Cromarty History Society | Abstracts of talks 2024-25

Abstracts of talks 2024-25

September 2024, The Hospitals of Ross and Cromarty — Their Origin and Development, Jim and Steve Leslie

A large audience from as far away as Dingwall came to hear Steve Leslie report on his and his father’s research into the hospitals of Ross and Cromarty createdby by private funding before the NHS was founded in 1948.

Steve spoke of the first local health service being founded in the Highlands, which became a template for the National Health Service and then worked his way across the county, displaying pictures and plans of each hospital as he went.

None of those present had realised just how many different facilities there had been, some, like the Ross Memorial Hospital in Dingwall later transferred to the NHS, others, including Cromarty Hospital, were closed down and sold off.

There were differing types of treatment in each facility, and some, such as that at Fortrose and Rosemarkie, were combination poorhouses as well.

There were plenty of questions at the end of the talk and during the refreshments afterwards and Steve was delighted with the turnout and the response.

The Society looked forward to October’s lecture on the archaeology of the High Pasture Cave in Skye by Steve Birch.

Our talks are normally on the third Tuesday of the month at the Victoria Hall, Cromarty (please check the website for exceptions). Visitors are always welcome to our meetings and further information is available on our website: www.cromartyhistory.scot

October 2024, High Pasture Cave — Ritual, Identity and Memory in the Iron Age of Skye, Steve Birch

Local Archaeologist Steve Birch gave a long and detailed report on the unique findings from this dig, which was funded by Historic Environment Scotland to the tune of £1million.

The cave, situated inland on Skye, was first discovered in 1972 when the entry passage was investigated. After cave studies advanced later searches from 2003 onwards revealed a huge chamber 320m underground. So much material had been found by 2010 that the largest number ever of Iron Age (800-75BC) artefacts and remains are currently at the National Museum of Scotland for analysis.

The cave system and its surroundings were clearly used for manufacturing with two huge fireplaces in the chamber. Finds included Beaker pottery shards from 1320-1110 BC, weaving combs, spindle whorls, one of which was of soapstone probably from Argyll, antler pins, and some of the earliest iron objects found in Scotland. Blacksmithing from 950BC and a dagger, stone tools, and traces of pigments for dyeing were also in evidence.The earliest use of rotary querns for grinding, about 400BC was discovered, which was the zenith period for cave dwelling.

There had obviously been large feasts for numbers of people. Human bones were DNA tested and showed the majority were eating an animal and plant diet but there were also a minority of dwellers who had been eating fish and shellfish, though the site is not on the coast.

However, some time between 150 and 50BC something had happened and it was closed being completely covered over. Then a burial on the top of the closed stairwell from AD85-160 had occurred of a woman and her unborn baby plus another child who was not hers. Also found were a Roman coin and a glass bead from NorthEast Scotland.

Steve Birch and a colleague are the authors of a comprehensive book about the dig called ‘High Pasture Cave’ to be published in February 2025 by Oxbow Books.

November 2024, Dingwall and the British Empire — the Sun Never Sets over the Dingwallian Diaspora, Jonathan McColl

At the History Society’s November meeting Dingwall Museum’s Jonathan McColl told members and visitors something of the lives of people from Dingwall who had travelled to begin new lives across the World in the days before travel was as easily accomplished as it is now.

He spoke of several families whose roots were in Dingwall and how they got on across the oceans.

He began with the Joyner family, descendants of a Fortrose carpenter whose son and young family went to South Africa on a 10 passage and settled near Durban. They had 100 acres of land on which they built a home and called it ‘Dingwall’, grew sugar cane, which was much in demand and took over more land building a church and a school before gold prospecting in Transvaal with a wagon pulled by oxen. The diary of this life is in the Dingwall Museum. Sadly, he died after being thrown from a horse.

Others, however, went to India as soldiers and then joined the East India Company travelling across the continent.

Ship’s Captain Donald MacLennan sailed the South Seas when young, was imprisoned in Tahiti and then escaped. He took up fur trading but after his brother was killed by Spaniards off the coast of Peru he retired and built a house in Dingwall High Street in 1824, using the stones from the ruins of Dingwall Castle.

Sir James Matheson went to the Far East, got into the Opium Wars, made money in HongKong and bought the Isle of Lewis with the profits.

Others described by Jonathan crossed to New Zealand, North and South America, all leaving their mark and all a long way from Dingwall.

December 2024, The History of Medicine — The Ancient Origins of Modern Clinical Practice, Dr. Andrew Newton

Dr Andrew Newton, retired NHS Emergency Medicine Consultant who has a long-standing interest in Roman history and the history of healthcare gave a comprehensive account of the influence of Roman medical practices and how they led to modern medical specialities.

He began with the Greeks , followers of the god of medicine Asclepius, whose temples became healing centres. This led to the father of medicine Hippocrates whose development of prognosis, observation and categorisation of diseases led to today’s specialities. Hence the Hippocratic Oath.

Andrew showed how these methods were followed by the Romans who spread them across Europe and other parts as they expanded their empire.

Roman medics such as Galen and Dioscorides founded medical remedies, surgery and public health practices which became the ground for modern medicine, being influential in the beliefs of Nicholas Culpeper and later healers.

The talk was followed by mulled wine and seasonal refreshments which were much enjoyed and a photograph of the assembled members which concluded a most informative talk.

