Robert Somers - 'Letters from the Highlands; or, the Famine of 1847'

Robert Somers (1822-1891) had only recently joined the 'North British Daily Mail' in Glasgow when he went to the Highlands to investigate the Potato Famines and the results were published in a book the following year. I have only just begun reading the tome but thought that these extracts from 'Letter XXI' on the 'Want of Plantations in Skye – Profits of the Kelp Manufacture – Extravagance of the Highland Chiefs – Its Results' were especially interesting:

'When Dr. Johnson visited the Hebrides, the lairds were only beginning to draw money-rents from their estates. A proprietor of one of the islands declared to him that "he should be very rich if he could set his land at 2½d. an acre." Every one knows how very different it is now.

Since then rents have undergone a fourfold, a six-fold, and even a ten-fold increase, and the Highland proprietors have reaped the benefit of the kelp manufacture, the profits of which far exceeded, in many cases, the rental of the land itself. We have heard of Highland proprietors receiving £10,000, and some £12,000 and £14,000 a-year from kelp alone.'

'There is no more interesting passage in Adam Smith's "Wealth of Nations" than that in which he describes how commerce and manufactures gradually broke down the power of the feudal barons, and promoted the improvement and cultivation of the country. In rude times a landed proprietor could find no way of consuming his revenue but by sharing it with a multitude of retainers, who were necessarily always at his command, whether in peace or war. But when commerce and manufactures arose, they spread before his eyes numerous articles of curious workmanship and dazzling material, the enjoyment of which could be lavished entirely upon himself. His vanity was tickled; and for a diamond buckle, or a gilded coach, he bartered the produce which would have maintained 1,000 men for a year.'

'Towards the close of last century, the rise of rents and the profits of kelp brought the Highland chiefs within the reach of the same temptations to which the English and Lowland barons had yielded a century earlier. They introduced them into the splendid warehouses and saloons of London, filled with the richest handiwork and the rarest and costliest luxuries which the ingenuity of man could devise, or the unwearied energies of commerce could collect.

There, too, were the English aristocracy, with their princely equipages and their glittering wealth, to excite emulation and to ruffle pride. The effect was the same as when a hawker of the backwoods spreads out his toys, and trinkets, and fire-waters, before a tribe of Indians. The vanity of the Highland chiefs was intoxicated, and the solid advantages which the new tide in their affairs had opened up to them were bartered for the merest baubles. There is a staircase-window in Lord Macdonald's mansion in Skye which is said to have cost £500. In residences, dress, furniture, equipages, pleasures, and style of living, the Highland chiefs copied the English model; and while they necessarily lost their power by this new way of life, the only resources by which their rugged country and its untutored inhabitants could have been brought into a cultivated and civilised condition, were wasted in the vain attempt to rival the magnificence of an aristocracy who possessed much richer domains and larger revenues.

The decay of the kelp manufacture completed the ruin which personal extravagance had begun; and the men who had long reaped the profits of this lucrative trade passed from the scene, leaving their estates as unimproved as they had found them, a numerous population starving, and rentals reduced far below their nominal amount by the annual charges of their mortgages.

The heirs of this poor inheritance occupy a difficult and painful position. They are entitled to sympathy and indulgence. There is only one way by which they can hope to gain their lost ground, to improve their estates, or even to transmit them, in a state worth possessing, to their children. They must forsake the world, forswear pomp and fashion, retire to their country seats, live penuriously, and spend in the improvement of their properties the last farthing of their rentals which they can spare from the consumption of their families.'

The 'Letters' must have pleased his employers for, the following year, Somers became the paper's Editor (a position he held until 1859) and we may glimpse the 29 year-old in the census of 1851 living at 16 Pollok Street, Govan, Renfrewshire with his wife, Janet, and their three children.

I had some difficulty in discovering further information regarding this address but, as can be seen from the link that follows, that is hardly surprising! - The Hidden Glasgow .

(It was also an anomaly of the period that the part of the Parish of Govan that the Somers' lived in was considered to be in Renfrewshire, unlike the majority of Govan which lies in Lanarkshire.)

Bald's 1805 Map of Harris – A Summary

I think it sometimes helps readers if I provide a page of links to pieces on a particular theme and in this instance have decided to collate my research regarding this wonderful map, the image of which can be explored on the National Library of Scotland site: http://maps.nls.uk/counties/detail.cfm?id=660

I have put the links into six separate groups but all the pieces are interrelated so, depending upon where you choose to start and which aspects you find interesting , you will find yourself following your own meandering path through them.

