Inverneill Sailing Ship

A photo of the sailing ship Inverneill has appeared on the 'Web, posted by Australia's Victoria State Library. They say they have 3 negatives on glass, and would like to hear from anyone who knows about this vessel....

Hearth Taxes and Auchinbreck

The "Hearth Tax" of 1694 was an attempt of the central government to tax the Scottish population according to the number of hearths in their dwellings. The attempt foundered on the reality of the central government's weakness in the face of the Clan organization of the highlands. You need roads and addresses to even start to properly tax the peasantry. And Knapdale had none of these modern conveniences in 1694.

HOWEVER. The Hearth Tax lists have proven to be a great source of names and places, ie for genealogists and historians. For my website, at Knapdale People, I am working on the hearth tax records that exist. The Argyll and Bute archive has provided a typed list of said pages; the local LDS has provided a microfilm of said (tattered) records; and Ian MacDonald, one of the great western highland historians, has provided me with modern versions of the 1694 surnames.

So, I have been adding said names etc to my data base, and thought to add this to the Website. But. There is this matter of Campbell of Auchinbreck. Large numbers of farms belonged to this gentleman. But. He joined the losing side in 1745, and he lost his properties after Culloden.

So. Where is Auchinbreck? (I found it, via 'mapquest.') And what is there to say about Knapdale when one of its major landowners fell into bankruptcy in the mid 1700s? The best story of this time is by Alexander Fraser, "North Knapdale in the XVII and XVIIIth centuries", published in Oban, 1964. I found a copy of this in the Guelph University Library and photocopied the relevant pages...

And . I realize I must re-do the front page of the Site, to make things ever more clear to my readers. This will take a couple of days.

an interchange on Scotland and Slavery...

... a journal of scottish studies asked me to write something on Knapdale. I am having trouble with doing that, not just because of Sloth, but because I am puzzled as to what approach to take re slave owning Knapdalians, pre Civil War, USA, ie, the letters of that McMillan (among the Donald McGilp letters at Knapdale People website). I am of the school that thinks one should be cautious of judging one's predecessors, especially since they are no longer able to explain themselves. It is so easy to point and denounce those of another time and place... and so difficult to figure out where we in our time may be committing atrocities ourselves (with the best will in the world, of course.)

No, I do not think that it is possible to morally justify owning slaves. On the other hand, such people as that McMillan did not think of themselves as hypocritical: he was, in his own eyes, a good, God fearing Christian. It is more interesting (to me) to figure out how he thought. And what he thought, as all his work disappeared during the ensuing Civil War (or did it disappear? did he continue to prosper? He had sons. Did they survive to 1865? )
Heather

FROM A MCGUGAN CORRESPONDENT:

Very interesting to see your musings on Archibald McMillan. The family history says that "There is little doubt that Archibald S. McMillan took a severe economic loss as a result of the emancipation of slaves following the War Between the States." (McMillan Family History by John Q. Edwards, III) Archibald died in 1867, but has many descendants in North Carolina (some of which I have met.)
Colin

AND, From a descendent of the Blue Brothers, who emigrated from North Knapdale in 1803, about slavery.
Now, about that slavery thing...something of interest for you. Malcolm, John, and Daniel Blue emigrated from North Knapdale to the USA with their families en masse in 1803. Malcolm and John settled in New York State which was a free state and they did not own slaves. Daniel Blue settled in North Carolina and did own slaves. I do not know why they chose to settle in different states, but perhaps discomfort or comfort with slavery played a part. These three men had a younger brother named Dugald Blue who originally settled in the southern US in 1804, but was so troubled by the institution of slavery that after a short time he moved to be near his brothers in Upstate New York. I think we can judge the people of that time about their views on slavery because they judged each other on it, struggled with its morality, and some concluded it was immoral. Thought you would find that interesting.

Scotland and the Transatlantic Slave Trade (II)

The Scottish Local History Forum is presenting a conference on "Scotland and Slavery", Saturday, 29 September, 10 am - 5 pm, at the AK Bell Library, Perth.

The papers presented will be:
The Sugar Plantocracy of Scotland. Dr. Eric Graham

The Anti Slave Trade Tour of William Dickson in 1792. Dr. Iain Whyte.

Glasgow University, Slavery and Abolition: An Untold Story. Lesley Richmond, U of Glasgow Library.

Scotland and the Slave Trade: South West Connections. Dr. Lizanne Henderson, U of Glasgow Crichton Campus.

Servitude or Slavery? Scottish servants in the early colonies. Sheila Millar, Local Studies Librarian, East Lothian.

'And some have slaves thrust upon them': early 19th Century letters between Paxton, Berwickshire, and Grenada. Sonia Baker, Editor, 4th Statistical Account of East Lothian.

