----- Original Message ----- From: "Mary Herbert" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Saturday, May 19, 2001 9:32 AM Subject: Re: [RossGen] Meikle Ferry > Hello, Laurence, > The discussion on Meikle Ferry has caused me to wonder if you would know of > Bridgend? ================================================ The most common Bridgend in Ross-shire is part of the village of Alness in the Parish opf Alness. There are a few more but usually much smaller than the Alness one. Donald. ================================================ > My gggrandfather Alexander McDONALD, born about 1820, eldest son of Donald > McDONALD and Mary CAMPBELL, gave his birthplace as Bridgend, Rosshire. > His next two brothers,Charles MCDONALD born 1822, and Donald MCDONALD born > 1823, appear to have been christened at Fearn. I haven't found baptisms for > the next two girls, Sophia MCDONALD about 1830 and Isabella MCDONALD about > 1832, but the youngest, Jane Spence MCDONALD, was baptised in 1835 in > Inverness, Rosshire. > I would really appreciate hearing from anyone who knows Bridgend, or who > knows anything of this family who emigrated to New South Wales in 1839. > Mary > > At 06:14 AM 17/05/01 -0400, [email protected] wrote: > >Greetings from The Royal Burgh of Tain - the oldest royal burgh in Scotland > >(charter granted by Malcolm Canmore in 1066). > > Meikle Ferry is about two miles north west of Tain and is on a > >narrow spit of land jutting out into the Dornoch Firth. This was the > >southern side of the old ferry crossing. > > This ferry was probably in use for centuries as the most convenient > >way of travelling from Ross-shire to Sutherland. The roads were poor or > >nonexistent and use of the ferry avoided the long journey to Ardgay where > >the Dornoch Firth narrowed to give the next crossing over to Bonar. > > On 16 August 1809, disaster struck. The ferryboat was crowded with > >over 100 people on board making their way to the market at Tain. The boat, > >dangerously loaded to the gunwales, was halfway across the firth when a heavy > >swell caused it to capsize and sink. 99 people were drowned and only 12 > >were saved. > > That was more or less the end of the ferry and an iron bridge > >designed by Telford was built in 1813 between Ardgay and Bonar. That iron > >bridge took away the traffic from Meikle Ferry but ironically, a new bridge > >was built in 1991 immediately beside Meikle Ferry and that is used by road > >traffic heading north to East Sutherland and Caithness leaving the successor > >bridge to Telford's bridge at Bonar Bridge to be used only by traffic heading > >for the West. > > The query was re Meikleferry farmhouse. It is doubtful if there > > ever > >was a Meikleferry farm as such. The spit of land leading out to Meikle Ferry > >is only rough grazing land and I understand that it is very stony and > >unlikely to have ever been arable. The ordinance survey map of 1896 shows a > >couple of dots on the "spit" but with no names attached. Am I correct in > >thinking that the ancestor being traced was probably described as being a > >crofter at Meikle Ferry? If that is the case, he would not have aspired to > >such a grand abode as a farmhouse. In the present day the nearest farm is > >Ardjackie situated between Meikle Ferry and Glenmorangie > >Distillery. > > Incidentally, meikle or muckle is Scots for big. I believe that the > >landing point on the Northern side was called Little Ferry. > > > > Lawrence Allan > > Tain, Ross-shire > > Mary Herbert > email to [email protected] > snail mail to "Slimbridge" Bedgerebong NSW 2871 > > > ==== ROSSGEN Mailing List ==== > To remove your email address from this list, visit this url: http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~cheps/maillist.htm > >