Asbestos & William MacGillivray

http://direcleit.blogspot.com/2010/05/asbestos-on-harris.html

http://direcleit.blogspot.com/2010/06/more-on-asbestos-on-harris.html

The Revd. Bethune & other people

http://direcleit.blogspot.com/2010/06/names-from-balds-1804-map-of-harris.html

Annotations including, perhaps, some by the 7^th Earl of Dunmore?

http://direcleit.blogspot.com/2010/09/pair-of-updates-relating-to-balds-map.html

http://direcleit.blogspot.com/2010/06/sold-to-stewart.html

http://direcleit.blogspot.com/2010/05/obe-harris-thursday-may-311883.html

Bald's Map & FWL Thomas's Chart

http://direcleit.blogspot.com/2010/11/fwl-thomass-1857-chart-of-east-loch.html

Togail Tir

http://direcleit.blogspot.com/2010/08/togail-tir-marking-time.html

http://direcleit.blogspot.com/2011/03/captain-fwl-thomas-malcolm-gillies.html

http://direcleit.blogspot.com/2011/03/living-voice.html

Placenames

http://direcleit.blogspot.com/2010/09/letters-from-alexander-carmichael-to.html

http://direcleit.blogspot.com/2011/01/did-northmen-extirpate-celtic.html

http://direcleit.blogspot.com/2010/03/placenames-collected-by-iain-mac.html

http://direcleit.blogspot.com/2010/08/iain-mac-tailleirs-gaelic-placenames-5.html

Note:

The only previous research into this map of which the NLS & I are aware was that performed by James B Caird, published in 1988 in 'Togail Tir'. If any reader happens to be researching the map, and especially if they have knowledge of this copy's whereabouts between its creation sometime in the 19thC and its surfacing in 1988, then please do get in touch.

'...one pound sterling a-head...'

On the 2^nd of September, 1841, the Caledonian Mercury reported:

EMIGRATION. - There are three ships at Lochmaddy, North Uist, taking in emigrants from the neighbouring parishes of Harris and South Uist, for Cape Breton. The Earl of Dunmore gives one pound sterling a-head to the most destitute families from his property.

(Sourced from Inverness Reference Library via Am Baile's newspaper archive search facility)

The Scots To Canada Web Site lists three ships, the Banffshire, the George and the Tay, leaving Lochmaddy in August 1841 'taking 1300 emigrants from N Uist to Cape Breton. " of the poorest class".' so I think that we can be reasonably confident that these are the same vessels that appeared in the newspaper's article.

The 6th Earl of Dunmore, Alexander Edward Murray, , had inherited Harris upon the death of his father on the 11^th of November 1836 and would in turn be succeeded by his son, Charles Adolphus, following the 6^th Earl's death on the 14th of July 1845 . Thus the Earl was about halfway through his proprietorship of the island when he was providing a pound per person for those electing to leave.

But what does that 'one pound sterling a-head' of 1841 represent 170 years later?

To try to discover an answer I will examine three options, starting with the excellent  Measuring Worth site and see what values it provides us with:

In 2009, the relative worth of £1 0s 0d from 1841 is:

£72.10	using the Retail Price Index (RPI)
£105.00	using the GDP Deflator
£766.00	using the Average Earnings
£1,160.00	using the Per-Capita GDP
£2,690.00	using the Share of GDP

Faced by these five options, ranging from mere £72 to a more substantial £2700, it is important that we choose the correct comparison. The RPI is rather narrow and a better indication of the buying power of £1 in 1841 is given by the £105 of the GDP Deflator.

The remaining three indicators, including that of 'Average Earnings' (which might appear particularly attractive) are actually not appropriate in the current context.

Using the the National Archives tool for the same calculation will show you that £1 in 1840 would only buy £44.10 worth of goods today so my choice of the figure of £105 might appear, if anything, slightly over-generous?

Our third option is to look at what the Reverend John Macivor had to say about wages on Harris in The New Statistical Account of 1845*:

'Farm-servants receive from L.3 to L.3, 10s. in the half-year...' so our £1 would represent between perhaps 1/7^th & 1/6^th (14-17%) of such a man's annual income. We may also wish to note that the annual value of all the Produce of the island is given by the Reverend as 'L. 11,900' and that over 10% of that, 'L. 1300', even as late as 1845, was still coming from Kelp.

So, depending upon how you choose to compare it, the Earl's £1 per person was equivalent to either a miserly £44 in today's money, or even as much as two-months wages for an agricultural labourer of the time!

Perhaps, though, to attempt to place any monetary value upon the Earl's inducement is rather to miss the point:

People were being 'required' to leave because so many had been forced to live crowded-together upon the meanest of land to make way for the ever-expanding sheep farms which, the Reverend helpfully informs us, were bringing in a an income of some £2800, or almost a quarter of Harris's total income from Produce at that time.

The population of the Parish of Harris in 1841 was 3,056** according to the census earlier that year.

Even if every person had elected to emigrate, the 'one pound sterling a-head' would only have amounted to three-quarters of one year's income from Kelp & Sheep combined...

(Note: I appreciate that not all of the income from Produce went to the proprietor himself, but consider the comparison to be justified in demonstrating the affordability of his scheme with respect to the economy.)

Sources:

*New Statistical Account of Scotland, Vol XIV, p157

**Enumeration Abstract, Scotland, 1841, p40

Enumeration Districts of Harris in 1911

I have previously written of the useful information to be found lurking in the Header pages of Census images that one views on ScotlandsPeople as may be seen in these pieces relating to 1851 and 1871.

The 1911 header pages unfortunately do not appear to have maintained the previous practice of allowing the Minister of the Parish space to make his (often extensive & always interesting) comments.

