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MacCrimmon

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McCrimmon photo

Dunvegan Castle


Introduction

I have been interested in researching MacCrimmon genealogy for several years. My grandfather, Duncan MacCrimmon, was born on the Isle of Skye in 1856. His parents were Donald MacCrimmon (1826-1910) and Isabella MacLeod (1835-1904).

Donald’s grandfather was the illustrious piper Ian Dubh MacCrimmon {1731 - 1822). Donald and Isabella Immigrated to Canada in 1864 and settled a few years later on Sharbot Lake Ontario.

I received valuable information from earlier family researchers. They were Larry MacCrimmon, Graydon MacCrimmon, Douglas MacGregor, Faye Thomas, Roxanne Gaulin and Elaine Kingston.

We have held three reunions in recent years that were organized by Maren Meltzer (nee MacCrimmon) and her husband Sam. A highlight of two of these reunions was the piping of Kurt MacCrimmon of Smiths Falls Ontario.

My mother was Inez MacCrimmon and my father Manford Lytle. I served with the Canadian Armed Forces and with the Federal Public Service. I retired several years ago and live in Ottawa with my wife Tooke. Our daughter Sara recently gave birth to twins named Bram and Imogene.

Earl Lytle


ISLE OF SKYE, SCOTLAND and BELFAST IRELAND FEBRUARY 21st TO MARCH 2nd 2003

During a period of fierce Canadian winter weather the time had finally arrived for our family history quest to Scotland and Ireland. My daughter, Sara, and I had decided to visit the Isle of Skye, Scotland where my grandfather Duncan McCrimmon was born in 1856 and to journey on to Northern Ireland where my great-grandfather William Little was born in 1822, possibly in County Tyrone.

Scotland: We had conducted considerable research in the previous two years and knew where our McCrimmon and Macleod ancestor had lived based on the British Isles census of 1851. What we intended to do was visit this general area in Duirinish Parish on the Isle of Skye as well as visit the museum dedicated to the McCrimmon family of pipers and the MacLeod of MacLeod castle at Dunvegan.

Ireland: Despite considerable research on the Little family we still were not sure where the family had lived in Ireland. Thus, we selected three likely Church of Ireland Parishes in County Tyrone based on the Tithe Applotment Books circa 1830 in which a Samuel Little, William’s father's name, was mentioned: Derryloran, Carnteel and Donaghhenry Parishes. We were going to search the records of these Parishes at the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland, (PRONI) and hoped to find a family match. We had also selected County Tyrone based on additional information from the obituary of William Little in the Carp Review dated November 29, 1906 which stated he was born in County Tyrone, Ireland, January 6th, 1822 and was 19 years old when he came to Canada.

Friday, February 21st, 2003 Ottawa to Isle of Skye, Scotland via London and Glasgow

The temperature had plunged to -30° F. at times during the previous two weeks however, on Friday the weather was pleasant and our flight from Ottawa, Ontario to London, England left on time. We later learned that a blizzard struck Ottawa the following day and all flights were grounded for two days.

The Air Canada flight was somewhat interesting in that we had middle seats about 10 rows apart and were surrounded by happy British teenagers returning from a ski holiday to Mount Tremblant. Sara had a seat in directly in front of the movie screen, which ensured a sleepless overnight flight. We arrived at Heathrow, the busiest airport in the world and transferred to a British Midlands flight to Glasgow Scotland. Despite recent security concerns at Heathrow due to possible terrorist attacks we experienced no delays.

Saturday February 22nd Glasgow to Fort William

We were quite busy making travel arrangements at the Glasgow airport, as we had to find transport to the Isle of Skye and a room for the night. The Tourist Office was most helpful, giving us information on bus schedules and booking us into a B and B at Fort William for the night. Fort William was a midway point between Glasgow and Isle of Skye and we were able to catch The Citylink bus at the airport.

We also checked on flights to Belfast for later in our journey and I was stunned when British Airways quoted a price of $760 one way for two people. Thank goodness we returned to the Tourist Office and learned that most people take the ferry to Belfast for $70 for two people which was convenient and connected with the bus from Skye on our return.

We left Glasgow by bus at 3:00 pm and were impressed with the journey. It was a great way to see the countryside. We passed Loch Loman and were soon in the beautiful, rugged mountains of the Scottish Highlands. The Three Sisters mountains were especially striking. The area is sparsely populated and provides great opportunities for mountain climbing and hiking. Sheep farming appears to be the main economic activity as well as tourism. Sara noticed a distinct evergreen tree that we would see again in the gardens at Dunvegan Castle where we learned that they are Chilean Pine trees (a.k.a. Monkey-puzzle tree). We also saw the infamous hooded crow that obtained their notoriety for allegedly picking the eyes from weakened sheep. We later saw one of these feathered fiends riding on the back of a sheep perhaps waiting for the appropriate moment to strike.

