The Loch Ard Local History Group which serves the communities of Stronachlachar, Inversnaid, Kinlochard and Aberfoyle was started in 1999 and is still going strong. The group has met regularly since its inception. Our main focus is on the annual Winter Programme usually from October through to April/May. Where possible we tie in a subject to our summer excursions which have included the Diageo Archive as well as several sites of historical interest in Loch Ard Forest including Bruach Caoruinn which may well be dated as far back as between 1583 and 1601.

In its early days the group produced a very popular calendar which featured images acquired at a scanning day and exhibition held in 1999. More recently the group has moved into the world of publishing having published in March 2018 a book by long standing member Louis Stott called the Enchantment of the Trossachs.

Maintaining a programme that primarily has a focus on “local” is always a challenge and whilst our attendance is usually between 20 and 30 people, a local item will fill all the space we have. To encourage more local research we now have a session every December for members to talk about an issue of local interest such as the “The House I Live In”. This has proven popular and we hope will encourage speakers to extend their areas of historical research. Our experience tells us that the more local a subject the better!

You can find a link to our 2023-2024 programme below. We also publish our programme on the Kinlochard Village web site and on the listings of the Scottish Local History Forum.

The meetings are usually held in the wonderful setting of Kinlochard Village Hall .

Currently meetings are held on a Wednesday evening but please check for specific details.

Contacts are Joyce Kelly Secretary on 01877 387 292, kelly10kelly@btinternet.com or James Kennedy Chairman on 01877 387 201, jimmy.8ken3@gmail.com