Four out of five

This gravestone, dedicated to the memory of a family of Macleods of Portnaguran, Point, stands in the Eye Cemetery. Although poorly legible nowadays, it relates the losses of four of the sons of Donald and Chirsty Macleod of 10 Portnaguran. Only one of their five sons, Donald, survived the First World War.

Alex was the only soldier; the other four served in the RNR. Alex was killed in action in France or Flanders, after joining up at home in Stornoway.

Although Norman survived the hostilities, he was lost in the Iolaire Disaster, when the ship that took him home sank within sight of Stornoway Harbour on New Year's morning 1919. He might well have seen the Tiumpan Head lighthouse, which stands not far from his home, just before the Iolaire sank.

William too was lost close to shore, but this time off the sandy shores of Belgium, when his requisitioned trawler was sank by fire from a shore battery at Blankenberge, near Zeebrugge.

Angus died at home, after being released from internment at Groningen, Netherlands, for medical reasons. He had been captured by the Dutch in October 1914 when the Royal Naval Division was beaten back from Antwerp. Several battalions crossed into neutral Holland, and into internment for the duration of the war.

Private ALEX MACLEOD
Last address in Lewis: 10 Portnaguran,
Service unit: 1st Gordon Highlanders
Service number: 3/5655
Date of death: 14 December 1914 at the age of 20
Killed in action in France
Memorial: Ypres (Menin Gate) panel 38
Local memorial: Point (Garrabost)

Seaman NORMAN MACLEOD
Last address in Lewis: 10 Portnaguran,
Son of Mr. and Mrs. Donald Macleod, of 10, Portnaguran, Stornoway, Ross-shire.
Service unit: Royal Naval Reserve, HMS Venerable
Service number: 1186TC
Date of death: 1 January 1919 at the age of 20
Drowned in sinking of HMY Iolaire
Memorial: Chatham Naval Memorial, panel 32
Local memorial: Point (Garrabost)

Seaman WILLIAM MACLEOD

Last address in Lewis: 10 Portnaguran,
Son of Mr. and Mrs. Donald Macleod, of 10, Portnaguran, Stornoway, Ross-shire.
Service unit: Royal Naval Reserve, HMY Sanda
Service number: 3398A
Date of death: 25 September 1915 at the age of 28
Ship sunk by shore battery at Blankenberge, Belgium
Memorial: Chatham Naval Memorial, panel 14
Local memorial: Point (Garrabost)

Seaman ANGUS MACLEOD
Last address in Lewis: 10 Portnaguran,
Son of Donald and Christina Maclean Macleod, of 10, Portnaguran, Stornoway.
Service unit: Royal Naval Reserve, HMS Victory
Service number: 3303/A
Date of death: 24 June 1916 at the age of 27
Died at home.
Interred: Eye / Aignish Cemetery, grave D. 1. 53.
Local memorial: Point (Garrabost)
Was released from internment in Holland for medical reasons

50 Lower Garrabost, 31 March 1901

What went on at 50 Lower Garrabost on the night of 31st March 1901? The night of the 1901 census sees a number of visitors was present in the house of Murdo and Mary Mackay, a couple in their early fifties. Apart from their children John (12), Malcolm (10), Murdo (8), Mary (27) and Annie (6), we also find these visitors, most from the village of Aird Tong, about 10 miles away on the other side of Stornoway.

Annie Macleod (40) - crofter's wife, Aird Tong
Isabella Ross (68) - crofter's wife, Aird Tong
Mary Macdonald (43) - crofter's wife, Aird Tong
Paggie Graham (68) - crofter's wife, Shader (Barvas)
Cate Macritchie (68) - crofter's wife, Benside
Paggie Dods (51) - watchmaker's wife, Aird Tong

Census returns offer us a narrow glimpse into the past, and what happened at this abode to prompt this influx of female visitors will probably remain hidden in the past. If anyone does have information, please leave a note. 

Mingulay

This week, the Island Book Trust is commemorating the evacuation of Mingulay a hundred years ago, in 1912. As part of that commemoration, I am posting the census return from 1901 from Mingulay, being registration district 108 and enumeration district 4. Each household is shown in a block, starting with the head of the household, their name, age and occupation (if known). Last year, I briefly touched on the demographics of Mingulay between 1851 and 1901.