The conference fee is 18 pounds for members of the SLHF and 20 pounds for non members. This includes a buffet lunch. Closing date for applications: 21 September, 2007.

Contact:
Mrs. Doris Williamson, SLHF, c/o Scottish History, School of History and Classics, U of Edinburgh, 17 Buccleuch Place, Edinburgh. EH8 9LN
tel: 0131 669 8252 doris.williamson@lineone.net

Scotland and the Transatlantic Slave Trade (I)

Dumfries Museum, from 1 September to 6 October:

An exhibition opens here to mark the 200th Anniversary of the Abolition of the transatlantic slave trade in Britain. Frances Wilkins is curating this event, which will coincide with her new book on the subject.

She has written other books about west highland shenanigans: "Strathclyde's Smuggling Story;" "Scottish Customs & Excise Records with particular reference to Strathclyde from 1707 onwards ;" "The Isle of Man in Smuggling History;" and "Family Histories in Scottish Customs Records." All of these have been published by Wyre Forest Press, 8 Mill Close, Blakedown, Kidderminster, Worcestershire, DY103NQ.

more on the Arichonan Blue/McGuirmans

Among the items I included in my book on "Arichonan Farm" are the people mentioned in a housing inventory done in 1798 and 1802, by the new owner of the Estates, Malcolm of Poltalloch. There were 4 tenants at the time: Donald Blue, Malcolm Johnson, Malcolm McLean and Niel McMillan.

Donald Blue/McGuirman lived in a "dwelling house, good, 4 couples; a Barn, 1 couple; and 1 Bothie, 2 couples" *
His wife was Flory Lamont (McIlchombie), and they had 6 children. His brother John was also at the farm. John's wife was Mary McLean, and they had 3 children at the time.

The man taking the inventory noted that, on Arichonan Farm, "the Houses in this farm and mostly on this Estate was built by the Tenants themselves and by the way, they were not built right at first."

*"couple": these are the main supports for the roof, consisting of two lengths of timber, and attached at the apex of the roof. The number of couples is an indicator of the length of a dwelling. A "bothie" was a one room hut. The sketch is from I. F. Grant's "Highland Folk Ways", page 145 (Birlinn, 1997).

The complete inventory, at Argyll and Bute Archives, is entitled "Report of the Houses of Dunad, 1798; and 1802: the Rest of the Houses on the Estates of Neill Malcolm Esq is added."

more on Arichonan

From a gentleman who lives in Massachusetts: "I am related to the John Blue and Daniel Blue who you show as tenants at Arichonan in 1802. These two had a brother, Malcolm Blue, who was Tackman of Drynoch across Loch Sween from Arichonan. The three brothers and their families emigrated en mass to the USA in 1803. I have family trees and histories for these Blues if you are Interested, including some birth and death records from while John and Daniel were living in Arichonan.

also, another email, from a man in Britain, which fits in well with I.F.Grant's sketch of a 'town', below, and MacInnes' contention that Arichonan was 'anachronistic', ie, not the usual crofter community:
"Although I have done a master research degree (urban housing in Liverpool) and quite a lot of local history and vernacular architecture work, in this instance I was just totally affronted how such a beautifully wrought working village could have been cleared. This was clearly something of a different order to the clearing of single story croft houses that took place all over the highlands. The detail of the houses, barn and sheep folds show such a complete master of 'intermediate technology', exactly what was needed for getting a living in this environment." He has put up his photos here. They are very lovely.

(my website, Knapdale People, has an extensive section, with photos, on Arichonan, and also, a link that helps you order that book of mine. )

Arichonan, the Imperial context of the Clearance

The Arichonan Clearance has been treated fairly extensively by University of Aberdeen's Allan I. MacInnes, in an article entitled, "Commercial Landlordism and Clearance in the Scottish Highlands: the Case of Arichonan."

Most interesting (to me) is his remark that "... Arichonan does not easily fit the traditional picture of Clearance associated in the Scottish Highlands with crofting communities, that is, communities of tenant farmers with small holdings of land. In the first place, Arichonan was a traditional township whose survival was anachronistic. Most townships had been broken up between the 1730s and the 1820s, to make way for cattle ranches and sheep walks as well as crofting communities, in what can be termed the first phase of Clearance. The second phase of Clearance from the 1830s to the 1880s is usually associated with the attempted removal of crofting, with the rampant commercial pastoralism associated with sheep farming and with the turning of whole glens over to the shooting of deer and other game." (p 49)

Check out the 2 posts and sketches below. They help to clarify what exactly MacInnes means by "town" versus "croft".... and the additional insight that Arichonan was - in 1848 - a very 'old fashioned' sort of place.

