Scottish Tartans Museum, Franklin, NC

[JoA]

Nestled in the Great Smoky Mountains of North Carolina there’s a Scottish Tartans Museum and Gift shop that just landed on my wish list of places to visit. The museum, located in Franklin, NC, about 65 miles southwest of Asheville, serves as a showcase for tartan dress and is a "general Scottish Heritage Center for the region". Their website provides a tartan search, gifts, Scottish Clan and history information, articles on Scottish dress, and more.

There’s a small entrance fee ($2.00 at the time of this posting) and their hours of operation (Monday through Saturday) are noted on their website.

For a quick preview, UNC-TV has a small video clip online that provides a look inside the museum. This video clip is several minutes long and the Scottish Tartans Museum section doesn’t start until almost six minutes into the video. You can use the slider bar beneath the video to move through the video a little faster. (The first six minute section is about an Orchid Conservatory in Belmont, NC, and is great to watch, too, if you love orchids or flowers in general.) http://flash.unctv.org/ncweekend/ncw_061208.html

Consider a trip to the Tartans Museum or just check it out online at http://www.scottishtartans.org/index.html. They also have an online gift shop that might give you some ideas for gifts for your Scottish relatives and friends!