The Macaulays of Lewis are generally held to be of Norse descent, from an eponymous Olafr. Here’s Rev W Matheson on the subject, from his Families of Lewis series of the 1950s: Most West Highland clans have to go back some seven hundred years to find their eponymous ancestor. If the Macaulays of Lewis conform [...]
Read more →The latest video from Uig Media, shot in Uig by Keith Stringer, with Iain ‘Baba’ Maciver.
Read more →Martin Martin, in his Description of the Western Isles of Scotland (1695) gives an account of the use made of the Flannan Isles at the time and the superstitions that attended a visit: “The inhabitants of the adjacent lands of the Lewis, having a right to these islands, visit them once every summer, and there make a great purchase of fowls, eggs, down, feathers, and quills…”
Read more →Three members of the Safety First Campaign to save the Stornoway Coastguard station traveled to Westminster on Wednesday for a meeting at the Scotland Office and to lobby MPs in the Houses of Parliament. In the meeting with David Mundell, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland, the campaign representatives, Carol Collins, Dave Macbeth and Martin [...]
Read more →George Gillies, residing at Grista [Erista], and John Maclean, residing at Fimisgarry [Timsgarry], in the parish of Uig and Island of Lewis, accused of having broken into the parish church of Uig, and stolen therefrom a waterproof coat, some carpenters’ tools, and a pane of glass, pleaded not guilty.
Read more →From Views and News from Norway, 10 March 2011: The largest archaeological project in Norway in nearly 10 years will begin in June to recover property of the Viking king Harald Hårfagre (alternatively known as “Harald Fairhair,” “Harald Finehair” or, simply, “Harald I”). He was, at any rate, the first king of Norway. Newspaper Aftenposten [...]
Read more →Some notes from the Crowlista school log book in 1919-20. The school was located from both of the populations it served, Crowlista and Aird Uig, and there were recurring problems in getting the children to show up.
Read more →The Clan Morrison Society of North America is sponsoring a project to allow people of Morrison ancestry to use this new tool, and the findings may be of significance to other old Lewis families.
Read more →The Rev Angus Maciver was the son of Angus Maciver “An Ceistear” (the Catechist), born at Reef in 1799. The family lived at Tobson on Great Bernera from 1835 to 1853. This extract from The Life of a Lewis Catechist, published in the Stornoway Gazette in 1971-2, is Rev Maciver’s memory of meeting-house nights.
Read more →A fine collection of photographs from an 1897-98 album belonging to the family of William E Lawson, a London barrister who took Uig Lodge for those two seasons. The photos show Lawson with his dogs and other family entertainments, girls at the shieling, and the gamekeeper Roderick Mackenzie and his son Donald.
Read more →There had evidently been a small school at Mangersta in the 1820s and in the neighbouring village of Carnish in the 1840s, but when both those townships were turned into farms there was no population requiring a school, until 1911.
Read more →Volunteers are aiming to complete and sail a full-scale replica of Norway’s famed Oseberg ship, one of the best-preserved and most celebrated Viking relics in the world, later this year. The original Oseberg ship can be found in Oslo’s Viking Ship Museum. Builders hope the replica can be used at sea later this year. Enthusiasts working [...]
Read more →From the Edinburgh Report, 22 February 2011: Fiona Hyslop, Minister for Culture and External Affairs, today announced the appointment of three new members, an extension of appointment for one member and the re-appointment to a second term for three members to Bòrd na Gàidhlig. The new members are: Elizabeth (Betty) McAtear is a native Gaelic [...]
Read more →Donald John Macleod was brought up in Enaclete during the war. He recalls the shops, grocery vans and buses that were the source of ample provisions, news and craic at the time.
Read more →From the BBC, 17 February 2011: Residents of a Hebridean island have been offered it for free, it has emerged. Fred Taylor, who owns Scalpay, has written to all of the island’s 300-strong population, saying he is prepared to hand over the island, free of charge. In his letter, Mr Taylor said community land ownership [...]
Read more →FilmG, the Gaelic short film competition established in 2008 by the media company MG Alba to source new material for the Gaelic tv channel BBC Alba (coming to Freeview later this year), has been awarded a grant of £20,000 from the Scottish Government to secure its future. The winners of the third annual competition were [...]
Read more →From Ealain Ghaidhlig, 10 February 2011: Glasgow Film Festival has teamed up with Glasgow arts organisation Ceol’s Craic for a second year running to programme Ceol’s Craic: Gaelic Film Festival, a celebration of Gaelic and other indigenous cultures from around the world, from 26 February. Witness an ancient tradition captured on film with the premiere [...]
Read more →The (still unnamed) Uig Walking Group went out on Saturday in fine weather – to Suainebhat and out the peat road. The next outing is Saturday 19 February to Carnish, round the old village and out to the beaches, with an option extension on rougher ground along the coast towards Mangersta.
Read more →A short piece in the Guardian last week describes the modern way of harvesting kelp in South Uist. Uig was a kelp-harvest area too: 40 tons in 1791 and 266 tons in 1833.
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