On arrival at Fort William we were given a ride to our B and B by a fellow bus rider’s mother in a Mercedes Benz . We checked in at the Guisachan Guesthouse and were the only guests in a large house separate from the regular Guesthouse. We ventured out that evening and had dinner at a local pub then off to bed.

Sunday February 23rd, 2003 Fort William to Dunvegan, Isle of Skye

Despite its unpronounceable name and cold water the Guisachan Guesthouse met our requirements nicely. We later learned that there is usually a separate switch for hotwater in the U.K. but we never learned how to pronounce Guisachan.

Back on the Citylink Bus we traveled through more of the striking mountain scenery and came to Kyle of Lochalsh where the pay toilets were gaudily decorated with maps and old scotch whiskey bottles. Finally, we made it over the Skye Bridge and onto the soil of the Isle of Skye and onward to Portree the largest town.

I had visited Portree before in 1984, at that time Sara and my wife, Tooke, stayed in Liverpool eagerly awaiting the trip home after two months in Europe. During my previous three days in Portree I spent one day attending Skye Days events: bagpiping, highland games etc. and planned to visit Dunvegan Castle the next day. However, it poured for two days and I never made it to the Castle. On this trip I definitely wanted to see the Dunvegan Castle and visit the villages that my ancestors would have frequented namely Holmisdale, Colbost and Borreraig.

The Skye Bus delivered us to Portree’s town square late Sunday afternoon. As buses do not run in Portree on Sundays we took a taxi to Dunvegan, a small village about 25 miles from Portree. During the drive to Dunvegan the taxi-driver pointed out major changes in the recent past, mainly new housing and an influx of people from the mainland. He informed us that this was the off-season for tourists but the month of May would see the high-season recommence.

After a brief tour of the small village of Dunvegan (one main street along the bay) we arrived at a B and B in town that we liked immediately. It was called "Eilean Glas" and run by Mrs. Mona Nicholson. Our rooms over looked the bay as well as MacLeod’s Tables (two flat topped mountains where is said that the Chief of the MacLeod’s used to take his dinner in earlier times). We were Mrs. Nicholson’s only guests for the three nights we stayed in Dunvegan.

We immediately headed out on foot to visit Dunvegan Castle about one mile away along the bay. We arrived as the castle was closing; in fact it would stay closed for the next two days to allow for spring carpet cleaning! Our disappointment evident we resolved to be there bright and early on Wednesday when the castle would re-open. While the castle was closed we were still able to visit the castle grounds, which were in a beautiful setting, tucked away in the bay and surrounded by gardens. This was the famous clan MacLeod stronghold that had sheltered the clan for centuries; in fact it is still inhabited by the MacLeod of MacLeod family. I first heard of the castle many years ago when my uncle Norman McCrimmon recounted his visit there during WWII while he was leave from the Canadian Artillery.

On our way back we stopped for our evening meal at the Dunvegan Hotel. It was one of the only eateries open during the off-season and which become our “local”. We especially enjoyed this hotel, the fireside setting, the cozy atmosphere, the friendly staff as well as the meals, plain but filling, especially with a pint of lager.

Monday, February 24th, 2003 Dunvegan, Isle of Skye and environs

After breakfast at Mrs. Nicholson’s we headed to the Tourist Office near the hotel. The woman in charge was extremely helpful and patient as we had many questions. Information was obtained on Island bus services, precise locations of areas we wished to visit, maps etc.

Our first visit was to the old Church of Scotland church just a short walk from the Dunvegan Hotel across a field filled with the ubiquitous sheep (one with a hooded crow on its back) that raced away from us in stampede fashion. The ancient stone church was abandoned and roofless with one large tree protecting the church like an umbrella with its branches. Debris had been removed and there was evidence of maintenance however, we were the only mortals present.

The interior walls were mounted with stone plaques to various MacLeod Chiefs, historic notables and former clergymen. What surprised and intrigued us was a large stone plaque on the outside main wall that was dedicated to the McCrimmons, hereditary pipers to the MacLeods. Piping enthusiasts everywhere are aware of their outstanding contribution to the history and excellence of piping especially during the period 1500-1800 AD. The inscription is in Gaelic (pronounced gallic) and English.

