The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
Born in the same house – but just 100 years apart
Community: Centenarian Annie meets wee Aoife at Burning of the Clavie
There was a historic encounter at Burghead at the weekend when a woman and a baby who were born in the same house 100 years apart met for the first time.
Little Aoife Ralph was born at home at 21 Brander Street in the village on May 9 last year.
That was almost 100 years to the day since Annie MacPherson was born in the exact same location, one of nine siblings who were all born in the same house.
The two met for the first time on Friday night at
“She had no children, so this was a special thing for her”
the Burning of the Clavie celebration – an event Mrs MacPherson attends every year.
Aoife’s mum Oonagh Brady was thrilled to be able to witness such a “special” moment between different generations of Burghead folk.
She said: “It was a really lovely moment.
“I hadn’t met Annie before, but I had heard about her.
“It was a touching experience and quite special to be a part of it.
“Never mind them being born in the same house, it was the fact she is 100 years old and was holding a baby that made it special.
“Annie was delighted. She had no children, so this was a special thing for her.” Oonagh is originally from the Galway area of Ireland.
But she has been living at Burghead for nine years and her husband is friends with Mrs MacPherson’s family.
She had always planned on meeting the centenarian who was born on May 5, 1918.
The timing for the meeting had never been right until Mrs MacPherson made her annual trip to Burghead to see the spectacular Burning of the Clavie ceremony last weekend which is held to welcome the new year.
The 100-year-old is a lifelong Brocher and only left Burghead when she moved to Anderson’s Care Home in Elgin about two years ago.
However, she still makes the effort to attend the Burning of the Clavie every year and was at the house she was married in across the road from the Brady residence when she got a very special visitor.
Mrs Brady joked that everyone was hoping for her to give birth on Mrs MacPherson’s birthday.
She said: “This was a momentous thing as 10 children have now been born in that home and it was great to carry on that tradition.”