Mingulay, 1 April 1901
Head: John Johnston, 23, Teacher
Cousin: Annie Mckinnon, 39, Cook

Head: John Macneil, 36, Fisherman
Wife: Mary Macneil, 28,
Daughter: Maggie Macneil, 5, Scholar
Daughter: Catherine Macneil, 3,
Son: Michael Macneil, 0,

Head: Angus Macneil, 82, Crofter
Wife: Maggie Macneil, 70,
Granddaughter: Annie Macneil, 18, General servant domestic

Head: Donald Macneil, 38, Fisherman
Wife: Mary Macneil, 35,
Son: Michael Macneil, 9, Scholar
Son: Neil Macneil, 7, Scholar
Son: James Macneil, 5, Scholar
Son: Joseph Macneil, 3,
Daughter: Marion Macneil, 0,

Head: John Macdonald, 44,
Brother: Donald Macdonald, 32, Fisherman
Sister: Catherine Macdonald, 36, General servant
Sister: Marion Macdonald, 33,

Head: John Sinclair, 67, Crofter
Wife: Mary Sinclair, 56,
Son: Johns Sinclair, 29, Fisherman
Daughter: Mary Sinclair, 18, General servant
Granddaughter: Annie Macmillan, 10, Scholar
Visitor: Angus Morrison, 30, General labourer

Head: Donald Macphee, 30, Fisherman
Brother: Neil Macphee, 22, Fisherman
Brother: Michael Macphee, 16, General labourer
Sister: Annie Macphee, 24, General servant
Sister: Mary Macphee, 22, General servant

Head: Malcolm Macphee, 78, Crofter
Wife: Mary Macphee, 68,
Daughter: Mary Macphee, 23, General servant

Head: Angus Macneil, 60, Fisherman
Son: John Macneil, 25, Sailor
Son: Donald Macneil, 23, Fisherman
Son: Roderick Macneil, 21, General fisherman labourer
Son: Michael Macneil, 18, General labourer
Daughter: Annie Macneil, 24, General servant domestic
Daughter: Mary Macneil, 14, Scholar
Visitor: Elizabeth Campbell, 13, Scholar

Head: John Campbell, 52, Crofter
Wife: Mary Campbell, 50,
Daughter: Catherine Campbell, 22, General servant
Son: Michael Campbell, 17, General labourer
Daughter: Maggie Campbell, 13, Scholar
Daughter: Bridget Campbell, 11, Scholar
Daughter: Margaret Campbell, 8, Scholar

Head: Michael Maclean, 37, Fisherman
Wife: Flora Maclean, 35,
Son: Donald Maclean, 6, Scholar
Son: John Maclean, 4,
Daughter: Mary Ann Maclean, 2,

Head: Michael Macneil, 49, Fisherman
Wife: Annie Macneil, 43,
Daughter: Marion Macneil, 12, Scholar
Daughter: Flora Macneil, 8, Scholar
Son: Rodrick Macneil, 10, Scholar
Brother: Donald Macneil, 43, Fisherman

Head: John Gillies, 40, General labourer
Wife: Flora Gillies, 42,
Son: James Gillies, 16, General labourer
Daughter: Annie Gillies, 14, General servant
Son: Alexdr Gillies, 12, Scholar
Daughter: Maggie Gillies, 8,
Son: Neil Gillies, 8, Scholar
Daughter: Christina Gillies, 5,
Son: Joseph Gillies, 4,
Daughter: Flora Gillies, 0,
Lodger: Catherine Gillies, 42,

Head: Mary Macphee, 69,
Daughter: Catherine Macphee, 39, General servant
Daughter: Marion Macphee, 29, General servant
Occupier: Michael Macphee, 36, Fisherman
Sister: Catherine Sinclair, 48,
Nephew: Duncan Sinclair, 20, Fisherman
Nephew: Donald Sinclair, 17, General labourer
Niece: Mary Sinclair, 16, Domestic servant

Head: Donald Campbell, 54, Formerly fisherman
Wife: Catherine Campbell, 52,
Daughter: Annie Campbell, 25, General servant
Daughter: Mary Campbell, 23, General servant
Daughter: Mary Ann Campbell, 10, Scholar

Head: Malcolm Campbell, 80, Crofter
Grandson: Neil Campbell, 11, Scholar

Head: John Maclean, 35, Crofter
Wife: Margaret Maclean, 34,
Daughter: Catherine Maclean, 10, Scholar
Son: Michael Maclean, 8,
Daughter: Mary Maclean, 5,
Son: Allan Maclean, 0,

Head: Malcolm Maclean, 72, Crofter
Son: Hugh Maclean, 28, Fisherman
Granddaughter: Mary Maclean, 13, Scholar
Occupier: Michael Maclean, 37, Fisherman
Aunt: Flora Maclean, 53, General servant
Occupier: Euphemia Maclean, 52, Crofter
Sister: Margaret Maclean, 50,
Occupier: Alexander Mackinnon, 44, Crofter
Brother: John Mackinnon, 40,
Niece: Margaret Gillies, 12, Scholar

Head: John Macneil, 55, Fisherman
Wife: Marion Macneil, 53,
Son: James Macneil, 21, General labourer
Son: Roderick Macneil, 19, General labourer
Daughter: Flora Macneil, 15, General servant
Daughter: Ann Macneil, 13, Scholar
Son: Donald Macneil, 10, Scholar

