Around Britain
Jonathan Scott visits the breathtaking grandeur of the Highlands and Islands of Scotland
How to trace your kin in the Highlands and Islands
Check the 1881 census returns for the parish of Creich in the county of Sutherland and you’ll find a unique entry. The head of household is 58-year-old Hugh Calder, who is described as “tuathanach, banarach agus buachaille”, meaning “farmer, milkman and herdsman”. And according to Jennifer Johnstone of the Highland Archive Centre, it is the only census entry they have ever found written in Gaelic.
The Highlands refers to the area north and west of the Highland Boundary Fault, with the Great Glen forming a dividing line between the Grampian Mountains of the south-east and north-west Highlands. Alongside historic counties such as Argyll, Caithness, Inverness, Nairn, Ross and Cromarty, and Sutherland, we’re also visiting the islands and archipelagos that pepper the Scottish coast.
Remote researchers who have roots in the region may find that their family emigrated during the notorious Highland Clearances – a wave of forced evictions that began in the mid-18th century, essentially because sheep were more profitable to landowners than their tenants.
Since the area is both vast and sparsely populated, there are a number of county and islandlevel repositories to choose from. You’ll also find smaller collections kept by associations, local history libraries and museums.
We began by catching up with Tasglann nan Eilean Siar (Hebridean Archives), Scotland’s newest local authority archive service, which is based alongside Museum nan Eilean at Lews Castle, Stornoway, and first opened its doors in 2016.
It looks after archives of local government of the Outer Hebrides from 1825 to the present, including parish councils and island district committees, school records, and archives of individuals and organisations connected to the islands. There is a full set of second edition Ordnance Survey maps showing land ownership for tax valuation in 1912, a collection relating to the Free Church of Scotland Western Isles Presbytery (1843–2006), and the records of Stornoway’s Masonic Lodge Fortrose (1767–1990).
One unique collection here is the records of the Iolaire Disaster Fund, formed to support the families of the 200 or so Royal Naval Reservists who drowned when HMY Iolaire sank off Stornoway in 1919. Also the Harris Tweed Authority archive (dating back to the tail end of the 19th century) has recently been catalogued and is now available online. This collection boasts one particularly detailed notebook compiled in the 1930s, which lists weavers in the Isle of Lewis, organised by parish and then by
‘OS maps show land ownership for tax valuation in 1912’
village, and within each of the villages the weavers are listed by croft number.
Archivist Seonaid McDonald says: “The Outer Hebrides has a network of local historical societies, Comainn Eachdraidh. If your ancestors came from an area of the Outer Hebrides covered by one of these, there are likely to be local experts who can help you trace your family and possibly living relatives who are still there. However, it helps if you know which crofting village or part of the islands your ancestors came from.”
Seonaid also recommends the Hebridean Connections website ( hebrideanconnections.com), where you can explore genealogical information collected and documented by volunteers from a range of local history societies in the area.
High Life Highland runs four archive centres located across