Margaret Hope Garnons MacDougall (

Athlone Athlone (; ) is a town on the border of County Roscommon and County Westmeath, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is located on the River Shannon near the southern shore of Lough Ree. It is the second most populous town in the Midland Region, Ir ...

, 21 January 1913 -

Oban Oban ( ; meaning ''The Little Bay'') is a resort town within the Argyll and Bute council area of Scotland. Despite its small size, it is the largest town between Helensburgh and Fort William, Highland, Fort William. During the tourist seaso ...

, 22 December 1998) was an Irish historian, photographer and collector; the youngest daughter of Colina MacDougall and Alexander James MacDougall, chief of the

Clan MacDougall Clan MacDougall is a Highland Scottish clan, historically based in and around Argyll. The Lord Lyon King of Arms, the Scottish official with responsibility for regulating heraldry in Scotland, issuing new grants of coats of arms, and serving as ...

at Dunollie. She was aunt to three successive chiefs of the

, who curated an expansive family collection of notable historical artefacts and records with her sisters, Jena and Coline. Transforming her spacious residence into a museum in Ganavan, near

, she curated an assortment of objects that showcased endangered skills and crafts. After she died in 1998 the collection went to Dunollie where a curated selection of artefacts is exhibited in the 1745 house museum and others are kept in the archive.

Hope MacDougall Collection

In the latter part of the 20th century, Hope embarked on a mission to document and preserve the way of life in

Argyllshire Argyll (; archaically Argyle; , ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a historic county and registration county of western Scotland. The county ceased to be used for local government purposes in 1975 and most of the area now forms part of ...

, the Western Isles, and the

Highlands Highland is a broad term for areas of higher elevation, such as a mountain range or mountainous plateau. Highland, Highlands, or The Highlands, may also refer to: Places Africa * Highlands, Johannesburg, South Africa * Highlands, Harare, Zimbab ...

. Her collection efforts commenced in the 1950s, accumulating thousands of items before her passing. She focused on capturing the everyday working and domestic experiences of the people in

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. Hope's extensive collection encompasses diverse traditional crafts, skills, and professions. These include but are not limited to

agricultural practices Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food ...

, early distilling,

beekeeping Beekeeping (or apiculture, from ) is the maintenance of bee colonies, commonly in artificial beehives. Honey bees in the genus '' Apis'' are the most commonly kept species but other honey producing bees such as '' Melipona'' stingless bees are ...

, dairying, shoe making, travellers' camps, laundry, knitting, and more. Each item within the collection is accompanied by meticulous documentation detailing its origin, often stemming from Miss Hope MacDougall's dedicated research, providing valuable insights into the rich cultural heritage of

. Her collection is nowadays exhibited in the

Dunollie Castle Dunollie Castle (Scottish Gaelic: Caisteal Dhùn Ollaigh) is a small ruined castle located on a hill north of the town of Oban, on the west coast of Scotland in Argyll and Bute. The site enjoys views over towards the island of Kerrera and a vi ...

museum and grounds run by the MacDougall of Dunollie Preservation Trust.

The Dunollie Preservation Trust (DPT)

The Dunollie Preservation Trust, established in 1998 by Morag MacDougall. Nowadays, the DPT is responsible for the preservation of numerous listed buildings and monuments, such as

in Oban, Gylen Castle on Kerrera, and the 1745 House Museum. Additionally, the trust oversees the maintenance of nationally significant archives and a collection comprising over 10,000 objects.

Reference

{{DEFAULTSORT:MacDougall, Hope Irish historians Irish photographers Irish collectors 1913 births 1998 deaths