Head: Donald Campbell, 75, Crofter
Daughter: Mary Campbell, 35, General servant
Daughter: Elizabeth Campbell, 24, General servant
Daughter: Marion Campbell, 32,
Son: John Campbell, 39, Fisherman

Head: Donald Macneil, 56, Crofter
Wife: Maggie Macneil, 55, General labourer
Son: James Macneil, 21, General labourer
Daughter: Maggie Macneil, 24, General servant
Son: Joseph Macneil, 16, General servant
Son: Rodrick M Macneil, 14,
Son: John Macneil, 12, Scholar

Head: Annie Macneil, 78,
Daughter: Catherine Macneil, 45, General servant
Granddaughter: Annie Murphy, 16, General servant

Head: Hector Macneil, 72, Crofter
Son: Donald Macneil, 36, Fisherman
Daughter: Mary Macneil, 30, General servant
Servant: Marion Campbell, 23, School sewing mistress
Wife: Jane Finlayson, 68,

Head: John Finlayson, 66, Retired teacher

Head: Lachlan Macneil, 45, Fisherman
Wife: Mary Macneil, 38, General servant
Sister-in-law: Christina Campbell, 18, General servant
Brother-in-law: John Campbell, 16, General labourer

Emigrants

The Report from the Napier Commission in the Outer Hebrides contains a number of letters (contained in Appendix XXXII), sent by people who had been 'encouraged' to emigrate from Benbecula. When transcribing this section in 2010, I felt considerable cynicism over the veracity of the letters, if not the actual writing then certainly the spirit in which they were written. Lady Gordon-Cathcart has a very poor reputation in the Southern Isles, as the evidence, heard in Benbecula, South Uist and Barra bears out. Some landowners, as the Napier Report shows, actively felt that emigration was the only cure for the ill of the landless pauper in the Highlands and Islands.

However, a comment on this Appendix XXXII testifies that some of the emigrants were actually quite satisfied with the resettlement programme, resettlement at (amongst other places) Wappella Station in modern-day Manitoba, Canada. And, objectively speaking, there is no doubt that many of the emigrants would find conditions there a vast improvement to the congestion which they experienced in Benbecula.

Transposing this argument to the present day, I am reminded of two statues, one erected in Winnipeg, Canada and one at Strath Kildonan, Sutherland. I copy from the Manitoba Highland Dancers website:

This monument recognizes the Highland Clearances where Scottish villagers were forcibly removed from their homes and immigrated to Point Douglas in 1813. These settlers sought a better life in a far-away land and upon arrival fostered a relationship with the Peguis First Nation which was essential for them to prosper in this formidable land. Chief Peguis and his band taught vital hunting, trapping, clothing, shelter and winter survival skills without which the settlers would not have survived.

This 1813 immigration tallies with the second Clearance of Glen Loth (near Strath Kildonan) (the others being in 1809, 1813 and 1819). The story from Winnipeg does bear out frequent complaints, heard over the duration of the Clearances, that people were left to fend for themselves. And if it had not been for the humanity of the Peguis, those that had been left at Point Douglas would not have survived this first winter. 



A similar statue stands near Helmsdale, and I reproduce this image from the webpage for the community of Helmsdale.

Whilst recognising the undoubted achievements of the evicted Sutherlanders, the question does arise: why were these good people not allowed to make such achievements at home?


And which country in the world, in its right mind, throws its resident population off their land, and out of their own country? However, history should always be seen through the eyes of that time.

Stornoway memorial: unknown addresses

FIRST WORLD WAR

Private JOHN ANDERSON
Last address in Lewis: Stornoway
Canadian Army Medical Corps
Date of death: 27 June 1918
Age of death: 32

Bosun JOHN MACDONALD
Last address in Lewis: Stornoway
Son of the late Duncan and Kate McDonald; husband of Jeannie Ann McDonald (Nee Eddie), of 77, Waterloo Quay, Aberdeen. Born at Stornoway.
Mercantile Marine, SS Hogarth
Date of death: 8 June 1918
Age of death: 54

Able Seaman JOHN MACKENZIE
Last address in Lewis: Stornoway
Mercantile Marine, SS Serula
Date of death: 16 September 1918
Age of death: 22

Seaman MALCOLM MACLEOD
Last address in Lewis: Stornoway
Mercantile Marine
Date of death: 30 March 1905
Age of death: 49

Sergeant MALCOLM MACLEOD
Last address in Lewis: Stornoway
Son of John Macleod of Stornoway
42nd Canadian Infantry (Quebec Regiment)
Date of death: 12 August 1918
Age of death: 28

Seaman NORMAN MACLEOD
Last address in Lewis: Stornoway
Royal Naval Reserve, HMS Andania
Date of death: 27 January 1918

Carpenter THOMAS MACLEOD
Last address in Lewis: Stornoway
Mercantile Marine, SS Ava
Date of death: 26 January 1917

