Meeting Reports 2024/25
4th September 2024
The Bronze Age in North Kessock
Susan Kruse
It all started with commercial exploration at North Kessock prior to a new housing development. On a dig like this you don’t know what you are going to find!
Trevor Cowie a specialist from the National Museum Scotland looked at clay and sand samples from the dig and declared that amongst them was part of a clay mould for making tools. This was the starting point for a community project involving members of North Kessock & District Local History Society, the National Museums of Scotland and ARCH funded the Heritage Lottery Fund, Highland Council Ward Discretionary Fund and STEMnet. The interim report of the excavation also showed evidence of a roundhouse and pottery shards. The community project, funded by the National Lottery Fund included an investigation into local clay sources and talks, training workshops and trips to see examples of bronze age artefacts. Experts in ceramics, clay analysis, historical metal and wood working signed up. The book of the project included a catalogue of metal objects found around the Moray Firth area. The result of all this activity was an exhibition (actually three exhibitions) which included practical demonstrations of Bronze Age metalworking and daily life.
Further detailed information and a video of the making of a sickle available is on this website.
2015 Feats of Clay Exhibition and Photos
The archaeological excavations were carried out in 2008-9 and the final results of the investigation are still not available. It is hoped that the latest information and results will be published early next year.
2nd October 2024
Bridgescapes
L Bruce Keith
A personal journey through history celebrating Scotland’s bridge building heritage.
Bruce gave us a very entertaining talk on bridges interspersed with many anecdotes. His interest in bridges began when he was a child and continues to the present day. Even on holiday Keith seeks out bridges and with his wife, has walked across many, including the arch of the Sidney bridge – not for the fainthearted or those who suffer from vertigo. Bruce covered the design and construction and development of bridges “from planks to spectacular icons”, related to historical events. He praised the creative talent and innovative approaches of Scottish bridge builders throughout the centuries. For example, those built by Thomas Telford during the great age of bridge building in the 18th and 19th century, right up to the newest, the Falkirk Wheel and the bridge across the Forth, the Queensferry Crossing. The talk was illustrated with many images of bridges including Carrbridge - the oldest bridge in the Highlands, built in 1717 and still standing. Bruce also brought along copies of his lavishly illustrated book, on sale to members at a special reduced rate.
6th November 2024
Hospitals of Ross & Cromarty
Steve Leslie
Steve Leslie and his father Jim established the History of Highland Hospitals project supported by the NHS Highland Endowment fund and the Centre for History at the University of the Highlands and Islands. They found over 60 Highland hospitals including fever hospitals, poorhouses, and maternity homes. Many of them long forgotten.
In 2011 they began to produce books for each area of the Highlands subsidised to keep the selling price It was hoped that as many people as possible would read them and respond with more information and this is what happened. “Hospitals of Ross and Cromarty” is the latest book to be published with financial support from the Guthrie Trust.
They are currently working on the history of the hospitals of Caithness and Sutherland in two volumes. With funding from the NHS and UHI. These will be the last in the series of Highland Hospitals which it is hoped will be issued in 2025.
More information can be found at - https://www.historyofhighlandhospitals.com
4th December 2024
“Christmas Quiz & Cake”
Fred Fraser
Rising to the occasion member Fred Fraser (assisted by Alasdair Cameron) produced a variety of objects of historical significance for members of the audience to identify. Not sure that there was an outright winner of this quiz but a lot of scratching of heads went on and much laughter was produced when the answers were read out. After all their hard work members enjoyed mince pies and cake as an early celebration of the coming Christmas festivities.
5 March 2025
“MARIE: The Romance of a Highland Maiden” The Paterson Film
Adrian Harvey
Adrian became interested in Andrew Paterson when he rescued boxes of old slides which were about to be destroyed. Over the past decade he has been gradually adding information to the Andrew Paterson Collection.
Andrew Paterson was a well known local photographer with a studio in Inverness when he decided he would like to try his hand at film making. The film was produced and directed by him and was set on the coast around North Kessock. It was first shown in the Central Hall Picture House, Academy Street, Inverness on 20 May 1912. It told the story of whisky smugglers and revenue officers and included the love story of a local girl and one of the officers. Early films were made in black and white, with no sound. Text was shown on the screen between clips of film. Usually there would have been a pianist, sometimes an organist, playing music in the theatre while the film was screening to add background effects.
It can stand in comparison with most of the professionally made films at that time and was a considerable achievement for a photographer and cast without any film experience. Later Andrew Paterson made two short films of Scottish scenery, from the footplate of a railway engine, on behalf of the old Highland Railway Company. He unfortunately made no more films and sold his camera to Gaumont Ltd; as he felt he was neglecting his portrait business he lived to be one of Scotland's leading portrait photographers,
We then treated to front row seats to watch the film. Click below to watch the film. Marie
2 April 2025
Highland Cairns & Memorials
Fraser Mackenzie
Fraser took us on a journey around local areas of the Highlands, his hunting ground for these stones. He illustrated the talk with images of the memorials and interesting information on the stories behind the building of the various memorials. Some were tributes to landowners, some remembered accidents and a surprisingly quite a few were for dogs. Fraser has spent many years collecting images of these memorials some of which are in fairly remote places. His examples were many and varied and included the Brahan Seer memorial at Chanonry Point and the Emigration Stone that can be seen in Cromarty. Closer to home, the Kessock Ferry disaster is memorialized at South Kessock. Memorial to dogs are often in the hills and glens. For example, in Glen Affric and Glen Urquhart.
Fraser concluded by suggesting that we should go out and see for ourselves.