February 2025, Only the Brave Sail from Here — The Vikings in Northern Scotland, Professor Donna Heddle

UHI Professor Donna Heddle began her talk to a crowded hall with visitors from Inverness and Dingwall as well as the Black Isle with an explanation of her title “ Only the Brave Sail from Here”. She explained that the words were from the earliest known Scandinavian Runic Inscription. Although the Norsemen travelled widely across the North of Scotland such inscriptions, 124 found so far are all we have of their writing. She then listed misconceptions made in modern dramas about the Norn or Wilsing as they were called in the Northern Isles.

Viking is a verb — “to go Viking”, they called themselves Northmen. In Gaelic they were Lochlannaich, and Lachlan is a Norn name, as are surnames such as Macleod or Macsween. Red hair signifies a Norse gene, most common in Orkney. Norse occupation of the North of Scotland lasted for 1000 years, though the first written record of them was in 793. They were seen as a threat because they were pagan and no Norse chieftains became Kings.

They travelled widely but did not wear horned helmets, as that would be dangerous when fighting at sea, or travel at night. Their longboats were light , very easily carried, with a shallow draught enabling them to be carried over land and they travelled well over the waves. They were not dirty as often depicted in tv dramas.

96&percent; of place names in Lewis are Norse, and many in the north of the mainland, the earliest being at coastal locations, Eriboll and Ullapool are examples of farm names, ‘boll’ meaning a farm and the first part of each name being that of the owner. A local example is Udale, $lsquo;dale’ meaning a hunting and fishing property.

They also travelled around the world, to places such as the Americas,West Indies, Canada and Africa. They were prudent traders and had no status problems. Rolf of Orkney and his crews sailed up the Seine and besieged the King of France who bought Rolf off with the lands that became Normandy, which is why those of us with Norman ancestry are descended from the Northmen.

Donna explained that the Norse legal system was that the accused was seen as guilty until proven innocent, the opposite of ours today. Resolution of cases was at a Tingwall, which had to be sited between land and water so that the participants could sail in. At the Tingwall women could change their unsatisfactory husband, report rape and vote if they had property. Women also travelled widely. Dingwall is actually the site of a Tingwall.

Finally Donna asked the audience to note that the shape of the Victoria Hall is rectangular, which only began with the advent of the Northmen, all meeting places before that being circular.

March 2025, Alexander Ross (1834-1925) — The Lasting Legacy of a Highland Architect , Calum MacLean

Calum Maclean’s talk to the society in March stimulated those present to attempt to identify buildings designed by architect Alexander Ross (1834-1925), in the Black Isle and further afield.

Calum explained that Ross was the son of an Inverness architect, a young artist (later RA) with a passion for French style architecture when he travelled there until the death of his father when he was 19 in 1853 meant that he had to take over the architectural practice to support his family.

Fortunately his mentor was the newly-appointed Bishop of Inverness, Bishop Eden. Alexander’s first commission was to design a small church at St Ninian’s in Glenurquhart, which he did very successfully, reusing local stones and thatching it so that it blended in. This led to commissions from various churches, including Inverness Cathedral in 1866 and school designs as many new buildings were needed after the 1872 Education Act made school compulsory for all children but the standard Department of Education plans did not work in the Highlands where smaller buildings were required. Alexander’s plans for these were accepted and built.

The arrival of the railways changed Inverness as businesses hoped to persuade wealthy estate owners to &lsqui;stay and spend’. Alexander was commissioned to build shops with flats above them, creating Academy Street, Queensgate and Union Street — ‘Paris in Inverness’. Looking up at the original Buildings today we can see balconies, and decorative details very reminiscent of those in the French Capital.

In Cromarty he designed St Regulus church, although the tower part of the building was never built due to lack of finance., and the Carnegie Institute. (Andrew Carnegie liked his style and commissioned him to create Skibo Castle.)

Other buildings in the Black Isle include farm cottages at Killen, Rosehaugh House and the factor’s house there, Mackenzie School in Avoch, Kilcoy Castle at Tore, and schools in Munlochy, Rosemarkie, Cullicudden, and Newhall. He designed churches in Avoch (both Free and Church of Scotland) and St Andrews Fortrose. He also set up Inverness Field Club in his spare time and was more famous in London than Edinburgh.

Calum concluded by saying that Societies such as ours are vital to prevent the demolition of more of his buildings, many of which are gone.

April 2025, Romancing the Stone — Marriage Lintels and Date Stones Close to You , Dr Jim Mackay

At the Society’s April 2025 meeting Dr Jim Mackay of the Kirkmichael Trust spoke on “Romancing the Stone — Marriage Lintels and Date Stones close to you”. Using close up images of date stones in Cromarty and elsewhere, Dr Mackay explained how they came to be popular in the 1700s, his ‘bombshell’ discovery as he researched the initials and whose they were was to find that they referred to the dates of occupation and/or construction of the buildings, NOT to marriages! So much for calling them ‘marriage stones’!

By 1800 however they had mostly fallen out of fashion.

In Cromarty Jim uncovered stones in some houses, mostly inside, particularily above fireplaces, though there are some on the exterior of buildings in Church Street and Bank Street for example. There are also examples in Jemimaville and Fortrose where the reuse of property that had been cathedral grounds led to stones commemorating their new residents. Photographing the often deteriorating stone work was a challenge in itself and he recounted how he and his son were taking pictures of a difficult site in the best light early one morning only to be challenged by a house owner asking what on earth they were doing?

Jim’s research is still ongoing and he learned of more examples of stones from attendees at the meeting which he will follow up.