Stone Plaque

We now planned to visit the McCrimmon College of Piping site at Borreraig. As Dunvegan is a small village it does not have bus service. Thus, one catches a ride with the postman on the post-bus. While waiting for the departure of the post bus Sara went to the nearby bakery to buy some sandwiches and juice that we had for lunch. Oddly, the bakery was intrigued to learn that she was from Canada and informed her that they now served poutine!

At 12:30 we were off in the post bus, stopping to drop off mail at the farmhouses along the way. Dogs had bitten the postman at one or more locations (the curse of postmen everywhere) and it was the job of the residents at these locations to come to the car to get their mail. Talking to the postman we learned how to predict the weather in the manner of the locals, by the sheep. If the sheep are all grouped together it will be windy and rainy if they are spread out in the fields it will be a nice day. They were presently well dispersed and it was a bonnie day.

The trip was a glimpse of everyday life that we appreciated. In an isolated area we came across a five star restaurant (Three Chimneys) where some diners arrive by helicopter. A short distance afterwards we were dropped off on the outskirts of Colbost where we began our two-mile hike to Borreraig.

The weather was ideal for a walk, which we enjoyed immensely. The road was paved but quite narrow and twisted over numerous hills. There was little traffic and the sheep and cows in the fields watched us with obvious curiosity. Several hundred yards to our left we could see the blue waters of the bay most of the time. Trees were almost non-existent, either they had been cut down years ago or the weather and soil conditions limited their growth. We passed the turn-off to Glendale and soon arrived at Borreraig.

The piping museum had been located in an old schoolhouse in the village but had closed several years ago. We learned this from a young couple that had recently moved to the area and planned to open an art gallery. We headed towards the cairn dedicated to the McCrimmon family of pipers where a piping ceremony is held annually. It is a large dome shaped cairn located on a hill over looking the bay.It is close to the location of the old piping college of which we could find no trace. Mounted on the cairn is the same plaque as at the old church however, only in Gaelic this time.

We retraced our steps to the Glendale turn-off and arrived at Borreraig Park Skye’s Piping Museum that contained information on the McCrimmon family along with other historical exhibits such as a collection of farm implements and machinery. For the first time I saw a foot plow which took one man two days of hard labor to till one acre. Mr. and Mrs. Spencer were in charge of the museum and showed us a collection of genealogical data on the McCrimmons, which coincided with our research. They also provided general historical details such as:

Mr. Spencer gave us a lift to Glendale and took us to the village restaurant. It was closed but they were able to offer a cup of tea and a place to relax while we waited for the school bus to take us back to Dunvegan.

Tuesday, February 25th, 2003 Dunvegan, Scotland and environs

We returned to the Tourist Office in Dunvegan and purchased some gifts for family members. We also obtained literature on the MacLeod clan. We next hiked up the hill overlooking Dunvegan to view the Durinish stone. In memory of its Celtic past a five tonne stone was planted on the summit of Drum na Creige to mark the millennium. We took some pictures of the stone as well as the MacLeod tables in the distance across the bay.

It was then time for lunch near the bakery followed by the post-bus ride to the village of Glendale and adjoining area of Homisdale. Donald McCrimmon and his wife Isabella MacLeod, my great-grandparents, left this area to come to Ontario, Canada in 1864 with several of their children including my grandfather Duncan McCrimmon, then about seven years old. Parish records show they were married in 1851 and the census of 1851 shows them living with Isabella’s parents, Norman MacLeod and Catherine MacKinnon, as well as her five siblings in Homisdale. We have letters from Catherine written beginning in 1873 to her granddaughter Catherine in Oconto, near Sharbot Lake, which were sent from Homisdale.

Homisdale is basically a street about six hundred yards long on a hillside along the Hamara River. None of the original houses remain although there is evidence of earlier structures. The existing well-kept houses appear to have been built about 1930. We then visited the village cemetery however the older markers are mainly rubble. We did meet a shepherd about sixty years old who was rounding up his flock with the aid of sheep dogs and a helper on an ATV. He pointed out to me a pleasant walking trail along the river while Sara stayed in the cemetery to read and relax.

We returned to the restaurant in Glendale for tea. Here we talked to Irene Southall who offered us a cup of tea. We spoke to Cathrina Campbell who was very interested in family histories of the area. She has a friend who has maintained family records and we will be in contact with them.

Cathrina also called George MacPherson who has a collection of regional stories of the area and he offered to meet with us. It was late and the last bus was about to arrive and I felt it would not be possible to see him. Sara pointed out it was an opportunity not to be missed and we could worry about how to return later. She was absolutely right and we soon found ourselves across the river in Fasach headed to the MacPherson red-roofed house. Fasach is directly across the river from Holmisdale and the old croft boundary lines now mark the modern property lines in the area.