However, the Headers do include useful Summary pages and continue the practice introduced in 1891 of including data on Gaelic and Gaelic & English speakers.

I am looking at the data from just three of the Enumeration Districts (purely because the people whose records I have had cause to investigate so far all lived in just these three areas).

Enumeration District 2 South Harris – includes Strond

357 people, 156 male, 201 female (43.7% male, 56.3% female)

Gaelic 91, G&E 247

338 speakers (94.7% of population) of whom Gaelic 26.9%, G&E 73.1%

Enumeration District 5 South Harris – includes 'Kylis' & Kintulavig

298 people, 142 male, 156 female (47.7% male, 52.3% female)

Gaelic 81, G&E 188

269 speakers (90.3% of population) of whom Gaelic 30.1%, G&E 69.9%

Enumeration District 4 North Harris – includes 'Kendibeg & Dereclet'

156 people, 80 male, 76 female (51.3% male, 48.7%female)

Gaelic 25, G&E 122

147 speakers (94.2% of population) of whom Gaelic 17.0%, G&E 83.0%

Discussion

I am reluctant to draw strong conclusions from just three samples but the broad similarity for the Gaelic/G&E figures in the two Southern districts certainly contrast with that from their Northern neighbour. Many factors will be at play here including the age distribution (especially the proportion of people of school age pre & post the 1874 Education Act), the location of the schools and the ability for the children to have attended both for financial and physical reasons. The island's teachers from the previous decade are to be seen in this piece from my series on Education in Harris. Also, does the lower proportion of 'speakers' in District 5 as compared to the other two districts indicate a greater proportion of pre-verbal infants there, perhaps?

A complex topic and I hope that this brief incursion into it has been of some interest.

Finally, an illuminating extract from the Description page for District 4 of North Harris:

'A road leads from the foot of the Leachan Road to the little pier at east loch Tarbert in front of the Old Post Office in the March between North Harris and South Harris, the said house being in South Harris though it is in the Registration district of North Harris, the same road leads to the little pier at West Tarbert, it pass in front of the new post office, which is also in South Harris though in the Registration district of North Harris. The Old Post Office and the new Post Office are in South Harris, though in the Registration District of North Harris.'

The Enumerator who wrote that paragraph was Mr Finlay Macleod and we can only guess at the point he was making to his census superiors by including it as his only comment on the roads etc of this District!

South Harris Estate – The Final Dunmore Years & A Review of 1834-1919

You may recall that, in 1868, Charles Adolphus Murray, the 7^th Earl of Dunmore, had relinquished ownership of the North Harris Estate to his bankers, in particular the Scott family.

Thus for the next forty years, until his death on the 27^th of August 1907, the Earl's interest in the island was confined to his South Harris Estate.

He was succeeded by his son, Alexander Edward Murray, but this 8^th Earl of Dunmore was to finally sell the estate in 1919 marking the end of his family's involvement in the island some 85 years after his great grandfather had initially bought Harris. (As an aside, the purchaser in 1919 was Lord Leverhulme who paid £20,000 for the Estate. Following his death only six years later it was sold at auction for £900.)

In fact, the 8^th Earl was a soldier and it was really only the in years 1908-1914 that he was able to devote time to his Harris estate for he played an active and distinguished role in the First World War prior to lord Leverhulme's purchase a year after the end of that bloody and, for the islands, especially debilitating conflict.

Thus ended the Murray family's ownership that may be conveniently divided into seven eras:

The 5^th Earl

1834 – 5th March, George Murray, 5th Earl of Dunmore buys Harris for £60,000

1834 – Duncan Shaw replaces Donald Stewart as Factor

The 6^th Earl

1836 - Alexander Murray, 6th Earl of Dunmore, inherits Harris

1836/7 - Poor harvests, particularly of Potatoes

1838/9 – Seilibost, Big Borve, Middle Borve and Little Borve cleared

184? - Raa on Tarasaigh Cleared for John Macdonald, tacksman

1843 – Church of Scotland fragments in Disruption – islanders join Free Church of Scotland

1843 - 6th Earl of Dunmore considers a harbour at W Loch Tarbert, with a link to the E Loch

1844 - John Robson Macdonald becomes Factor of Harris

The Dowager Countess

1845 - Alexander, 6th Earl, dies and Catherine, his wife, is 'Tutor' for her son, 7th Earl of Dunmore

1846 – Potato Famines begin

1847 – Borve, Harris resettled.

1849 - Countess of Dunmore establishes the Embroidery School at An-t-Ob

1851 – Crofts at Direcleit and Ceann Dibig bisected to provide homes for people cleared from Borve on Berneray

1851 - Potatoes Famines end.

1852 – Highland and Islands Emigration Society(HIES) formed – 742 leave Harris for Australia

1853 – Borve, Harris cleared again

1853 - Manish Free Church built

1854 – Road from Stornoway to Tarbert completed

The 7^th Earl's Limited Period*

1857 - 24th March - 7th Earl of Dunmore's 16th Birthday

1857 – Lady Dunmore and Mrs Thomas start Stocking-Knitting industry

1858 - 'In 1858 Lady Dunmore was a mother to her people in Harris.' - Duchess of Sutherland writing of 'The Revival of Home Industries' in 'The Land Magazine', Vol 3, 1899.

