Alan Stevenson was appointed to build a lighthouse on Skerryvore in 1837. The Duke of Argyll gave him permission to quarry rock anywhere on Tiree. But the Lewisian gneiss of the island was too hard and too difficult to carve to Stevenson’s demanding standards. In 1839, therefore, he opened a quarry at Camas Tuath on the Ross of Mull. In a few months this new quarry produced as much stone as the Hynish quarry had produced in three years. Twenty-six quarriers worked there, creating 4,300 blocks in one year. An accident in the quarry four years into the operation was widely reported at the time. It almost proved fatal:

An extraordinary instance of presence of mind lately occurred at the quarries in the Ross of Mull, Argyllshire, now wrought for the pier in connection with the Skerryvore Lighthouse, by the Commissioners of Northern Lighthouses. On the 17th October, as Mr. Charles Barclay, the foreman of the quarries, was engaged in removing a splinter of stone from the face of a block of ten tons weight, which lay on an inclined ledge above him, the block slid forward and inclosed his left hand, which was bruised in such a manner that two of his middle fingers were destroyed, and the sharp points of rock came in contact the palm of his hand, so that it was held completely fast as in a vice. In this dreadful situation, Mr. Barclay’s great presence of mind and strength of nerve proved the means of saving his life and those of the men who were along with him. The first impulse of the men was to fetch a lever to raise the stone and liberate the prisoner; and had Mr. Barclay’s presence of mind deserted him, or had he fainted under the excruciating torture he endured, this rash purpose would have been executed, and the stone would have launched forward and crushed him and his comrades beneath its mass. He, however, was enabled to direct their proceedings with a wonderful degree of composure, and after some fruitless attempts to raise the block, Mr. Barclay resolved to cut out the stone round his hand as the only means of escape. This painful operation occupied about twenty minutes, during which time the tortures he endured did not prevent his working with the remaining hand in effecting his liberation from his extraordinary captivity. Mr. Barclay afterwards walked without assistance to the neighbouring village of Bunessan, two miles off, where Dr. McDiarmid, a gentleman who had lately returned from the Arctic expedition under Ross, removed the shattered bones. Next day, Dr. Campbell, who acts as surgeon to the Skerryvore works, arrived from Tyree, and conveyed his patient to the barracks at Hynish workyard, where he is fast recovering.
(Hereford Times, 25 November 1843, 4)

Captain James Clark Ross commanded a famous expedition to the Antarctic between 1839 and 1843. With two strong warships, HMS Erebus and Terror, the expedition confirmed the existence of the Antarctic continent, described the Ross seal for the first time and calculated the position of the South Magnetic Pole. ‘Dr McDiarmid’ is likely to have been Robert McCormick, a British Navy surgeon, explorer and naturalist. He also took part in the 1831 expedition on the Beagle with Charles Darwin.

Other articles in the series ‘Yesterday’s News’ can be found on the An Iodhlann website.

Dr John Holliday

YESTERDAY’S NEWS

This article was written by an Alick G. Wilson, who was one of the first holidaymakers to visit the island in 1887. He also collected some words from a ‘Tinker child’ on the island, so he seems to have been interested in folklore.

HOLIDAY NOTES FROM TIREE
‘My first visit to the island of Tiree was in the summer of last year, and the following notes were taken during my residence there. I would rather not say what my ideas of Tiree were before I came to the island; let it suffice to say that I had taken as quite correct those very misleading reports which appeared in the newspapers in the year of the military and police expedition [1886] …

‘Another stone with a tradition is at Caolis, in the north of the island. If this stone [Clach na Gaoithe ‘the rock of the wind’] be turned in a certain way—with the sun, if I remember rightly—a great gale of wind arises that will destroy any boat that may chance to be out. I heard of the stone being turned once. At one time the people there were great smugglers, and one day a boat loaded with smuggled goods had just put out fairly to sea when the revenue cutter hove in sight. The smugglers at once put about and pulled with all their might for land, while their friends on shore were powerless to help them. At last, an old woman suggested that the stone should be turned and the cutter blown out of existence. As the day was calm and their friends in the shelter of the shore, it was agreed to do this. After some trouble, it was turned, but, alas! no gale rewarded them for their pains. The smugglers, however, escaped with their cargo.

