The Atholl Country Life Museum has organised a series of events 100 years after the death of Donald McBeath, the larger-than-life local son whose image is used today on the Welcome to Blair Atholl signs at the entrance to the village.
The first event will be on Sunday, February 27, at 2pm, when a piper will play at Donald’s grave in Blair Atholl Churchyard, followed by a few words about his life. This will be followed by tea and coffee at the Atholl Arms Hotel.
John Cameron, voluntary curator and founder of the Atholl Country Life Museum, said, “Donald McBeath fought in the Crimean, making a name for himself as a sharp-shooter and saving life under fire.
“He was in charge of the party of Atholl Highlanders escorting Queen Victoria to Deeside in 1861, she wrote about him in her diary. The 7th Duke of Atholl said he was ‘the father of the Atholl Highlanders’.”
The museum has also organised a talk by Blair Castle archivist Jane Anderson on Donald McBeath’s varied and interesting life at the Atholl Arms Hotel on Wednesday, April 13, at 7.30pm.
