All Categories - John's Scottish History Pages

The Pleasaunce and the Back Walk, Stirling

17/2/2020

The Pleasaunce is the Journal of Scotland's Garden and Landscape Heritage. I was pleased to be asked, some months ago, to submit a paper about Stirling's Back Walk and it has now appeared, in the February 2020 edition.

The paper outlines the history of the walk but also comments on its modern state.

Locals were rightly proud of this innovative Prospect Walk in the eighteenth century and visitors praised it in the nineteenth. It remains a vital asset but it is now under-appreciated and neglected - whilst the views, once a key attraction, are being obscured by overgrown trees or blotted by modern developments.

I will place a copy of the paper in Stirling Central Library for ease of access or you can get your own or find more about The Pleasaunce at www.sglh.org

John G Harrison, 2020. The Back Walk, Stirling, 29-36, The Pleasaunce, February 2020.

Urban Vernacular Architecture

18/11/2019

The comparison between the publication of papers and the traditional description of the bus service (none for ages then three come along at once) has probably been made before - but 'Here we go again', with three in a row.

I have been a member of the Scottish Vernacular Buildings Working Group for many years, have published several papers in the Journal (Vernacular Builiding) and am now Honorary President. Last year's conference was on the theme of The Urban Vernacular and that gave the opportunity to update my thinking on the evolution of houses in Early Modern Stirling and elsewhere (a theme I also covered in my recent presentation at Stirling Local History Society).
So, this morning, Volume 42 of Vernacular Building (2019) plopped onto the porch floor with the paper 'Archival Evidence and Urban Vernacular Houses' on pages 7-18 over my name.
With its theme of the Urban Vernacular, there are several other related papers, including one by the inimitable Geoffrey Stell on Early Flatting.

Stirling Field and Archaeological Society - new paper

10/11/2019

Anyone with an interest in Stirling's past will have come across the Proceedings of the Stirling Field and Archaeological Society, covering the years 1878-1939. After dithering over it for many years, I have finally put together an outline history, looking at the membership, activities, aims and achievements of the society, using the Proceedings themselves but also the manuscript minutes and some more general sources. The paper has now been published in Forth Naturalist and Historian, volume 42, page 100-117 [note that due to an error in putting the journal together, the references are paginated 'out of sequence' as pages 117/1 - to 117/4].
I think the article gives a fair overview and raises quite a few interesting points about the group as well as highlighting some of the people involved (some very distinquished people) and the overall significance of what was published.
The paper joins the Contents and Index of the Proceedings, which have been available online on the Forth Naturalist and Historian website at www.fnh.stir.ac.uk/ for some time.

Also relevant is the Recollections of Dr Galbraith, an active member and contributor to the Proceedings, which can be found on the Stirling Local History Society website.

Eel Fisheries in Scotland

3/8/2019

Over the years I had, from time to time, come across records of eel fisheres, sometimes in the archives and sometimes in published sources. Like others, I thought of them as scattered curiosities. There was little research on the topic - salmon being the main freshwater fishery in Scotland having most of the attention.
Then I met Peter Maitland, doyen of Scots freshwater fisheriies, and chanced to mention that I had this information and he asked where he could access it. I (rather sheepishly) tapped my head. He, rightly, responded 'Well, that's no good, is it?' So, I decided to draw the threads together. It was, in fact, a substantial project but has now been published in Review of Scottish Culture, volume 28. The volume is dated 2016 (though actually publiished in July 2019).
It brings together the scattered evidence, allows some comparison with other countries and suggests some of the major pressures on the fisheies (which have all, now, vanished as the European eel itself becomes a rarity).

East Flanders Moss NNR

20/5/2019

Years ago I did some work for Scottish Natural Heritage on East Flanders Moss, one of the most important wildlife sites in Central Scotland. Subsequently, I published several papers about the history of the site - trying to clear up some of the myths which have developed, in the hope that better understanding of the past would be an aid to modern management and understanding.
In a recent development, SNH have highlighted the work on their blog, particularly some issues around the Homestead Moat, which is located towards the western margin of the bog.
You can find the post at https://2bogsaswampandsomeislands.wordpress.com/2019/05/19/footprints-of-history-on-the-bog/
There are also some links to further sources of information - including some of the publications and a hint about the possible origins of the moat site.