‘On the moor behind the hill of Gott is a small well [Tobar nam Ban Ruadha ‘the well of the red women’] about which a legend is told. Long, long ago, there were only two families in Tiree—the one living in Caolis in the north, the other in the far south of the island. The family at Caolis had only one child, a boy, and one day he went amissing. The father set out to search for him, and, coming to the moor of Gott, saw the two ‘red women’ or witches sitting by the well cleaning the body of his child and preparing to cook it. He hid behind a hillock and shot some arrows at the women. Thereupon, the one witch said to the other, ‘There are some dockan leaves hurting my foot’, but on looking down she saw neither dockan nor thistle there, only an arrow stick in it, the use of which she did not know. She accordingly pulled out the arrow and threw it aside, but the man continued firing. At length, the ‘red women’ caught sight of the man and gave chase after him. He got on his horse and galloped away to Hynish, in the south of the island, a distance of twelve miles. At Hynish there is a great precipice or ‘leap’ [Sloc Leum an Eich ‘the gully of the leap of the horse’] and across it he leaped with his horse, so great was his fright. The women, of course, leaped after him, and leaping short dashed out their brains on the opposite side. Some leaves and flowers which sprang up mark the spot. If you don’t believe this—why, the well is there, the ‘leap’ is there, and you may go and see for yourself.

‘At Hynish is the signal-tower in connection with Skerryvore Lighthouse. Beside the tower are some very neat cottages, where dwell the light-keepers. There is a fine harbour with docks here; and the tower, the cottages, and the harbour are all built of a granite taken from the Ross of Mull. From the tower, a splendid view is got of land and water. At the top of the tower is a sun-dial, by which it is found that the difference between Tiree and Greenwich time is about 28 minutes.

https://www.aniodhlann.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/A232-scaled.jpg
A postcard of the Signalling Tower and Light-keepers’ Houses from around 1910. From An Iodhlann’s collection.

‘The people here, like all Highlanders, are more or less superstitious; and in the island there are still to be found men who have that almost obsolete faculty of second-sight. Of course, we wise people now-a-days don’t believe in second-sight, but there are some very curious and yet well-authenticated stories told that are very hard to explain—if in fact they can be explained at all. That is a very curious story told of the marines being seen in the island fifty-two years before they came [in 1886]. A man—MacLaren by name—was returning home one night [in 1834] by the Reef when he saw a band of soldiers. He saw them so plainly that he was quite able to describe their arms and dress, and could also tell where they halted and whither they went. For fifty-two years, he was chaffed about the soldiers, but he lived to see them in the island; and those persons who saw the marines march across the Reef say that they marched and halted just as it had been foretold by old MacLaren. [This is likely to have been Malcolm MacLaren of Kilkenneth, who was born in 1811, and would have been 23 at the time.]

‘Here is another curious one. One bright summer’s day, a young man lay stretched on the grass in front of his aunt’s house, at the door of which his aunt sat knitting. The schoolmaster’s wife came along, and stopped to speak to the old woman about a dress she wanted altered. Having arranged about it she passed on. Immediately she was gone, the young man, who had eyed her rather queerly, said to his aunt, ‘She’ll not bother you with that dress.’ ‘How do you know that?’ asked his relative, ‘Has she changed her mind?’ ‘No,’ said he, but she’ll never need another dress.’ ‘Don’t speak like that,’ said his aunt angrily. ‘You try to frighten people by making them believe you see things.’ ‘Well, really,’ said he, ‘you might have seen the shroud round her yourself. It came up to her very eyes.’ Nothing further was said on the subject, nor was the story repeated, but in less than three weeks the schoolmaster’s wife died, and she never required the dress.’
(Oban Telegraph and West Highland Chronicle, 5 October 1888, 2)

If anyone can tell me more about Alick G. Wilson, I would be grateful.

Dr John Holliday

Last time we looked at the 1888 extension of the telegraph network to Tiree and Coll, which terminated at Scarinish Post Office. The project had been underwritten by the Fishery Board. This 1892 cutting explains why:

OUR FISHERIES
As instance of the importance of the electric telegraph to our fishing population, the Fishery Board for Scotland, in their annual report, tells that one Saturday morning a large shoal of herring was discovered about three to seven miles off the Island of Stronsay [on the eastern side of the Orkney archipelago] by a few boats which happened to be at sea. Having ascertained the position of this shoal, the officer wired the particulars for the fishermen’s information to all the stations in Orkney, and on the Monday morning every boat employed in the herring fishery in Orkney was on the fishing ground indicated. The result was the heaviest fishing ever obtained in one day in Orkney. The number of boats fishing was 108, and their total catch was 5,400 crans, valued at £3,240.
(Norwich Mercury, 23 July 1892, 4)

A cran was a measure of fish, the equivalent of a 30-gallon herring barrel, around 1200 fish. This one day’s fishing netted around 6 million herring.

