There are so many parts of Galloway that reach out to me in Summer.
For our Summer Special I’m taking you up into the hills – to Loch Enoch.
It’s a personal journey.
I’d never have known about Loch Enoch if it hadn’t been for Crockett. I’d certainly never even have dreamed of visiting it. But a quote had me hooked:
‘‘Loch Enoch is the goal of our desire. For nights past we have dreamed of its lonely fastnesses.’
I first tried in 2018, via the Gairlin Burn. I failed. I tried again in 2019 — with my own guides, whom I think of as my Macmillans — via the Pulscaig Burn. It was the end of June, a warm blue sky day; so warm that once up there I could paddle in the water. Scotland is never that warm. There were a million midges for company, and I didn’t even care. It was everything Crockett had promised, and so much more.
And last but definitely not least head down from the hills to Grenoch (Woodhall) Loch for a swim with Kit Kennedy in June
Spring Special 2026
“The actual connections are never those which you think of.”
Spring is the season of new beginnings, but for those who know Crockett the sixteenth of April carries another meaning. It is the anniversary of his death and the date was chosen deliberately for the launch of the S.R.Crockett Online Museum. He wrote of his wish to be buried at Balmaghie: “when the years are over, many or few, and our Galloway requiem, ‘Sae he’s won awa,’ is said of me, that is the bell I should like rung. And there in the high corner I should like to lie, if so the fates allot it, among the dear and simple folk I knew and loved in youth.” That wish was granted and he is buried there.
He is also memorialized at Laurieston. Of his legacy he wrote: “mayhap that is the best fortune of all — to be loved by a few greatly and constantly, rather than to be loudly applauded and immediately forgotten by the many.” The applause came in his lifetime; so did the controversy. After his death, critical constructs rooted in fear of his popularity obscured his literary craft, and the loud applause faded. In April 2014, on the centenary of his death, I made a promise to preserve his legacy. The museum is the latest fulfilment of my promise. As one of the ‘constant few’, I believe it is essential to continue making the case for a larger literary and cultural significance than Crockett himself laid claim to. My commitment going forward is, therefore, to ensure that his work endures, that his legacy is given appropriate status and that the many who have not yet found him have somewhere to begin.
Crockett understood that time brings change — and that some things are worth repeating until they are heard. He wrote: ‘Time brings changes. The observation is not exactly new, yet we may venture to repeat it. For the man who is listened to is the man who is not afraid to say old things over and over in his own way.’ Spring makes that point for us each year — the same seasonal change and for those who know Crockett, the same anniversary quietly observed.
Welcome to the Museum
Come in looking for one thing. See what else you find.
There are many ways to engage with the material here, depending on your interest. If you are completely new, why not Watch the overview: Welcome to the S.R. Crockett Online Museum.
You can move around the museum by clicking the relevant PASSES. If you get lost, head back to the main entrance, or the museum GUIDE. If you’re looking for inspiration, here are some suggested routes into the museum for Spring 2026.
You might like to begin in The Library where Crockett’s own writing lives: novels, shorter works, essays, and journalism, all freely available to read and download. Find out what’s on the shelves. Or Find out what’s waiting for you inThe Reading Room — the critical heart of the museum: essays, analysis, and contextual writing that places Crockett in his literary and historical moment.
For the full museum experience visit The Exhibitions — where the archive comes to life. The inaugural exhibition, Becoming S.R. Crockett, traces the journey from a farm cottage in the Glenkens to international literary success, told through primary evidence. See how the exhibition spaces work. And remember, if your interest is archival — the Exhibitions house a searchable repository of over eight hundred letters, much of it never previously available to the public.
Enjoy roaming around the museum this Spring. There will be another Seasonal Special for Summer 2026.
Christmas Special 2025
This year we give special focus to one story that gives Dickens a run for his money.That story is ‘Packman’s Pool’. First published in 1901 and syndicated across the globe, it featured in Crockett’s 1908 collection The Bloom o’ the Heather.
As a taster of things to come once the museum is up and running, we offer you the opportunity to explore this story from many angles through a range of articles.
And for those who want to read the story itself, you can find it in pdf format in the Library (1908 collection The Bloom o’ the Heather) or our free Christmas Special (2014)
Autumn Special 2025
“Nowhere, to my thinking, is the world so gracious as between the green woodlands of Earlstoun and the grey Duchrae Craigs.”
Our Autumn Special is themed Galloway Woods. We’ve curated some stories and articles rooted in Crockett’s Galloway to give you a taste of things to come. We’re planning an exhibition for 2026.