1860s – Direcleit and Ceann Dibig cleared

*This marks the period during which, although he was still five years away from being of 'Full Age', the Earl would have had enjoyed enhanced rights regarding his property under Scottish law.

The 7^th Earl

1862 - 24th March - 7th Earl of Dunmore's 21st Birthday

1863 – Ardvourlie Castle built as Hunting Lodge for North Harris Estate

1865 – Harris Hotel built by Earl of Dunmore and originally called Tarbert Hotel

1866 – Marriage of 7^th Earl to Lady Gertrude Coke

1867 – Abhainnsuidhe Castle built by Earl of Dunmore

1867 - North Harris Estate sold to Sir Ernest Scott for £155,000 (over two-and-a-half times what the 5th Earl of Dunmore had paid for the whole of Harris 33 years earlier!)

1871 – Alexander Edward Murray (8^th Earl) born

The 7^th Earl – South Harris Estate

1873 – Dunmore's restore St Clement's church

1882 - Nov/Dec -Thomas Brydone becomes Lord Dunmore's Factor

1884 – Direcleit and Ceann Dibig recrofted

1886 – Catherine, Countess of Dunmore (7^th Earl's mother) dies in February

1886 – Telegraph Cable from Port Esgein, Harris to North Uist laid

1888 – Assisted emigration to Canada established

1897 – Road linking Tarbert and Rodel through the Bays is completed

1897 - Manish Victoria Cottage Hospital built & endowed by Mrs Frances Thomas

The 8^th Earl

1907 - Death of Charles Adolphus Murray, 7th Earl of Dunmore

1919 – South Harris Estate sold for £60,000.

The first point that I need to make is that, as a result of the estate(s) being owned by four successive Earls punctuated by the Dowager Countess's period as 'Tutor', there is a degree of confusion to be found in some writing about Harris (Yes, including my own!) and I hope that the selected extract from my Timeline shown above helps to clarify things.

(A similar problem exists with the previous dynasty of owners where we have, in turn, Captain Alexander Macleod, Alexander Hume Macleod & then Alexander Norman Macleod owning the island from 1779-1790, 1790-1811 & 1811-1834 respectively!)

Secondly, it is really the role of two generations, those of the 6^th & 7^th Earls from 1836-1845 and 1845-1907 respectively, upon which we should focus:

1836-1845

Alexander Murray, 6^th Earl of Dunmore, inherits the island and with it the first hint of the food crises that would, coincidentally, start the season after his death and dominate the early years of his widow's control of the estate. He appears to do the islanders a favour in replacing the hated Factor Donald Stewart with Duncan Shaw Factor but the series of Clearances that Shaw oversaw suggests otherwise. The one good thing that the 6^th Earl did consider doing was a revival of Captain Alexander Macleod's plan to link East & West Loch Tarbert but he, just like the good Captain before him, died soon after having had this notion.

1862-1907

No, this is not an error but I want to look at these years before returning to what I believe to be the defining decades of the Dunmore dynasty.

The first five years see the finally fully fledged 7^th Earl embark on an overambitious building program, gain a wife and lose an estate. I say 'lose' because, although it might appear that having sold North Harris for 250% of the sum his grandfather had paid for the whole island he had done rather well in the deal, it is believed that little or no cash was actually exchanged. The estate was provided in payment of monies that were owing to the Earl's bankers.

It is worth noting that he wasn't the first grandson to have to 'sell' land on Harris for Alexander Norman Macleod had preceded him in this regard when being forced to sell the whole island. In his case, the purchaser had been...the 5^th Earl of Dunmore. It was also this Macleod who had brought Donald Stewart to Harris to act as his Factor.

The consequence of this was that, for the final forty years of his life, the 7^th Earl only owned the South Harris Estate and thus could focus his attention upon that part of the island. There is, frankly, scant evidence of him paying the island any attention at all other than as a plaything and virtually none after his mother's death in 1886. The few developments that did take place can all be ascribed to sources other than him.

1845-1862

As alluded to above, the Dowager Countess was greeted in the year following her husband's death by the first of the Potato Famines that would last through to 1851 and lead, in part, to 742 people leaving Harris for Australia the following year. Borve on Harris was resettled, and then it & Borve on Berneray were Cleared. In amongst this turmoil the Countess decided to establish her Embroidery School at An-t-Ob which seems to have more in common with a child-labour sweat-shop than a serious attempt at addressing the economic issues facing the islanders.

She met their spiritual needs by finally acceding to demands for a Free Church to be built (although the site at Manish was not their first-choice) having claimed ignorance of all previous requests.

In the year of her son's sixteenth birthday she and Mrs Thomas started the Stocking Knitting industry which appears to have been more financially robust for the women of the island than the Embroidery School of the previous decade. This event marks our first record of the latter lady's presence on the isle, a presence that in my opinion was of great significance especially with regard to the early marketing of what was to become known as Harris Tweed.