MacInnes is also very interested in the Poltalloch landowner's experience with his Jamaican plantations, and how this translated into management of his Highland estates.

Crofting Layouts

Another sketch from I. F. Grant's "Highland Folk Ways" (page 63), this portrays a modern crofter settlement, strung along a road, and with land holdings demarcated. Note that the houses are no longer built in clusters, nor are they necessarily to be found by the sea.

According to A.G.M. Duncan's "Green's Glossary of Scottish Legal Terms" (3rd edition, 1992), a "croft" is "An agricultural holding of limited size located within the counties in Scotland designated as crofting counties, the tenant or crofter or his predecessors having provided the buildings and fixed equipment." The topic of "crofts" and "crofting commissions", and etc., was a huge issue in the Highlands. My impression is that it was a late 19th century attempt to establish some security of tenure for remaining Highland crofters, on land that continued to be owned by others.

A "Town"

This is a sketch of a 'town' in the old style, from I. F. Grant's "Highland Folk Ways" (page 45). In 1630, according to Ms Grant, a Captain Dymes wrote of these 'towns' of joint tenants, "which towns are some half a score of cottages built together neare some piece of arable land where they make their abode in winter, for the most part of the common people in the somer they remaine in the hills to graze theire cattle."(page 44).

and then there were the parties at Auchindrain...

This is a whiskey jar. Sturdy little thing, isn't it?

As to Auchindrain. Okay, I live on the other side of the world from Argyll. But I am EXTREMELY interested in that little corner of the world, so I will tell you what I think. MY suggestion would be to put the Argyll Bute Archives - with a FULL TIME archivist, by the way!!! - on the Auchendrain site. The resulting centre would, I think, work really well for the museum, and the totally marvellous records that are held by the Archives.

Auchendrain Museum: another hearth!

Another hearth, this one with a chimney! and, to repeat:

"Auchindrain Museum outside Inveraray (http://www.auchindrain-museum.org.uk) is a wonderful example of a traditional farm township of the kind our forefathers inhabited and worked. Hundreds of similar townships throughout Argyll were abandoned or cleared but this little gem has survived.Please will you help to preserve this unique township by writing or emailing to the Achindrain Manager to support a bid to get Auchindrain recognised as being a Museum Collection of national significance through the Scottish Museums Council’s Significance Scheme. Letters or emails must refer to the completeness of the township and that it survived the Highland Clearances. It should also be mentioned that it was the first open air museum to open in Scotland (greatly supported by the late Miss Marion Campbell of Kilberry, an outstanding local historian) and that the original buildings are located within their original context etc etcPlease write or email to support this bid. Note that names and addresses must accompany emails to verify their provenance."

Auchindrain Museum and the Hearth Tax of 1694

I want to start a section of the "poor" in my website, Knapdale People, and am currently obsessing over the 1694 Hearth Tax lists (the hearths throughout Britain were counted, reported, and the people were supposed to be taxed accordingly.) One of my conclusions has been that - in our terms - the Highlanders, even the "rich", were really really poor.

The above is an example of a hearth. The little pile of brown stuff underneath the kettle is 'peat moss'. In the absence of wood and coal, our ancestors, "rich" or "poor", used peat as their fuel, for cooking and for heat. Peat was cut out of the surface of the earth, collected and stored near the home, and dried over the summer. If the summer was particularly wet and rainy, the peat did NOT dry properly, and it was a cold cold winter.

Such a 'hearth' as you see in that Auchindrain Museum exhibit would have been situated in the centre of the home. The smoke drifted out through a hole in the roof. Over time, the house ceiling would become black with that smoke. Hence these houses were often known as "black houses."

more on Auchindrain... and weaving

Among the exhibits in the museum part of Auchindrain (as opposed to the various homes on the site) is a loom. It was given to Auchindrain by the McTaggart family. This family had been weavers in Kilmory Knap since at least the early 1800s. Duncan McTaggart, 48 in the 1851 census, was called a "country weaver." His wife, born in NORTH Knapdale parish, was Janet McDougall, and he had lots of children, among whom was John (11 years old), who in 1861, when he was 21, was ALSO a weaver. According to Marion Campbell of Kilberry, who gave her heart and soul to this museum, and the history of Mid Argyll, this loom was hand made!

Auchindrain: an open air museum

Yep, it is a very impressive 'museum.' This is a photo of SOME of the buildings on the site (which is, by the way, south of Inveraray, on your way to Lochgilphead, by the side of the road). The teensy green-topped hut is a "cotter's hut." When I was there I had a good time just wandering around looking inside the buildings. Each of them is furnished with items peculiar to the status of the family which lived in it. It is an incredibly vivid way to 'see' how our Scottish Highlander ancestors actually lived!

