Contributed

The Fairy Trinkets of Invernauld

The Fairy Trinkets of Invernauld

Legend of a young man, his family and a gift from the fairies By David Watson Many years ago, a young couple who lived in a cottage near Invernauld Brae were expecting the birth of their first child. They awaited the day excitedly. The future father was very attentive towards

Food rationing & bananas

Food rationing & bananas

Has our relationship to food changed during the coronavirus crisis? Stockpiling, shortages, local sourcing, and self-sufficiency are now on everyone’s lips. William Mackenzie shares his memories of the time when almost all common foods had been placed under rationing. By W.A.M. MacKenzie Some eighty years ago

The thunder did roll

The thunder did roll

300,000 to 1. Those are the odds of being struck by lightening in the UK.  The chances of being fatally struck are speculated to be around 1 in a million.   by Anna MacRae MacDonald In the late spring of 1895, parts of the Highlands were experiencing hot and humid

St Kilda, Disease and Immunity

St Kilda, Disease and Immunity

A day or two after any visitor arrived to St Kilda, the inhabitants suffered from outbreaks of a respiratory tract infection known locally as the ‘boat cough’ By James Currall On August 15th 1727 three men and eight boys were rowed from Village Bay on Hirta, the largest island of

Crofting Law

Crofting Law

by Russell Smith The old joke is that a croft is a small piece of land completely surrounded by legislation and there are certainly some complications about crofting law. Crofting is unique to Scotland so we can’t look elsewhere for enlightenment. Basically, crofting was set up by the Napier

How our forebears fought for their heritage

How our forebears fought for their heritage

by Russell Smith In the last edition, we looked at the crofting landscape and the benefits of crofting in the 21st Century. Here we look back at some of the history of how the crofters (our forebears) fought for their heritage - not always successfully but always with spirit. We are

Hope springs eternal

Hope springs eternal

Spring, by Ali Smith by Liz Treacher, Author Ali Smith was born in Inverness and her writing is still profoundly influenced by Scotland. In her latest novel, the plot culminates at present day Culloden and the giant Tesco in Inverness!   Spring (Hamish Hamilton, 2019) is the third in Smith’s