving, wool-dying and other hand-crafts.

“So you'll see people sometimes making butter, you'll see the blacksmith at his work, you'll see the farmer working in the fields or with the cattle,” said MacDonald.

The museum’s Highland cows look noticeably different from those typically seen in the Maritimes.

“They have longer hair, which they can withstand the elements a little bit better, keep them warmer. Even in the summer, keeps them a little cooler when they're in the shade,” said farm coordinator Curtis MacNeil.

A Highland cow is pictured at the Highland Village Museum in Iona, N.S., on Aug. 2, 2024.

Visitors can also explore The Highland Village Museum’s new welcome centre, purchase local crafts and souvenirs at the gift shop, or research their connection to the island at the Roots Cape Breton Genealogy & Family History Centre.

“We say here at Baile nan Gàidheal we're made of stories and visitors are an important part of that story for us,” said MacDonald.

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