Scott has mentioned that he is going to be in Nova Scotia, and I am sending him some info on Bard John McLean of Tiree who settled there in 1819. I'll post a few points here in case anyone else is travelling that way this summer. Bard John McLean (1787-1848), perhaps Tiree's most well known Bard, emigrated from Tiree in 1819 and settled in Barney's River, Pictou County, Nova Scotia. Very early emigration compared to most of our ancestors in Canada! His most famous song "Gloomy Forest" sent back to Scotland, became popular there and actually discouraged folk from emigrating. There is a cairn to him at Glen Bard, 9 miles west of Antigonish town. And his gravestone should still be in Marshy Hope. There's a write up about the Bard on this NS website (first page about half way down), as well as some interesting info about the longest running Gaelic newspaper --which was in NS not Scotland! http://www.ambraighe.ca/gaelicNS.htm The website comes from Cape Breton and is about Gaelic culture. There is even a Gaelic college around there. Some of you might want to subscribe to their journal. I imagine there are still descendants of the Bard's in Nova Scotia. About 1950, there were 2 Gaelic scholars in NS that were his descendants: George Sinclair of Hopewell and Rev. Donald Sinclair of Halifax. Probably some family of theirs are still in the province. My cousin Catirona Smyth, who is fairly closely related to the Bard, tells me most McLeans from the East End of Tiree are related to him in some fashion. If any of you reading this are related to him, please post a message here. Does anyone have photos of the cairn and/or gravestone? If not, maybe Scott will make a pilgrimage to them and take some shots, eh Scott? Louise