Finally, in 1860, Direcleit and Ceann Dibig were cleared with a favoured few being allowed to dwell there as cottagers...

Overall what strikes me is not what the four Earls and one Countess are remembered for having done, but rather all that they failed to do and chief amongst these must be their not having established Tarbert as a fishing station with the two lochs linked by canal or rail.

One can only guess at the income it would have generated for the island and its owners and at what it might have cost, but it would certainly have been a wiser investment than the 7^th Earl's castle which was to prove so dear...

A Special Set of Links

Although I think I deserve some small credit for having seen the potential in the peculiarities of the Scotland Census transcriptions in allowing one to perform larger-scale genealogical analyses, it is to another blogger that I owe my gratitude for realising that a blog might be a suitable vehicle in which to publish my results.

He is a prolific blogger and, although we frequently include links to each-others work, I thought it entirely appropriate to provide this comprehensive list of his various blogs:

First World War
Faces from the Lewis War Memorial - lists the casualties from the Isle of Lewis
Iolaire Disaster 1919 - lists the casualties and survivors of the sinking of HMY Iolaire
Lewismen in Canadian service - lists all those from the Isle of Lewis known to have served in the CEF
Wargraves in Lewis - shows the wargraves, and war-related private graves in Lewis cemeteries
Isle of Lewis War Memorials - shows the war memorials in Lewis and transcriptions
Roll of Honour - lists all those who served (and died) from Lewis
Lewismen from the 2nd Seaforths - lists those who served with the 2nd Seaforth with transcripts from the war diary of that regiment
Lewismen at HMS Timbertown - islanders interned at Groningen, Holland

Other islands
Harris War Memorial (WW1 and WW2)
Berneray to Vatersay Tribute (WW1 and WW2, Berneray, North Uist, Grimsay, Benbecula, South Uist, Eriskay and Barra)
Lyness Royal Naval Cemetery (pictures and information on all the casualties buried in that cemetery in Orkney)

Second World War
World War II casualties from Lewis

Reports from the Napier Commission
Transcriptions of the 1883 Napier Report
Napier Commission in the Outer Hebrides
Napier Commission in the Isle of Skye
Napier Commission in Orkney
Napier Commission in Shetland
Napier Commission in Sutherland
Napier Commission in Ross-shire [work in progress]

Lewis and Harris witnesses to the Napier Commission


Local history blog
Pentland Road

Personal blog
Atlantic Lines

He also contributes to the Western Isles War Graves (forum) and Western Isles War Memorials (forum)

A Small Boy in Aberdeen

The 1911 Census marks a significant point in my researches because it is the first to include my Dad. There is something slightly strange about seeing one's father listed as a 4 year-old boy and especially so as all my grandparents were already dead by the time I myself was 4 and hence, although I have 'met' them in the censuses, they exist only as shadows in my mind.

I do not intend to dwell upon the details of the household at 56 St Swithin Street (save to say that my dad's two aunts were both Teachers and that the Boarder at his grandmother's house taught Science at Gordon's College), but look instead at the occupations of the neighbours at numbers 52 to 54:

We have an employer in the form of the Manager of a 'Coal & Lime Importers, Oil Refiners & Grain Merchants Limited Company'; another employer who was a House Painter; a third employer who was a 'Motor Car Agent' and whose daughter was a 'Clerk & Typist' in the Motor Trade; and finally a 'Retired Gilder & Picture Framer' whose daughter was a self-employed Piano Teacher and whose two sons were employed as a 'Dentists Mechanic' and a 'House Painter'.

So this was the neighbourhood that my Stornowegian grandfather found himself inhabiting 90 years after his own grandfather had been born in a house on the shore at Direcleit, a house that the sea was known to enter at particularly high tides.

I say 'inhabiting' but in fact he wasn't there on the night of the census and, as the index at ScotlandsPeople does NOT include a field for the place of birth, I am not going to trawl through all the 36 year-old John Kerrs (at £1.17 each) in the hope of chancing upon him!

What is more disappointing is that, had he been there, I am sure that he would have continued his practice from the previous Census and inserted 'G&E' in the otherwise blank column recording Gaelic speakers...

A Singular Occurrence

In 1911, living on his own in a house at Rodil despite his being married, we find the 60 year-old Gaelic & English speaking Donald MacCrimmon. Deciphering his name initially proved a tad difficult but it was his unusual occupation that both drew my attention and proved the key to identifying him:

Dunvegan-born Donald gives his occupation as 'Formerly: Book binder & Printer' in 'General Publishing'. Armed with his forename, age and the fact that he was born on Skye, I located him in the three previous censuses:

1901

Donald McCrimmon, 47, Book Binder, 144 Stirling Rd, Glasgow, b. Skye, Invernessshire

Mary McCrimmon, 40, Wife, b. Bernad(?), Invernessshire

Duncan McCrimmon, 21, Son, Book Binder, b. Glasgow

William McCrimmon, 19, Son, Goods Checker, b. Glasgow

Elizabeth McCrimmon, 15, Daughter, Envelope Packer, b. Glasgow

Euphemia Mcdonald, 16, Daughter-in-Law, Domestic Servant, b. Barnars(?), Invernessshire

