The heritage of Skye & Lochalsh surrounds us in the landscape, from the dinosaur footprints in the rocks at Staffin Bay in North Skye, to the Neolithic chambered cairns and stone circles scattered in the countryside, and up to the present day peat banks, still utilised by the community.

The area can be seen as a microcosm of Highland life. Shaped by national events such as the battles at Culloden and the resultant demise of the clan system, the people here also affected the wider community through local rebellion and agitation, leading to an Act of Parliament in 1886 gaining security of tenure for crofters. The next century brought dramatic changes with few families unaffected by emigration, wars and urbanisation, though the way of life and integrity of traditional values in the community remained strong.

The recognition and appreciation of this living heritage is still held very strongly today enriching much of the highland spirit, our continuing traditions, work, art, and music. The collecting and need to preserve a variety of archives, artefacts, maps, prints and paintings, postcards, antiquarian books and photographs, led to the formation of Dualchas, Skye & Lochalsh Museums Service. They also hold Skye and Lochalsh sites and monuments records, archaeological surveys, and current information files on people, places and social history pertinent to the area.

A series of 6 leaflets, available from Dualchas and throughout the area, give an introduction to the following different aspects of the local heritage; Archaeology, Wildlife, Emigration, Trades and Industries, Boswell and Johnson's 18th century visit to Skye, and Bonnie Prince Charlie and the Jacobites.