Hello Doe's anyone on the list know anything about the place's Cruach and Corrary on Islay ? My ancestor's Donald Ferguson and Catherine Ferguson, nee McIntyre lived at these places on the following dates. 1838 - Corrary, daughter Catherine born 1839 - Corrary, son Neil born 1841 - Cruach, 1841 census and son Arcgibald born. 1844 - Corrary, daughter Jean born. 1855 - Fern Cottage, son Alexander born 1858 - Cruach, Donald Ferguson died. Where these place's family houses or farm's where a number of family's lived and worked ? I would appreciate any input on these property's. Debbie -------------------------------------------------------------------- Glasgow - McKelvie, McCulloch, Murphy, Malone, Clark/Clarke, Toal, McKay Perthshire - Sutherland, Gardiner, Imrie, Robertson, MacGregor, MacDonald Kincardine - Davidson, Duncan, Brand Ayrshire - McCulloch, Dodds Argyll - McKay, Sinclair, Campbell Islay - McDougall, Caskie, Ferguson, McIntyre, Kane/Kean Ireland - Tracey, Kelly, McCormick, Daly, Desmond, Toal/Toll, McGeown, Thomson --------------------------------------------------------------------
Hello Deborah, Today, Cruach is a small number of scattered houses in farmland just outside Bowmore which is the main town on Islay. Corrary is a farm, also not far from Bowmore, where the Bowmore to Port Ellen road crosses the river Laggan. 2 miles along the river is Curalach where my Sinclair ancestors lived and worked. a few years ago I wrote a note about my first visit to Islay. It is on Steve's website at http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~steve/islay/sinclair.htm It might give you a flavour. If you look at an OS map of Islay you will find them quite easily. In the time of your forebears each of these farming areas, and many others, were worked by tenant farmers and farm labourers living in small 2 room cottages which were very basic. Most have been demolished over the years or had new buildings erected. There would typically have been several families working on each farm, and many of them moved from farm to farm, so your family living at Cruach and then Corrary would have been quite normal. They are probably less than 2 miles apart. Hope this helps. Iain