1891

Donald Crimmon, 40, Bookbinder, 85, North Wallace St, Glasgow, b. Dunvegan, Inverness Shire

Duncan Crimmon, 13, Son, Scholar, b. Glasgow

William C Crimmon, 9, Son, Scholar, b. Glasgow

1881

Donald McCrimmon, 30, Bookbinder, 133 Springburn Rd, Glasgow, b. Dunvegan, Invernessshire

Elizabeth McCrimmon, 30, Wife, b. Huntly, Aberdeenshire

Duncan McCrimmon, 2, Son, b. Glasgow

John Caldwell, 25, Brother-in-Law, Iron Turner, b. England

Alexander Caldwell, 19, Brother-in-Law, Iron Turner, b. Dalmellington, Ayrshire

Barbara Stark, 13, Niece, Scholar, b. Glasgow

There are three or four possible candidates for Donald in 1871 but I don't intend pursuing this.

However, these three returns alone have a things to tell us:

Firstly, Donald's first wife appears to have been Elizabeth Caldwell from Huntly and she quite possibly died prior to 1891 which is when we see their son William having 'C', quite probably for 'Caldwell', added to his name. I have found the Caldwell's in 1871 when they were living in Springburn, Lanarkshire and Eliza was employed as a Silk worker. A decade earlier they had been in Sowerby, Yorkshire, which explains her brother John having been born in England. Their father, William Caldwell, was employing 2 men and a boy in his work manufacturing Drainage Pipes.

Secondly, Donald married a second wife, Mary, but was it she who gave him a daughter, Elizabeth, in 1884? I have searched for the girl in 1891 to no avail and have also had no success in finding either wife in that particular year.

However, both Mary, and Donald's 'Daughter-in-Law' Euphemia Macdonald, appear to have been born in Bernera in Inverness-shire which could either be the village of that name on Skye or the island of Berneray itself and if the latter might go some way in explaining why Donald the retired Bookbinder was living 'next door' to Lexy Kerr in Rodil in 1911!

The Two Houses of 'Kylis'

The 1911 Census of Harris records the following:

KYLIS

7 Rooms with Windows

Malcolm Macdonald, 41, G&E, General Merchant, Own Account, b. Obbe, Harris

Catherine Macdonald, 21, Wife, b. Finsbay, Harris

Roderick Macdonald, 3, Son, b. (unreadable), Harris

Sarah Grant Macdonald, 9 months, Daughter, b. Kylis, Harris

Sarah Macdonald, 70, Widow, Mother, G&E, Private Means, b. Grantown, Strathspey

Flora Maclennan, 18, General Servant Domestic, G&E, b. Finsbay, Harris

Malcolm Macleod, 18, Servant, Carter, G&E, b. Ardvia, Harris

13 Rooms with Windows

Norman Robertson, 29, G&E, Estate Factor, b. Portree

Jessie Robertson, 27, Wife, G&E, b. South Uist

Donald Norman Stuart Robertson, 7 months, Son, b. South Uist

Donald Robertson, 66, Married, Father, G&E, Railway Traffic Agent, b. Blair Atholl

Christina Kerr, 21, Domestic Servant, G&E, b. Harris

I'll get my family bit out of the way first:

Christina Kerr was a daughter of Direcleit-born Roderick Kerr Roderick Kerr and a decade earlier her brother Donald had been a Cattle Herd living with the family of Roderick & Sarah Macdonald at the Farm House. Thus she represents the most recent of a line of family members serving the Farmers & Factors of the South.

Returning to the two houses, I am unsure which of them is the 'Kyles Lodge/Kyles House' that was built for the McRa family and now wonder whether I was wrong to suggest that the family of Mrs S Macdonald had ever lived there?

If the smaller house was indeed the McRa residence, then what is the larger property?

My instinct is to suggest that the Macdonald's had indeed lived at the Lodge/Farm from at least the years1881 to 1901 then 'downsized' after Roderick's death and relinquished it to the new Factor, but I'd welcome some assistance in unravelling these residencies!

Now 19 in Harris!

I missed one more household in the earlier list:

STROND
Christina Morrison, 80, Widow, Gaelic, Crofter, b. Harris
Chirsty Morrison, 50, Daughter, Single, Gaelic, Assisting on croft, b. Harris
Marion Morrison, 48, Daughter, Widow, Gaelic, Harris Tweed Spinner, b. Harris
Roderick Morrison, 9, Grandson, G&E, School, b. Harris
Donald Morrison, 8, Grandson, G&E, School, b. Harris
Catherine Morrison, 6, Granddaughter, G&E, School, b. Harris
Effie Kerr, 82, Sister, Single, Gaelic, Formerly: Harris Tweed Spinner (unreadable), Own Account, At Home, b. Harris
Peter Macleod, 21, Boarder, G&E, Commission Agent, b. Harris

Effie Kerr and her sister Christina were both daughters of Angus Kerr (1792-1867), my ancestor John the Tailor of Direcleit's brother. Christina had lost her fisherman husband, William Morrison, on the 26th of June 1890 when he and two others were lost from the 'Jessie & Margaret'.
Effie died the following year on the 14th of January, her death being registered by 'Peter Macleod. Occupier'.

