Sunday, October 3, 2010

Carsaig near Tayvallich

Carsaig Bay faces Jura across the Jura Sound. The earliest Free Church congregation built a church at Carsaig. As far as I know, it has been demolished, although the Manse remains, as a private home. I'm very interested in the Free Church in Knapdale, and so was disappointed that the building has disappeared!

However, the cemetery is there. Alison Dawson did a fine job in recording the inscriptions in the old part of this cemetery. There was a puzzle, though: a stone enclosure with no entrance, and no inscription that I could see. However, Ms Dawson found her way inside, and notes that inside this ruin there is a mural:

This is erected over the remains of ARCHIBALD CAMPBELL OF STRONDOUR who died on Novr ye 13th 1719 in the 42nd year of his age, by the direction of DANIEL CAMPBELL OF CARSAIG and ALEXANDER CAMPBELL JUNR Mercht in Glasgow, his sons 1748.
(followed by inscription in Latin)

On the outside wall of this ruin, there is a memorial to John Campbell an Innkeeper and Sheriff Officer, with his wife, Agnes McNab. It has been erected in by his descendants in the year 2000. This particular John Campbell appears a multitude of times in my people data base. He was a merchant as well as an innkeeper, and as such did a lot of business with the Inverneill Estate. In 1803, he appears on a list of men eligible to be balloted for membership in the Argyll Militia. Also, he and his wife had a number of children. When you go to the data base, go to the 'advanced search' and enter his name and "Tayvallich".

We were lucky (again), in that the weather was very fine and sunny. This is a photo of the cemetery on our day in Carsaig:


2 comments:

Chris said...

Hi Heather.
I was so pleased to see your photo. I was present in 2000 when we blessed the new stone for our ancestor John Campbell at the Carsaig Cemetery. Irene Pearson & myself organised the Book "The descendants of John Campbell & Agnes McNab from North Knapdale" published here in NZ by Evagean Publishing. It was published 2001 after our Argyl reunion & is still available from the publisher.
I'd welcome any more information on him or his currently unknown parents. I was not aware of his military involvement. Thanks to you and also the wonderful folk who have created this amazing web page.
Cheers
Christine Barbour
cjbihug@gmail.com

Chris said...

I'm now searching for the burial place of my 2nd great grandmother who husband Dugald Campbell is buried under the stone in the above photograph. Ann or Nancy died between 1841-1851 aged about 40, born 1802 at Trear, Kilmahumaig, near Ballenoch, North Knapdale, to John Campbell, merchant of Tayvallich & Ann McNab. The 7th of 9 children