Your Projects
Jon Bauckham learns how volunteers in the town of Portsoy, Aberdeenshire, are helping others research their ancestry
Unlocking the history of Portsoy, Aberdeenshire
Situated on Scotland’s north-east coast, the picturesque town of Portsoy was once home to a thriving salmon-fishing industry. Every day, men and boys would row out to the salmon nets staked offshore, hoping to bring back a valuable catch. Upon returning to Portsoy, they would store the fish inside a 19thcentury building on the harbourside known as the ‘salmon bothy’, where weary crew members could also grab some much-needed kip.
Although Portsoy’s salmon-fishing operations ceased over 30 years ago, the bothy remains an integral part of the town’s identity – so much so that in 2008 the threestorey structure was transformed into a community centre.
Crucially, the bothy ( salmonbothy.org) has also become an important hub for Aberdeenshire genealogy. Staffed by a small team of volunteers, the building’s family history research area – housed within former sleeping quarters on the ground floor – welcomes scores of visitors every year.
“It’s an atmospheric space,” says Alison Smith, the bothy’s genealogy coordinator. “Although it’s quite compact and the number of physical resources we are able to hold is limited, we maintain a helpful collection of ancestor charts compiled by researchers with links to Portsoy.
“We also look after a small library of material that is unique to the area, including a wonderfully detailed list of every parishioner who contributed to a national defence fund in 1798, when fears of a French invasion gripped the country.”
As well as hosting drop-in sessions throughout the summer, Alison and her fellow family history volunteers have also completed a number of transcription projects.
Last year, the team published a booklet in partnership with Aberdeen & North-East Scotland Family History Society (ANESFHS), containing memorial inscriptions from the kirkyard in nearby Fordyce. Building upon drafts made by ANESFHS members, the five-year project required a lot of perseverance – and a few strokes of luck along the way. “When we did our original survey of the kirkyard, we thought we had found all of the stones we needed to record,” explains Alison, who also runs a genealogy business ( genegenie-scotland.co.uk). “However, one day I was guiding some volunteers around when a reflection suddenly caught my eye. I realised that the sun was shining off a stone that was enveloped within the branches of a yew tree, which we hadn’t previously spotted!”
The Fordyce Kirkyard booklet isn’t the only publication that the volunteers have produced. Back in 2012, the team collaborated with ANESFHS to publish a booklet containing inscriptions from Portsoy’s municipal cemetery. This, in turn, spurred on the society to finish work on a separate booklet featuring inscriptions from the older burial ground next door. Because of the pandemic, many of the bothy’s family history activities have had to be put on hold. However, as soon as it safe to return, researchers are sure to receive a warm welcome. “We want to be there in person to give people the information they need,” says Alison. “Sometimes we get people turning up from Australia! Our visitors are always appreciative when we can find out something new, and that’s something I find really gratifying.”
The bothy maintains a helpful collection of ancestor charts