Public Notices, Stornoway Gazette, 19 April 1929: 1929 Summer Excursion from Canada and USA to Stornoway The Canadian Pacific Liner “Minnedosa” leaving Montreal on June 8, 1929, will make a special call at Stornoway with Lewis Folks from Canada and the United States. Mr TB Macaulay, Montreal, who will lead the Clans-Folk on their pilgrimage [...]
Read more →An Là TB was 18 June 1929, the day TB Macaulay, 8th in line from Domhnall Cam and then president of Sun Life Assurance Co. of Canada, returned to his ancestral home. He spent the day in Valtos and it seems most of Uig turned out for him. While on the island he opened the [...]
Read more →The house at 1 Timsgarry, the oldest whitehouse (taigh geal) in Uig, was originally Ciosamul Schoolhouse (Taigh Sgoile Chiosamuil), and one of the first teachers ca.1796 was John Macaskill, a relation of Janet Macaskill, wife of Rev Hugh Munro. John later emigrated to Cape Breton. Subsequently it was Timsgarry Farmhouse, occupied by first Mitchells and then Macraes. In [...]
Read more →Norman Macleod, Am Bàrd Bochd, taught at Lochcroistean school from 1936 to 1943, and was a noted bard who composed the following about Lochcroistean and some of the people he knew there. The last four verses constitute his song about the people of Geshader. Lochcroistean School was in use until the new Uig school opened [...]
Read more →Rev Col AJ Mackenzie, born 1887, was the son of Roderick Mackenzie, gamekeeper at Kinlochresort and subsequently at Uig Lodge. The young Alick spent his early years at Kinlochresort before moving with his family in 1891 to the keeper’s house near the Lodge, overlooking Traigh Uig, which clearly made a lasting impression on him. The story of [...]
Read more →Excerpts from Stornoway Gazette, Local and District News (Uig) April 5th, 1918 FRIENDS FROM ACROSS THE SEA: One of the few pleasurable results of this terrible and miserable war is the occasional opportunity offered to friends and relations at home of meeting and welcoming friends and relations from beyond the seas – friends whom, in the [...]
Read more →From the 1851 Diary of John Munro Mackenzie, Chamberlain of the Lews. Carnish was cleared in the 1850s and the land added to Ardroil Farm. The small tenants at Mangersta moved to Doune Carloway in 1872/3, at their own request as the salt gales were damaging their crops. Both townships were resettled, Mangersta in 1911 and Carnish [...]
Read more →Mangersta, Uig, Isle of Lewis, originally uploaded by rachel 79. Christina Mackay, Uig’s Victorian heroine, was the wife of Donald Mackay, who had the farm at Mangersta after the township had been cleared in 1872 and the people resettled for the most part in Doune Carloway. In October 1896, a gale had been blowing for [...]
Read more →The place name Àite nan Ordaighean in Valtos Glen is still known today and a rough cairn is all that remains in this place of worship. Foot paths descending down the steep sides of the Glen to reach the place of worship are still visible. Those paths indicate the various directions from which many worshippers [...]
Read more →Ceilidh at the shieling. CE Uig invites you to join us for a short walk out for a ceilidh and a picnic. We are thinking about rebuilding a shieling and will be visiting several over the summer to talk about the possibilities. Airidh Gearraidh an Uisge (NB106272) was built by the Baxter from 6 Kneep [...]
Read more →From the Diary of John Munro Mackenzie, Chamberlain of the Lews. Reef had been cleared of its 186 tenants a few years previously . In the end, Kneep was never cleared, though many did emigrate from both Valtos and Kneep. Wednesday 12 February, 1851 Wrote letters to Stornoway [from Callanish], afterwards proceeded to Reef and [...]
Read more →Rev Norman Morrison, second minister at Uig, reported that his parish (incorporating Bernera) consists of 259 families and 1247 souls, of which 1053 were examinable persons. He mentions that there are not eight who can read the scriptures and there are no schools or catechists. According Dr Webster’s first Scottish census, in 1755 the population of parish [...]
Read more →A letter dated 1836, from Thomas Knox, Chamberlain of the Lews at Seaforth Lodge to JA Stewart Mackenzie of Seaforth, MP, the Proprietor. Mealista was cleared in 1838 and the farm let to John Macrae of Kintail (and latterly Harris.) Seaforth Lodge 21 April 1836 Dear Sir I have now the honour to reply to your letter [...]
Read more →The church at Baile na Cille was built in 1829 to accommodate the growing congregation of the evangelical minister Rev Alexander Macleod, who had arrived in Uig in 1824. Church records include the following: Dec 17, 1829 Roderick Nicolson Esq residing in Stornoway most respectably expressed his attachment to his native Parish by making a [...]
Read more →Around 8 February 2008, clusters of stones began to emerge from the otherwise unbroken sand in the middle of Traigh na Berie (Reef Beach) on the Valtos peninsula. Unusual activity on the beach and very low winter tides exposed groups of rocks that had not been seen before. They are certainly a structure of some sort, [...]
Read more →Photo by ßlϋeωãvε The IBT annual talk on the Shiant Isles, followed (weather permitting) by a boat trip to the islands, in the company of Adam and Tom Nicolson who own the islands and who have spent many years researching the truths and legends. Saturday 21 June, 10.30am Marine Harvest shed, Lemreway, Pairc, Lewis The [...]
Read more →A welcome finish to the AGM was an illustrated talk on “The Lighter Side of Gaelic Medicine” by Mary Beith, an authority on traditional Highland medicine and writer of the Deanamh a’Leighis column in the West Highland Free Press. Strangely it was Mary’s first visit to Uig but she found it a rich source of [...]
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