After the line was extended to Balemartine, the local MP lobbied the Post Office to do the same for Ruaig. He was unsuccessful:

Mr D. N. Nicol, M. P., who has been exerting himself further in regard to the establishment of postal and telegraph stations in the islands, is in receipt of the following official communication:
My dear Nicol,
On the 2nd May you sent me a letter from Mr Donald Lamont [the Ruaig postmaster] asking for a telegraph office in that village. We have looked into the matter very carefully, but I am sorry to say that the result is very discouraging. The original extension, which, as you know was guaranteed [by the Fishery Board], was to Coll and Tiree jointly, the Tiree office being at Scarinish. The annual expenses of that extension are something like £260. The guarantee has long since expired. We made a further extension to Balemartin in 1900, the annual expenses being £43. The annual cost of the three telegraph offices [Arinagour, Scarinish and Balemartine] may therefore be put roughly at £300. Against this expenditure, we can only set the following: revenue from Coll £37; Scarinish £56; Balemartine £23; payment by guarantors of Balemartin £10; Total £126. The extension to Balemartin hardly seems to have stimulated the telegraph business of Tiree at all, most of the business having been merely diverted from Scarinish. We are losing, in fact, about £175 a year in the two islands; and, in the circumstances, I fear that the Postmaster-General would not be justified in opening another telegraph office on Tiree.
(Oban Times and Argyllshire Advertiser, 12 July 1902, 5)

The following year, there was a break in the cable:

Mr Nicol, the county member, has received the following:
Dear Nicol, I much regret the inconvenience occasioned by the interruption of the cable to Tiree, to which you call attention in your letter, and I propose to despatch a cable ship to carry out the repair of this cable and other similar work as soon as the weather is favourable. I am anxious that communication should be restored at the earliest possible moment, but you will understand that work of this kind cannot be undertaken except in favourable weather.
(Oban Times and Argyllshire Advertiser, 28 March 1903, 5)

The cable failed again in 1912 (The Scotsman, 4 January 1912, 7) and 1924. This time, a temporary radio mast was installed beside the Scarinish lighthouse:

WIRELESS TO THE RESCUE
Scottish Islanders Saved a Winter of Isolation
The telegraphic cable that connects the islands of Tiree and Coll with the mainland sunk to the bed of the ocean. It is not probable that the Government cable ship will be able to lift the cable during the winter. The seas that run in the Sound of Gunna at this time of the year render this almost impossible. The Government wireless station on the island of Tiree is again brought into service, and thus the business of the lonely islanders can be carried out.
(Northern Whig, 8 January 1924, 10)

Image:
https://www.aniodhlann.org.uk/object/2012-10-1/
The emergency radio mast in Scarinish in 1924. An Iodhlann collection.

As always, do let me have any additional information. Previous articles in this series are available on the An Iodhlann website at www.aniodhlann.org.uk. Follow us on Facebook.

Dr John Holliday

After much lobbying, in 1888 the islands of Tiree and Coll were finally connected to the world wide web of the time: the telegraph network.

‘TELEGRAPH EXTENSION TO TIREE AND COLL
Sir,
On the 2nd March 1882, I sent a letter to the Oban Telegraph newspaper on the great importance of postal improvement, extension of the telegraph and harbour accommodation in Tiree. Since then, I kept up a constant correspondence to have this carried out, and I have just received the following letter from the Postmaster-General, in answer to my letter of the 27th [February]. The letter, you will please observe, is dated 2nd March 1888, just six years since I commenced my letters on Tiree … I continue to take as great an interest as ever in the welfare of my friends, the people of the Western Isles. I wish them well. I remain, dear sir, Faithfully yours, Wm. Campbell, 3 View Place, Inverness.

‘General Post Office, London, 2nd March. Sir, ln reply to your letter of the 27th, I beg leave to inform you that Treasury authority has recently been received for an extension of the telegraph system to the islands of Coll and Tiree, under the guarantee of the Fishery Board for Scotland, and the work will be carried out as soon as practicable. I am, sir, your obedient servant, J. Lamb.’
(Oban Telegraph and West Highland Chronicle, 9 March 1888, 4)

Earlier, William Campbell had lobbied for a telegraph cable to be laid to the Outer Hebrides, and for a new market to be built in central London to allow fresh fish sent from Inverness to be sold quickly. It is interesting that it was the Fishery Board for Scotland that was underwriting the proposal. The long line fishery on Tiree was in its pomp at the time, with 110 islanders employed at it.

