Author Topic: Skye and the Annie Jane  (Read 2635 times)

Offline Vatersay

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Skye and the Annie Jane
« on: Thursday 24 December 15 16:21 GMT (UK) »
Hello everybody

Looking for some help from Sgitheanachs

First of all newspaper reports of the time say that some of the people who perished in the Annie Jane shipwreck were from Skye, given that I already have people from all over Scotland and the 100 tradesmen and families who were originally on the Annie Jane were recruited in Glasgow its quite possible. Thirteen left after the abortive first voyage and among the survivors there were about eight of the original group. Unfortunately they were in the middle section of the ship which collapsed so not many survived.
So could some of you Skye folk cast your eye over the casualty list to see if any names jump out at you. Remember they are not in family groups the list was done alphabetically so all the same surnames were lumped together. This is the website  http://www.anniejane.net/

Twenty eight of the survivors of the Annie Jane shipwreck left Barra on Thursday 13th of October sailing on the smack Alarm heading for Tobermory. They were caught up in another storm losing most of their sails and then tried to get into Canna but failed, finally making for Skye under only a foresail they made it into loch Bracadale late on Friday night  making it ashore at daybreak on Saturday morning.
Going  to the ministers house they got four carts to convey what luggage they had to Portree, being given a local guide they walked on a short cut to Portree which I can only imagine was the direct route across the hills.
Reaching Portree at 10.30 on Saturday night they were put up at Mrs Ross's hotel embarking on the steamer Chevalier they departed Portree on Wednesday morning finally reaching Glasgow on Thursday evening.

Would anybody know who was the minister in Bracadale in late 1853?
What became of Mrs Ross's hotel is it still in business?

Thanks for reading.
Allan

Offline DonM

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Re: Skye and the Annie Jane
« Reply #1 on: Thursday 24 December 15 18:01 GMT (UK) »
"Would anybody know who was the minister in Bracadale in late 1853?"

It depends - Free Church or the Church of Scotland, they had both, although the C of S had a hard time keeping someone there.  However, if you "Google" I'm sure the answer to your question is out there.

As far as the hotel in Portree there was Ross's Inn but it went into receivership in the 1850's and probably many times since.  There were several Inns in Portree you would be best to contact these folks http://www.portree-local-history-society.org/davitt.html as I'm sure they will know the answer.

Don
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Offline MonicaL

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Re: Skye and the Annie Jane
« Reply #2 on: Thursday 24 December 15 18:26 GMT (UK) »

Twenty eight of the survivors of the Annie Jane shipwreck left Barra on Thursday 13th of October sailing on the smack Alarm heading for Tobermory. They were caught up in another storm losing most of their sails and then tried to get into Canna but failed, finally making for Skye under only a foresail they made it into loch Bracadale late on Friday night  making it ashore at daybreak on Saturday morning.
Going  to the ministers house they got four carts to convey what luggage they had to Portree, being given a local guide they walked on a short cut to Portree which I can only imagine was the direct route across the hills.
Reaching Portree at 10.30 on Saturday night they were put up at Mrs Ross's hotel embarking on the steamer Chevalier they departed Portree on Wednesday morning finally reaching Glasgow on Thursday evening.


Allan, you make it very readable. When you first began to post for help and additonal info, I read for the first time a lot of info on Annie Jane online. The reports from newspapers and other sources were so very descriptive, the loss of life enormous for sure. Hadn't come across the info you have just added, and I have relinked above. Sounds harrowing really, on top of everything else that had just happened...

Monica
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Offline J11

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Re: Skye and the Annie Jane
« Reply #3 on: Sunday 27 December 15 10:13 GMT (UK) »
The Minister of the Church of Scotland for Bracadale from 1843 to 1855 was a Neil MacKinnon.  It was his first ministry.  He transferred to Creich in 1855.


Offline MonicaL

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Re: Skye and the Annie Jane
« Reply #4 on: Sunday 27 December 15 17:55 GMT (UK) »
Allan, you are well versed on this all. Just checking...have your read this?

www.rootschat.com/links/01gql/

From Google books.

Monica
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Offline Vatersay

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Re: Skye and the Annie Jane
« Reply #5 on: Monday 28 December 15 12:58 GMT (UK) »
Thanks for all your replies

I think it would be likely to be the COS minister who's manse they went to so thanks for his name and I will go to the local history society when things return to normal after the festive period. As for Mrs Ross's hotel it must have been a large establishment as it looks like it took in 28 people, all the survivors accounts say ( we were accommodated ) The good folk of Portree had a collection under the guidance of the Procurator fiscal and presented the steerage passengers with the sum of 4 shillings each a total of 5 pounds.

Monica I do have that book but thanks again for your interest I do not have a copy of Grays report yet that looks like a trip to the national archives unless I can find a short cut.

As for tradesmen who were emigrating on the Annie Jane and originally from Skye. Probably they would have been resident in Glasgow in the 1851 census.

Regards Allan



Offline Roncac

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Re: Skye and the Annie Jane
« Reply #6 on: Friday 29 June 18 09:11 BST (UK) »


Would anybody know who was the minister in Bracadale in late 1853?


The Church of Scotland minister there in 1853 was Neil MacKinnon. He appears on the Index of Scottish Presbyterian ministers - http://ecclegen.com/general-index-mac2/#MacKinnon,%20Donald – where you can find a number of links which will give more information about him. The Free Church minister was John Fletcher – see http://ecclegen.com/ministers-f/#FLETCHER,%20JOHN

Offline Vatersay

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Re: Skye and the Annie Jane
« Reply #7 on: Thursday 12 July 18 14:49 BST (UK) »
Thanks for that

I had already established that Neil Mackinnon was the COS minister in that period. After a trip to the Isle of Skye and Bracadale to see the bay the logical choice for the minister who helped the survivors was Neil Mackinnon. The Church is there facing you as you come in to the bay with the manse above. Free church was only established in 1843 and is a distance away. The French missionaries were quite conservative so I think they would have mentioned if it was not the established church.
I also walked the route the survivors took from Bracadale to Portree. Luckily did not have to ford any rivers like they had to and it wasn't raining. :)
So it was a judgement of Solomon in the end, no way of proving beyond doubt.

The hotel turned out to be the Royal hotel in Portree still open for business today. I was lucky enough to find an advertising poster depicting the Ross Royal  Hotel as it was at that time. It is still hanging up close to the reception area of the hotel. I got their permission to reproduce it in the book, so I was delighted with that find.

Thanks again

Allan