George met us at the door in Highland dress, which he informed us is his usual attire and sat us down for tea. He pointed out where he believed the MacLeods lived circa 1850 across the river in Homisdale.

George is by profession a storyteller and has spoke at conventions in various countries and also has several publications to his credit. Two stories especially intrigued us. The first concerned the “genocide” or “clearances” of the area in the1800s when the Macleod laird drove the tenant crofters off their ancestral land to make way for the more profitable sheep farming. It was done in a heartless manner and involved the use of government gunboats and soldiers. One of George's ancestors led the resistance, which led to improved tenure for those that remained.

The second story was about Annag McCrimmon who revealed some piping secrets of the McCrimmons to her lover, a MacPherson. This enabled him to best the McCrimmons in a celebrated piping contest. The McCrimmon elders had some of Annag’s fingers removed for this breach of secrecy. She in turn placed a curse on them saying that they would cease to be hereditary pipers to the clan and that the McCrimmons would no longer live on Skye. Both these predictions came true and today there are very few McCrimmons in the area as they are scattered around the world.

George was kind enough to drive us to back Dunvegan where we dined as usual at the hotel.

Wednesday, February 26th, 2003 Dunvegan to Portree

After breakfast we checked out of Mrs. Nicholson’s inn which we highly recommend. We dropped our bags off at the Dunvegan Hotel and once again visited the Tourist Office where we were able to make accommodation reservations for our next stops in Portree and Belfast.

We then hiked to Dunvegan Castle and paid our admission fee of £6 each. The red carpets had just been cleaned and we were ushered into the castle. There were only a few other visitors and they were from England and the United States. During the tourist season this castle is visited by large numbers of tourists from all over the world.

In the castle we saw the gruesome dungeon where prisoners starved to death, it was a reminder of a brutal era. There were also many historical artefacts on display as the MacLeods have occupied the castle for over 700 years with John MacLeod living on the top floors today. A noteworthy artifact was the famous "fairy flag" which has saved the clan’s bacon on two occasions and its powers can be used just one more time. The flag is thought to have been brought back from the Middle East (Syria?) in ancient times. There was also a large drinking horn, which must be chug-a-lugged by each new laird. An exhibit of historic photos was also interesting and provided insight into day-to-day life on the Isle during the last 150 years.

We of course were very interested in a section dedicated to the McCrimmon pipers. It contained old bagpipes, chanters and a family tree dating back several hundred years that we had previously determined to be part of our ancestry. There are records in the archives of the castle, which show a leasing of Galtrigil to Patrick MacCrimmon in 1706, and Borreraig to Donald MacCrimmon in 1724. A booklet entitled " Your Clan Heritage-Clan MacLeod" compiled by Alan McNie states that the name MacCrimmon is from the Gaelic MacCruimein, derived in turn from Old Norse, Hromund, meaning famed protector. It also states that in 1595 Hector M ' Crimmon signed a deed on behalf of Isabella, wife of Sir Rory Mor, who became a MacLeod of MacLeod chieftain.

We toured the castle grounds and at a rocky point of land by the jetty we had a late lunch while watching a group of harbor seals on a weedy reef 50 yards away who kept an eye on us. We caught sight of a rare heron fishing along the shoreline.

We then returned to Dunvegan where we caught the bus to Portree. After a half hour ride we were back to the village square and were soon settled in at Mrs. Speed's guesthouse in a quiet district of the town. Our next genealogical stop was at the Portree library which holds both parish and census records. The librarian David McCymont was extremely helpful in providing additional leads on McCrimmon research and showing us available material on the subject. We had an excellent vegetarian curry at a nearby hotel and then returned to our rooms for the night.

Thursday, Februaru 27th, 2003 Portree, Scotland to Belfast, Ireland via Glasgow

We descended the hill from the B and B early in the morning and boarded the Citylink bus headed for Glasgow planning to arrive in Belfast by ferry at 10pm. The bus trip was long but not unpleasant. We had a short break in Fort William after three hours on the bus and in another three hours we arrived in downtown Glasgow. We spent the afternoon at the bus terminal waiting for our bus / ferry trip to Belfast to begin.

