Old Photograph Spectators Christmas Ba' Kirkwall Scotland

Old photograph of spectators at the Christmas Ba' game in Kirkwall on the Orkney Islands, Scotland. The Kirkwall Ba Game, also spelled ba', is one of the main annual events held in the town of Kirkwall, in Orkney, Scotland. It is one of a number of Ba Games played in the streets of towns around Scotland; these are examples of traditional football games which are still played in towns in the United Kingdom and worldwide. Games are played twice a year, normally on Christmas Day and New Year's Day. Played in the Royal Burgh of Kirkwall, the two sides are the Uppies and the Doonies, or more correctly, " Up-the-Gates " and " Doon-the-Gates " from Norn gata, path or road, although it is also common in Scots. The tradition belongs to Kirkwall and the surrounding area of St Ola, and has always been played by men from those two areas since before records began. In the past 50 years, mainly due to improved transport, the game's popularity has grown to include players from all areas of Orkney, including some of the outer isles.



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Old Photograph Gentlemen's Ha' Cave Westray Orkney Scotland

Old photograph of Gentlemen's Ha' cave, Westray, Orkney Islands, Scotland. This Scottish cave is near the top of a cliff on the East coast of Rapness. It was here that several Orkney Jacobites lay concealed for several months in 1745, and while in the cave they depended for food upon a single person's stealthy visits to their hiding place. The cave was the main refuge in 1746 of four Jacobites lairds, William Balfour of Trenaby; Archibald Stewart of Brough; John Traill of Westness and John Traill of Elsness.



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Old Photographs Victoria Street Stromness Orkney Islands Scotland

Old photograph of shops, people and houses on Victoria Street in Stromness, Orkney Islands, Scotland. The town served as a recruiting center for the Hudson's Bay Company and was a key stop for ships heading to and from America. First recorded as the site of an inn in the 16th century, Stromness became important during the late 17th century, when England was at war with France and shipping was forced to avoid the English Channel. Ships of the Hudson's Bay Company were regular visitors, as were whaling fleets. Large numbers of Orkneymen, many of whom came from the Stromness area, served as traders, explorers and seamen for both. Captain Cook's ships, Discovery and Resolution, called at the town in 1780 on their return voyage from the South Seas where Cook had been killed. Of interest to folks with ancestry, genealogy or Scottish Family Roots in Scotland who may wish to visit one day.



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Old Photograph Sule Skerry Lighthouse Scotland

Old photograph of Sule Skerry lighthouse located West of the Orkney Islands, Scotland. Sule Skerry is a remote skerry in the North Atlantic. A skerry is a small rocky island, usually defined to be too small for habitation; it may simply be a rocky reef. A skerry can also be called a low sea stack. Sule Skerry lighthouse was the most remote manned lighthouse in Great Britain from its opening in 1895 to its automation in 1982. Its remote location meant that construction could only take place during the summer, thus it took from 1892 to 1894 to complete. The Great Silkie of Sule Skerry is a story and song of a Silkie who lives on Sule Skerry.



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Old Photograph St Stephen Street Edinburgh Scotland

Old photograph of shops, houses and people on St Stephen Street in Stockbridge, Edinburgh, Scotland. The street was developed during a period of rapid expansion in Edinburgh, connecting to the Howe Street and Stockbridge area.


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