In fact, survey work for the line had already started, as this report of the annual ploughing match on Coll that year makes clear. It is interesting both that there were enough Tiree people attending to make it worthwhile to have a special ‘Tiree race’, and that it appears that this was the first ever football game played on the island:

‘The Coll Agricultural Association’s ploughing match took place this year again on the farm of Arileod, Mr Donald MacLean‘s … Promptly at 9 am, thirteen ploughs commenced their allotments, and finished about 2.30 pm. The day was of the most favourable character, and the ground in a suitable condition. The gaily-decked, well-groomed Clydesdales proudly stepped into the arena … The turn-out of spectators was the largest we have ever seen on similar occasions. Conspicuous among the strangers were … two officers connected with the new telegraph line connecting Coll and Tiree with London, Australia and America [laid thirty years earlier]. There were also present several from Tiree, among whom was Mr Thomas Barr, Balliphetrish … A new feature of these annual games was the introduction of football … This interesting game was conducted under Association rules, and considering the limited practice the teams had, their play was highly creditable … Tiree Race 1. D. MacCallum, Ardeas; 2. Hector MacFayden, Heanish.
(Oban Times and Argyllshire Advertiser, 3 March 1888, 5)

By August the cable had been laid across the Gunna Sound, making landfall below Roisgal in Caolas:

‘TELEGRAPH TO COLL AND TIREE
Telegraphic communication with the islands of Coll and Tiree was opened yesterday. A wire is carried overland from Tobermory to Calgary on the western side of Mull, and then by cable to CoIl. An office for telegraphic business has been established at Calgary. This connection with the mainland will be of great importance to the islanders, who are now highly pleased that their long-continued efforts to secure this boon have at last been realised.’
(Glasgow Herald, 30 August 1888, 6)

From Caolas, the line ran on poles to the Scarinish Post Office, part of the original shop on the site of the present day Coop. For the first time, a message could be sent from there to most parts of the world. There were 20,000 offices in the USA alone. It would be transcribed and delivered in hours. Balemartine Post Office (really in Balinoe) had been connected by 1911, and Cornaigmore Post Office in 1926.

Dr John Holliday

The following report appeared in 1901, a year after the death of the eighth Duke:

A good deal of speculation has been created by a report that the Duke of Argyll proposes to sell the island of Tiree. The island has an area of 34 square miles, and, in consideration of its fertility, it is often styled the ‘Granary of the Hebrides’. As a sporting estate it is most desirable. In snipe shooting, it is unrivalled. Partridges and hares are numerous, and there are about twenty fresh-water lochs. With the exception of one species of willow, there is no growing wood on the island. The price put upon the island is said to be £130,000 (the equivalent today of £13 million). It is thought that the proposed sale indicates a disposition on the part of Duke to follow the example of the Duke of Fife, who, in recent years, has sold a very large proportion of his ancestral estates in the north. (Belfast Weekly News, 28 March 1901, 9)

The following year, it was reported:

The Central News Tobermory correspondent wires that the Duke of Argyll has again advertised the Island of Tiree for sale by auction, to take place in London on July 14. About a year ago Tiree was put on the market, an advertisement being inserted in a New York paper, but there were no offers. The island … is noted for its salubrious climate and its magnificent shooting. (Liverpool Echo, 7 June 1902, 8)

TIREE OFFERED FOR SALE

At the Mart, Tokenhouse Yard, London, yesterday, Messrs Chancellor and Sons, on the instructions of the Duke of Argyll, offered for sale the island of Tiree, described as the ‘granary and flower of the Hebrides’. The island contains an abundance of white, pink and green marble, among which is found garnet-bearing rock. Game is also plentiful and the snipe shooting is said to be the finest in Europe. The auctioneer said that the reason for offering the isle for sale was that the Duke of Argyll had to meet heavy charges in payment of the Death Duties on the estates to which he had succeeded, and he was selling Tiree, which he described as a veritable island kingdom, to clear off the liability. The property was put in at £100,000, but no offer was made at this figure or £90,000, £80,000 or £50,000, and the property was withdrawn. (Dundee Evening Telegraph, 15 July 1902, 3)

The estate tried to sell the island for a third time in 1951:

Caption: Advertisement for the island of Tiree in 1951.

This was also unsuccessful.