Glasgow Highland Games ends after 30+ years; Glasgow Gaelic Gathering takes its place.

GLASGOW, Ky. – A beloved Glasgow Scottish tradition is saying its goodbyes, but this isn’t the end of the town’s Scottish celebrations.

“It was lots of fun for lots of people and brought in lots of tourism dollars,” said Glasgow Highland Games vice president Bobby Lee Hurt.

Unknown at the time, the 2019 Glasgow Highland Games would be its final hurrah.

“When it started in 1986 It was a God send to the community,” said Hurt. “People got to enjoying the games, and we kept doing it for 33 years, as matter of fact.”

However, as crowds thinned these last few years, so too did the funding. Hurt says the pandemic was the game’s final nail in the coffin.

“I would like to see some folks get it going again,” said Hurt. “It just takes a lot of work from a lot of people. And you have to have a lot of commitment and funding, as well as people that want to volunteer.”

Luckily, a new Scottish festival, the Glasgow Gaelic Gathering, is entering the scene to fill that void.

“This is going to be more like dancing, food, and bands where the Scottish Games is more like athletic competitions,” explained Glasgow Gaelic Gathering co-founder Cherie Vaughan.

“We wanted to piggyback off of the Highland Games since we knew the Highland Games weren’t going to be here. So, we were going to bring this to Glasgow this year and hopefully bring the Highland Games back next year.”

Much like Hurt, Vaughan said, “Hopefully we can do both next year. It would be good to to combine the two and bring it all to Glasgow in a big celebration for the whole weekend.”

Mid-June, you can come celebrate the Gaelic Gathering at the Yancey’s Brewery stage area.

Follow for more details closer to the celebration.