It seems a pity for no-one to respond so I thought I would kick things off. My Granny lived in Furnace, at two separate addresses, for much of WW2. It was to keep her safely out of Glasgow, I guess, so her life there was probably not very interesting but the children may find some interest in following up some of the names and jobs below.
She was born Mary Ann MacKechnie and her grandfather born in 1817 was Lachlan MacEachrane, a dancing master in Campbeltown. She was the widow of John MacMillan born in Crarae, whose family used to carry the big family Bible in a pillow slip to the 'Wee Free' at Minard. John's father was Angus MacMillan from the isle of Benbecula, a descendant of the great bard, Cathal MacMhuirich. John's maternal great grandfather was William MacFarlane who, from 1800, was a weaver at Goatfield but also a piper on the cutter 'Swift' that used to look after the smaller boats in the Loch Fyne herring fishing fleet. John's maternal great grandmother was Janet MacPhedran whose own grandfather was John MacPhedran the changehousekeeper and ferryman at Crarae and was the first to be buried in the graveyard at Killevin in 1758. The MacPhedrans had originally been given the ferry rights at Portsonachan on Lochawe by Robert the Bruce and Neil Campbell for saving their lives at sea in a storm just after 1300 and they ran the ferry until 1700 when the move over the hill to Loch Fyne took place; the repeat charters are all at Inveraray Castle.
I hope there may be a few unfamiliar jobs there that engage the children's attention! Best wishes with your project. Angus Macmillan
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Topic: Furnace (Read 4446 times)