Everything went according to plan and after a security search we boarded the ferry for Belfast at 8pm. It was pitch black and we were unable to see the Irish Sea on the crossing. The boat itself was quite large and comfortable. It had eating areas, games rooms as well as quiet lounge areas where I caught up on the latest news on the Iraq crisis while Sara watched “Stuart Little”. Tony Blair was facing a tough fight from members of his own party. Previously I watched some TV programming but it was filled with Jerry Springer type crap and I retreated to the quiet lounge.

We arrived in Belfast on schedule and grabbed a taxi to the Liserin Guest House where the owner Sid Smith welcomed us and showed us to our rooms. Sara was given the luxury room #1 with shower while I settled for a more modest room on the next floor. I went to sleep dreaming of uncovering vital information on the origins of our Lytle family the next day.

Friday, February 28th, 2003 Belfast, Northern Ireland

The day began with Sid providing a substantial breakfast for two eager researchers. We learned that Sid had lived in Toronto but returned about twelve years ago to Belfast. The number of people we met in Skye and Belfast who had recent and close ties with Canada surprised me.

It was a wet morning but we opted for the half hour walk to the Public Records Office of Northern Ireland at 66 Balmoral Avenue in order to see some of the sights, such as the fortress-like police station. I had imagined that PRONI would be an old impressive stone building, in reality it resembled a school built in the 1960s.

In PRONI we received our readers tickets and a staff member showed us the areas where we could locate the records we were interested in. It was complicated but we soon had the microfilms for the Church of Ireland parishes of Derryloran, Carnteel and Donaghhenry, all in the eastern part of County Tyrone. We placed them in the readers and spent about four hours searching for one or more of the nine family events (births and marriages) that we knew took place in Ireland between 1790 and 1842.

We discovered one likely lead in the fiche for Stewartstown of a Samuel Little family however there was no linkages with our own known events. We were unable to uncover any record of the events in any of the films. It turned out to be another dead end. This is not unusual in Irish family research when the town, parish or townland of origin is not known as numerous vital records were destroyed in Dublin during the “troubles” of 1922. I had recently taken part in Irish Research Group meetings in Ottawa where research for some is extended over a period of many years. Success is not impossible but it is difficult requiring diligence and a measure of Irish luck. We finished up in PRONI by examining name indices, wills and ship records again with no luck.

We walked back to our rooms in the rain. We later decided to go out for pizza and found three take-out locations nearby. One of these had tables on an elevated area above the Pizza ovens. We took our seats after ordering and were thankful for the warmth and the delicious aroma of pizza in progress. We soon discovered the pizzeria was not an eat-in restaurant but they obliged us by bringing boxed pizza to our table. We were famished and demolished the meal.

Saturday, March 1st, 2003 Belfast, Northern Ireland

March 1st is the first day of spring in Ireland and the weather was lovely. We spotted a magpie on our walk to Donegall Square and luckily spotted another in the Ulster museum thus, averting back luck. “One for sorrow, two for luck” is the local saying about magpies.

We passed a Guinness pub, Belfast City Hall and Queen’s University before arriving at the Linen Hall Library where I spent the morning while Sara shopped for gifts (nightgowns). The Linen Hall Library is in the heart of Belfast. It was originally a linen warehouse. It contains extensive historical records of Ireland including both perspectives of the political dispute. It also has many records useful to genealogists. I found one obituary on the wife of a Samuel Little however it was extremely brief saying she was a pleasant and respected citizen.

We met later in the afternoon at the Ulster Museum that was about three blocks from our guest- house. There were a number of intriguing exhibits including one on the weaving industry (it only survives in the areas of the cheapest labor), a gold exhibit, an Early Life in Ireland exhibit and art exposition featuring the work of contemporary Irish painter Basil Blackshaw. Sara appreciated the finer aspects of the exhibits, as this is an area she is involved with at her work with the Canadian Museum of Civilization in Gatineau, Québec. I found one bizarre display and that was a drawer of dried-out mice.

We returned to our rooms and in the evening and later visited an up-scale Chinese restaurant for a fine meal of several varied and tasty dishes.

Sunday, March 2nd, 2003 Belfast, Northern Ireland to Ottawa, Ontario via London, Heathrow

The next morning, after checking out of the Liserin Guest House, we took a taxi to the city airport and boarded a British Midlands flight to Heathrow airport. Here we changed to an Air Canada flight to our home base in Ottawa. We were met at the airport by Sara’s companion Mike who regaled us with tales of fierce snowstorms, which had struck the area during our absence, in fact another storm was commencing as we drove home. Our stimulating trip to the homes of our ancestors was completed and on the morrow Sara was to start half-days on French language training and half-days on a new assignment while I faced a day at snow-removal.


Author: Earl Lytle