top of page
Search
Hogmanay — Scotland’s True Midwinter Festival
A Hogmanay Ceilidh underway in a Croft in the 19th century For families in the Highlands and Islands — including places like the Isle of Mull — New Year’s Eve was historically the most important annual winter festival. Known in Scotland as Hogmanay, this celebration on 31 December (New Year’s Eve) drew community focus far more than Christmas Day in the 19th century. The Date and Why It Mattered While Scotland officially used the Gregorian calendar from 1600, and January 1 was
Will Allan
7 days ago2 min read
Christmas in Mull Around 1860
A crofter's wife returns to the croft on Christmas Day after feeding the sheep in the mid 19th century In the Highlands and Islands, Christmas was still not widely celebrated as a public holiday in the way it is today. A 1640 Act of the Scottish Parliament and strong Presbyterian sentiment discouraged or banned Christmas celebrations for hundreds of years. Christmas Day was often treated as a regular work day with very limited public festivity, especially when compared to H
Will Allan
Dec 24, 20252 min read
The Rise and Fall of the Kelp Industry on the Isle of Mull
A William Daniel painting of kelp burning at Gribun, Isle of Mull For much of the early 19th century, the Isle of Mull was shaped not only by crofting and cattle but by something far more surprising: seaweed. Long before the potato famine transformed life in the Hebrides, Mull’s coastline was the centre of a thriving kelp industry—an industry that promised prosperity, altered the island’s economy, and ultimately left communities more vulnerable than they had ever been. This i
Will Allan
Dec 17, 20254 min read
The Scottish Governess Who Tamed a Czar... and Lost a Fortune
The tale of Catherine MacKinnon, a Mull woman who became the nurse to a Russian Czar!
Read all about her remarkable journey from a humble crofter's cottage to the heart of an imperial court. Find out how she influenced a Czar and why her memory is still treasured on the Isle of Mull today.
Will Allan
Sep 4, 20253 min read
Isabella MacGillivray and the poisonous bird!
A poisonous bird, a mysterious servant, and a forgotten headline from 1910.
Who was Isabella MacGillivray, and whose household was she serving when her name made the papers?
Will Allan
Aug 28, 20254 min read
Two Voices from the Highlands: Crofter Testimony and the Duke of Argyll’s Defence - with lessons from history
Reflected Through the MacGillivray Family in Echoes of the Clearances By Will Allan, Mull MacGillivray Heritage Project In the summer...
Will Allan
Aug 12, 20257 min read
The Struggles of Crofters: A Glimpse into the Life of John MacGillivray
The Crofter's Commission and Its Impact With the establishment of the Crofter's Commission following the Napier Report, a new chapter...
Will Allan
Jul 7, 20253 min read
“The Road He Took Himself” — A MacGillivray Memory from Iona
The MacGillivray family, known as *Na Dròbhairean* (The Drovers), moved from Mull to Iona in the 1860s, settling at Cnoc Oran. Their story, including Duncan MacGillivray’s legendary instinct for a direct path across the island, is a powerful reflection of Highland heritage. Based on Mairi MacArthur’s *Tracks & Paths – Iona’s Namescape*, this blog explores family, tradition, and the lasting imprint of those who “took their own road.”
Will Allan
Jun 18, 20253 min read
Family Heritage – Does It Influence Who You Are?
I wish I’d started looking into my MacGillivray family history many years ago. But, like many people, I was caught in the rush of life....
Will Allan
Jun 18, 20253 min read
bottom of page