Living on the Land
Life on the land changed more slowly than in the centres of
industrial manufacture.
In the country most people continued to depend on what they
could produce themselves. The land provided not only food but the
materials used for tools and domestic objects. In remoter parts of
Scotland this was still the case in the early 20th century.
Rural homes
Visit the partly-reconstructed cruck-framed house from
Dunbartonshire to find out what life was like in ordinary Lowland
rural houses of the time. Explore the materials and techniques used
in building.
Inside the cruck house you can see the hearth, the focal point
of domestic life, and objects typical of rural domestic life. Peat
was the normal fuel of the fire.
Everyday life
Other objects give us an insight on everyday life: creels and
baskets, simple furniture and a variety of tools and utensils, all
made from materials such as wood, plants, stone, and animal skins,
bone and horn.
One important domestic task was the spinning of home-produced
wool into yarn. Beside the display of hand-spinning equipment there
is a handloom which links rural activity with the machines in the
hall beyond.