Sheriffmuir - Archaeology, History and Landscape

27/3/2019

The Ochils are one of the most intriguing areas in Scotland and are surprisingly well documented. Whist preparing a new paper about the area generally, I realised that the Sheriffmuir, with its remarkably rich documentation, required to be dealt with as a separate entity.
My original notes go back over twenty years and have slowly grown. So, much has had to be dealt with in outline. But there is also a good deal of new material and I think it makes for an interesting read, with evidence from the pre-historic to the contemporary. You can find the Report on the Research and Reports page of this website. Do not hesitate to comment.

Stirling Natural History and Archaeological Society

13/2/2019

Over the last couple of years or so, I have been working intermittently on the Stirling Field and Archaeological Society. A paper on the Society's work (successes, problems, people and publications) is now almost ready to submit to Forth Naturalist and Historian.
The prime achievement was their publication of 61 volumes of Transactions between 1878 and 1939.
In conjunction with the work on the Society, I have scanned the original Index (published in 1936) and the contents for each volume and these are now available to consult (free) on the Forth Naturalist and Historian website
(http://www.fnh.stir.ac.uk/journal/back_issues/index.php).

The format means that they still fall short of modern standards. But the two files should make it easier to locate material on a wide range of topics (historical, archaeological, wildlife and others) mainly of local interest. Copies of the original Transactions cane be consulted in Stirling Central Library, Stirling University Library and National Library of Scotland, amongst others.

Recollections of Victorian Stirling

21/9/2018

Among the tasks I have been working on recently is scanning and editing the 'Recollections' of Dr George Galbraith. Largely brought up on Stirling in 1820s, he served in the army for many years, before retiring to Stirling and living to an advanced age.

He was an active member of the Stirling Field and Archaeological Society and it was they who published his 'Recollections' - by far the most extensive such personal account for the town. The text, with a photo, brief introduction and notes, has now been posted on the Stirling Local History Society website, where it will be much more accessible.

The recollections cover matters from demographic changes to funeral protocol, church services to the impact of the railway. They can now be found (with some explanatory notes) at https://www.stirling-lhs.org/dr-gt-galbraith.html

Scotland's Royal Landscapes

30/8/2018

it is always gratifying when 'the work' is cited by other people or otherwise made use of. And it is particularly so when this is in 'official' documents, so that new research results become more readily available, a recognised part of Scotland's history.
It is not usually appropriate to put material on this site which is drawn directly from work I do for others - such as Historic Environment Scotland or National Trust for Scotland. But, as HES have now cited material on their own websites, here we go!

This website is now cited in the Statement of Significance for Holyrood Park, recognising that the article on Scotland's Royal Landscapes sets Holyrood in its wider context and modifies earlier views of the history of this nationally important site; for that see
https://www.historicenvironment.scot/archives-and-research/publications/publication/?publicationId=e1a38947-6fa5-4f6a-887a-a57000d19aa0

The corresponding Statement of Significance for Stirling King's Park also cites this website but also work I earlier did for HES. For that see:
https://www.historicenvironment.scot/archives-and-research/publications/publication/?publicationid=b1942a54-029b-43d9-8732-a8b1010acf46

Conference in Rambouillet

24/5/2017

It's always encouraging to be asked to speak at Conferences as it suggests that, someone, somewhere, thinks the work is worth hearing about. And to be asked to speak at one in France is even more pleasing.

So, I will be whizzing off to Rambouillet, outside Paris, for a conference on Marie de Guise to be held on 16th June. I know several of the other speakers so it will be a chance to catch up with old friends - indeed, with some young friends.

I am attaching the Poster and the day's programme - they certainly do things in style with the event taking place in the Palais du Roi de Rome!