So, now I have 19 Kerr folk on Harris yet my original search only produced 15 results.
Looking at that list, I notice that the 4 missing persons are Christina Kerr of Direcleit and her three children.
The fact that the three other direcleit Kerr folk in their two households were listed makes this even more mysterious!

Therefore, as far as I can tell, there were in fact 19 people called Kerr left on Harris with 15 of them being relatives of mine and all but two of these being of John the Tailor's branch of the family.
Any trace of all but one of the other families that I had  first found listed in 1841 has been lost some seventy years later...

The Remaining Kerrs of Stornoway in 1911

These two families are those of my great granduncles Alexander John and Malcolm.

They, together with their older sister (my great grandmother Mrs Annie Maciver) were the surviving children of Malcolm Kerr of Direcleit and Mary Macdonald of Orinsay.

51 ½ Bayhead St – 5

Alexander J Kerr, 55, G&E, Dock Labourer, b. Stornoway

Mary, 44, Wife, G&E, b. Stornoway

Married 7 years, both children still living. Of the four children from Alexander John's first marriage to Margaret Macarthur (1858-1902), the eldest, Donald, was in Canada whilst the youngest, Alexander John, can be seen below. The eldest of the two girls, Catherine Isabella, had died of tetanus aged 6 but 18 year-old Mary was also still in Stornoway.

Alexander J, 14, Son, G&E, School, b. Stornoway

Murdo, 6, Son, G&E, School, b. Stornoway

Margaret, 3, Daughter, G&E, b. Stornoway

29 Bayhead St – 6

Malcolm Kerr, 52, G&E, Cooper, Fishcuring Yard, b. Stornoway

Margaret, 41, Wife, G&E, b. Stornoway

Married 3 years with no children, these four being Malcolm's from his first marriage to Marion Macleod (1867-1905):

Mary, 15, G&E, Domestic Servant, b. Stornoway

Malcolm, 13, G&E, School, b. Stornoway

John, 11, G&E, School, b. Stornoway

Duncan, 9, G&E, School, b. Stornoway

One thing that slightly mystifies me is why Alexander John was working as a Dock Labourer at this time for, according to his Obituary in the Stornoway Gazettee , he had owned & sailed the 'Lady Louisa Kerr' following the loss of the 'Crest' in 1903.

I can only assume that, by 1911, the competition from steam ships had already proved too much and that even then 'the picturesque sailing coaster has been almost completely squeezed out of existence.'...

1911 Harris Households containing Kerr folk

In the previous piece I mentioned that there were only 15 people left on Harris bearing the family name Kerr:

There are some 18 people listed here so quite why three of them were missing from my original search is a (somewhat concerning!) indexing mystery...

Please note that all spellings are given as they appear on the census sheets.

I have shown in bold those who are my relatives.

DERECLET – 7, living in 3 consecutively listed households

Catherine, 35, G&E, Hand Loom Weaveress (Home Spun), Own Account, At Home, b. Harris

Married 9 years, 3 children all still alive. Her husband, my cousin John Kerr, was a Salmon Fisher at Chanonry Point in 1901 and died on the 8^th of November 1950 in Direcleit. His mother is the Widow Mary Kerr seen below.

Christy, 7, Daughter, G&E, School, b. Harris

Mary, 5, Daughter, G&E, School, b. Harris

Angus, 2, Son, b. Harris

W Mary, 72, Gaelic, Widow, Tweed Making Home Spun (Old Age Pensioner), Own Account, At Home,

Marion, 43, Daughter, Single, G&E, Woollen Weaveress Home Spun, Own Account, At Home, b. Harris

Mary was the wife of Angus Kerr, a Fisherman and the younger brother of my great, great grandfather.

Effie, 80, Single, Gaelic, Tweed Making OA Pensioner, Own Account, At Home, b. Harris

I think this is my great, great grandaunt who was my great, great grandfather's youngest sister and a sister-in-law of her neighbour, the Widow Mary.

KYLIS - 1

Christina Kerr, 21, G&E, Servant, b. Harris

Christina was the eldest daughter of my great grand uncle Roderick of Obbe. She was living in the household of Norman Robertson, 29, Estate Factor, b. Portree.

Their neighbours (in what appears to have been the smaller od the two houses) include the 70 year-old widow Sarah Macdonald, the Mrs Macdonald of Kyles Lodge who wrote an account of the origins of Harris Tweed.

KINTULAVIG - 1

Annie, 17, Niece, G&E, Hand Loom Weaveress Harris Tweed, Own Account, At Home, b. Glasgow

As far as I know, Annie has no connection to the Kerr families of Harris.

OBBE - 5

Roderick, 68, Gaelic, General Labourer, b. Harris

Peggy, 57, Wife, Gaelic, Harris Tweed Spinner, Own Account, At Home, b. Harris

Married 30 years, 8 children of whom 6 still alive.

