The bizarre ‘wedding day’ of the Queen of St Kilda
When an Englishman took it upon himself to arrange the marriage of the most eligible girl on the archipelago, things didn’t go to plan...
Ann Ferguson was hailed “the Queen of St Kilda” in the late 19th century because she was the best-looking single woman on the islands.
But the 23-year-old sock weaver also became the star of hundreds of inches of newspaper copy across Great Britain when an English travel agent randomly set about organising her wedding, with elaborate arrangements made for the occasion from his home in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear.
JG Campbell moored up at Hirta in May 1890 on a steamship loaded with presents and paid passengers, who had also travelled to enjoy the nuptials, just six weeks after sending a letter to St Kilda informing Miss Ferguson of his intentions.
He earlier heard from a contact on the island, which he had visited the previous summer, that the Queen and her love were unable to marry on St Kilda given its probationary Free Church minister was not yet ordained.
Campbell decided to act, although his motives were long questioned. The Scotsman claimed it was a “vulgar advertising” stunt while others queried whether he was just there to make fun of the natives.
The volume of gifts on board the boat that arrived at Village Bay, many donated by Campbell’s friends after hearing of his plans, was extraordinary.
On board was a wedding dress, gold ring and posies of orange blossoms for The Queen, along with a dress suit and a tall hat for the groom, John Gillies.
A library of 640 books, an American organ, a Melton Mowbray pie, a Gaelic bible for The Queen, a case of Hudson’s dry soap, three dozen pairs of spectacles, six boxes of Vaseline, 24 microscopes, several alarm clocks and bottles of hair restorer were also on board.
“One important detail had, however, been omitted in all the preparations of the marriage,” according to a report in the Glasgow Herald.
It added: “The consent of the contracting parties had not been obtained for these proceedings and there had been no means of communicating with St Kilda from the time the arrangements were first notified.”
There were awkward scenes as Campbell made it ashore after being informed by the bride’s brother that the wedding couldn’t go ahead.
Campbell had brought his own minister, a Reverend Rae, with him to perform the ceremony but the St Kilda minister, Rev Fiddes, said the wedding could not go ahead as he did not represent the Free Church.
Campbell persevered and approached Ann with a number of gold wedding rings to try on. The Queen’s father, senior St Kildan Donald Ferguson, was then taken in hand but was irate.
“What business have you to come here to marry people? When we want marriages here we will arrange them for ourselves,” he reportedly stormed.
The party left that night – but left the library behind. Campbell always maintained he only wanted to do good on St Kilda.
In an interview with the Sunderland Echo and Shipping Gazette, he claimed the Queen was willing to marry that day with her father “as soon see her married that day as any other day”.
Ann revealed that because the minister was against the marriage, they did not wish to go ahead, according to Campbell’s account. He added: “They are very superstitious people, and they look up to the minister like children.”
When asked if he arranged the marriage to make fun of the natives, Campbell said: “Nobody who would take the trouble and expense to raise a library of 640 volumes would go to make fools of these people.”
The Scotsman described Campbell’s trip as “the most inglorious voyage” with Campbell working to make St Kilda – and himself – famous.
It added: “They declined to barter away their birthright and their self respect or to exhibit themselves and their island customs in a false and ridiculous light even when bribed with such useful articles as books and pills and magic cleansers.” Ann Ferguson and John Gillies later married on St Kilda, which was evacuated in August 1930.