Auchendrain Museum, south of Inveraray...

I received this email and want to ensure that a LOT of people interested in Knapdale know about this, and extend their help in the manner suggested:

"Auchindrain Museum outside Inveraray (http://www.auchindrain-museum.org.uk) is a wonderful example of a traditional farm township of the kind our forefathers inhabited and worked. Hundreds of similar townships throughout Argyll were abandoned or cleared but this little gem has survived.

Please will you help to preserve this unique township by writing or emailing to the Achindrain Manager to support a bid to get Auchindrain recognised as being a Museum Collection of national significance through the Scottish Museums Council’s Significance Scheme. Letters or emails must refer to the completeness of the township and that it survived the Highland Clearances. It should also be mentioned that it was the first open air museum to open in Scotland (greatly supported by the late Miss Marion Campbell of Kilberry, an outstanding local historian) and that the original buildings are located within their original context etc etc

Please write or email to support this bid. Note that names and addresses must accompany emails to verify their provenance."

Arichonan Affray and Allan McLean family

It was obvious that Allan McLean and his family left North Knapdale after the July Arichonan Riot in 1848. His brother, Duncan, was one of the people imprisoned for his role in that event. Allan's wife, Catherine, was very pregnant in July, and gave birth to a child, Allan, that October.

I have been interested in the fate of this family: the Glasgow slums, Australia, Canada or the USA, Knapdalians left their homes for all of these places.

Well. I have heard from one of Allan's descendents! It seems that he and his family went to Canada in 1849. "They owned land and farmed in Ekfrid township, Middlesex County, Ontario. Once in Canada, they had two more children.* Allan died September 10, 1868, and his wife, Catherine, June 30, 1870. They are buried in a small rural cemetary called Murray Cemetary in Ekfrid township, Middlesex County, Ontario."
* (Janet, born 1851; and Daniel, born 1857.)

Arichonan and the Free Church

I published a book on the 1848 Arichonan Clearance a couple of years ago. Since then, I have picked up bits of information, which I have added to the "Arichonan" section on my website.

And here is another interesting piece of information, taken from the Inveraray Jail site: of the rioters who were jailed, only Mary Adams (an eighteen year old Paisley servant working at Gallachoille farm) listed her religion as "Established Church." All of the others list themselves as members of the (relatively new) "Free Church." I am not implying that the riot was caused by a religious impulse. Consider, however, that the Landlord, Malcolm of Poltalloch, was a member of the Church of ENGLAND (not of Scotland.) The Free Church was adamantly Presbyterian, but of a more radical kind than the established Church of Scotland.

This is, in my opinion, a significant marker of the great distance that existed between tenant and proprietor.

I hope to add something about this "Free Church versus Established Church" to my website. It was of very great importance to Knapdale people in the 1840s and beyond.

on Archie Campbell of Inverneill

When I first came across this guy, he was - to me - quite simply a 'laird'; he owned the estates upon which my own Knapdale ancestors lived, until they left for Canada in 1853.

But as I found more and more information about him, it turns out that he is a very interesting man, and one who was respected - and liked - by all who knew him when he was alive - even, by Americans who had been enemies of the British Empire. He was, quite simply, a very great representative of the British Empire - and of Scotland, too.

This painting, by Romney, dates from 1790, AFTER Campbell's return to Britain from Madras. One remark made by Lieut Col Ian McCulloch (Ret) is that it reflects the fact that by this time, Archie Campbell had been ill (which is why he returned to Britain). He died early in 1791.

a new feature at Knapdale People website!

a whole April and then a May has gone by, and my apologies for not keeping up with this blog. However, I do have some news: I have been keeping up with the website and (mostly) completed the biography of Major General Sir Archibald Campbell of Inverneill. The most recent entry concerns this painting, one of Archie as a young man in India. I was very fortunate to have the following advice from Ian MacPherson McCulloch, Lieutenant-Colonel Commanding Officer (1993- 1996), The Black Watch (RHR) of Canada:
"Based on my limited knowledge of uniforms, including my statement upfront that what we have here is the earliest known portrait of Sir Archie, done sometime between the Seven Years War and the American Revolution. Why? The gold embroidery lace on the uniform is very similar to that found on other British officers serving with the East India Company at this time. We know that Archie served in India after the Seven Years War (did James?).
The uniform has the shoulder epauletter instead of a hanging aigulette, placing this uniform post 1768. Archie was in India in post 1768. If you look carefully at the sword knot of this officer's sword, you'll note the gold knot tied up around the hilt denoting him as the rank of captain or below. Majors and above wore their knots loose and hanging. Archie was a captain at this state in his career.
The fortress on the hill looks like it might be in India."