Bosun NEIL MACRAE
Last address in Lewis: Stornoway
Mercantile Marine, SS Pomeranian
Date of death: 15 April 1918
Age of death: 38

Captain DONALD MARTIN
Last address in Lewis: Stornoway
Mercantile Marine, SS Opal
Date of death: 18 December 1916

Seaman JOHN MATHESON
Last address in Lewis: Stornoway
Mercantile Marine
Date of death: 1 October 1916
Age of death: 42

Chief Engineer JAMES WILSON
Last address in Lewis: Stornoway
Mercantile Marine, SS St Ola
Date of death: 8 April 1918
Age of death: 59

SECOND WORLD WAR


Seaman ANGUS BEATON
Last address in Lewis: Stornoway
Son of John and Catherine Beaton, of Stornoway.
Royal Navy, Patrol Service
Date of death: 5 April 1942
Age at death: 20

Gunner PATRICK KING
Last address in Lewis: Stornoway
Son of John and Margaret King, of Greenock, Renfrewshire; husband of Catherine Robertson King, of Greenock.
Royal Artillery, 3 Bty., 2 Lt. A.A.Maritime Regt
Date of death: 27 August 1941
Age at death: 36

Private MALCOLM MACARTHUR
Last address in Lewis: Stornoway
Son of John and Mary MacArthur, of Fremantle, Western Australia.
Royal Australian Engineers, 2.15 Field Coy AIF
Date of death: 2 April 1944
Age at death: 35

Seaman DONALD MACDONALD
Last address in Lewis: Stornoway
Son of Mr. and Mrs. Donald MacDonald, of Stornoway, Isle of Lewis.
Royal Naval Reserve
Date of death: 21 June 1940
Age at death: 31

Able Seaman KENNETH MACLEOD
Last address in Lewis: Stornoway
Son of Alexander and Catherina Macleod of Stornoway
Royal Naval Reserve
Date of death: 14 July 1943
Age at death: 30

Seaman DONALD MCLEOD
Last address in Lewis: Stornoway
Son of Murdo and Barbara McLeod; husband of Margaret McLeod, of Stornoway.
Royal Naval Reserve
Date of death: 20 October 1945
Age at death: 46

Stores assistant RODERICK MACPHERSON MURRAY
Last address in Lewis: Stornoway
Son of Donald and Annie Murray, of Stornoway.
Royal Navy
Date of death: 15 November 1945
Age at death: 21

Lance corporal JAMES MURDOCH MCFADYEN
Last address in Lewis: Stornoway
Son of William and Donaldina Kennedy McFadyen, of Nitshill, Glasgow.
Royal Corps of Signals
Date of death: 6 March 1945
Age at death: 25

Stornoway memorial: Stag Road

FIRST WORLD WAR

Private MALCOLM MACDONALD
Last address in Lewis: 2 Stag Road, Stornoway
Son of John and Bella MacDonald, of Lower Bayble; husband of Isabella MacDonald, of 2, Stag Rd., Stornoway.
B Coy, 4th Seaforth Highlanders
Date of death: 4 February 1919
Age of death: 34

Private HUGH D DISHER
Last address in Lewis: 3 Stag Road, Stornoway
5th/ 6th Scottish Rifles
Date of death: 17 October 1917

Sergeant MURDO MURRAY
Last address in Lewis: 8 Stag Road, Stornoway
7th Seaforth Highlanders
Date of death: 12 October 1916
Age of death: 28

Seaman NEIL MACQUEEN
Last address in Lewis: Stag Road, Stornoway
Royal Navy, HMS Surprise
Date of death: 23 December 1917

SECOND WORLD WAR

Sergeant MURDO MACDONALD
Last address in Lewis: 3 Stag Road, Stornoway
Son of John MacDonald, and of Annie MacDonald, of Stornoway, Isle of Lewis.
2nd Royal Tank Regiment, R.A.C.
Date of death: 21 November 1941
Age at death: 26

Stornoway memorial: Shell Street

FIRST WORLD WAR

Gunner HUGH MURRAY MAIR
Last address in Lewis: 2 Shell Street, Stornoway
Son of James Mair and his wife Margaret Murray, of 2 and 3, Shell St., Stornoway, Scotland.
12th Australian Field Artillery
Date of death: 9 May 1917
Age of death: 25

Private JOSEPH JAMES MAIR
Last address in Lewis: 2 Shell Street, Stornoway
Son of James Mair and his wife Margaret Murray, of 2 and 3, Shell St., Stornoway, Scotland.
Royal Australian Naval Bridging Train
Date of death: 28 February 1919
Age of death: 32

Captain JOHN MACLEAN
Last address in Lewis: Shell Street, Stornoway
Mercantile Marine, SS Hector
Date of death: 14 November 1914