Angus, 20, Son, Gaelic & English, General Labourer, b. Harris

Kate, 16, Daughter, G&E, b. Harris

John, 9, Son, G&E, At School, b. Harris

Roderick, who was born in Direcleit, was the son of my great, great grandfather Malcolm Kerr and his first wife, Bess Macdonald. He was raised by his grandparents in Direcleit before returning to the family roots along the Sound of Harris. His son, Angus, was wed at Scarista in 1923 and the Minister performing the ceremony was John Kerr, the 'Ayatollah' of Finlay J Macdonald's books.

STROND - 3

Ann Maclean, 44, Gaelic, Single, Harris Tweed Spinner, Own Account, At Home, b. Harris

John Kerr, 15, Son, G&E, b. Harris

Jessie Macleod, 74, Single, Harris Tweed Spinner, Own Account, At Home, b. Greenock

Donald Kerr, 49, Son, Single, Crofter Fisherman, b. Harris

Susan Kerr,, 46, Daughter, Single, Harris Tweed Spinner, Own Account, At Home, b. Harris

Donald Morrison, 19, Grandson, Single, Assisting on croft, b. Harris

This family descend from a Shoemaker, Angus Kerr, and his wife Margaret Mackay. The 15 year-old John Kerr was the son of the unmarried Ann Maclean and Donald Kerr, who in turn was the son of the unmarried John Kerr and Jessie Macleod. Quite why this family shunned wedlock is unknown but it certainly proved challenging when I was mapping all the Kerr families on Harris!

RODIL – 1

Lexy Kerr, 79, Widow, G&E, Private Means, b. Harris

Lexy, whose husband Angus Kerr spent his whole working life serving the South Harris Estate, was living three doors down from the 'Boarding House' ie what began life as Rodel House and is currently the Rodel Hotel.

Perhaps the most interesting aspect is that 1911, the year that the Clo Mor was first stamped with the Orb Mark, displays in the census returns for the first time the words 'Harris Tweed'...

...and I'm very proud to have several female relatives shown to be engaged in spinning & weaving this most famous of Home Spun fabrics!

1911 Census - Initial Overview of the Kerr (& Shaw) Islanders

I thought that on this, the day that sees the release of the 1911 Census on ScotlandsPeople , I would begin by looking at some overall figures:

KERR DATA & (VERY!) BRIEF ANALYSIS

HARRIS 4849 people, 2238 Male, 2611 Female ie 53.8% female, 46.2% male

Harris 15 Male 5 Female 10

Harris – decreased from 18 (9 of each gender) to 15 ie by nearly 17%

There were 6 Kerr births between 1901 & 1911 inclusive & 6 deaths.

Further examination is required to explain the decrease.

LEWIS

Stornoway 17 Male 9 Female 8

Lochs 17 Male 9 Female 8

Lewis Total 34 Male 18 Female 16

Stornoway – increased from 11(6 male & 5 female) to 17 ie by over 50%

There were 3 Kerr births between 1901 & 1911 inclusive & 3 deaths.

Further examination is required to explain the increase.

Lewis – increased by 13 from 21 ie by 62%

(inc the Lochs population which increased from 9 to 17 ie by nearly 90%)

INVERNESS-SHIRE 59 – 27 M, 32 F

Inverness-shire – decreased by 1 from 60 ie under 2%

ROSS & CROMARTY 26 – 13 M, 13 F

Ross-shire – decreased by 11 from 37 ie by 30%

ARGYLL – increased by 7 from 196 ie by 4%.

SUTHERLAND – decreased by 17 from 159 ie by 11%

SHAW OVERVIEW

HARRIS – 61, 26 Male, 35 Female – decreased by 19 from 80 ie by 25%.

There were 11 Shaw births between 1901 & 1911 inclusive & 11 deaths.

Further examination is required to explain the increase.

LEWIS – 3, decrease by 5 from 8ie since by 68%

3 in each of Lochs & Stornoway, in 1901 these figures were 0 and 8 respectively.

Between 1901 & 1911 inclusive, 1 Shaw was born in Stornoway & 1 in Lochs & 1 died in Stornoway & 1 in Lochs.

Further examination is required to explain the overall decrease.

SUMMARY

It was pretty surprising that in each set that I have examined, the births & deaths balanced each-other out hence the observed changes must be due to the movement of people.

However, the figure that stands-out the loudest to me is that by 1911 there were only 5 males called Kerr left living on Harris.

Of these, the youngest was 9 and he was the only boy aged 0-14, 2 were aged 15-29, none were 30-44, 1 was 45-64 & the oldest was 68.

As for the 10 remaining females, the youngest was 16 and she was one of only 3 aged 15-29, 1 was aged 30-44, 2 were 45-64, 2 were 65-79 and the eldest pair were 80 and 82 years old.

Within a little over 60 years since my great, great grandfather Malcolm Kerr had first emigrated to Lewis (He considered his 'Nationality' to be 'Harris'!), there were for the first time more people in Stornoway bearing the name Kerr (his descendants) than Kerrs left living on Harris...