Old Photograph Caravanning Pitlochry Highland Perthshire Scotland

Old photograph of a man Caravanning near Pitlochry in Highland Perthshire, Scotland. In Europe, the origins of travel trailers and caravanning can be traced back to travelling Gypsies, and showmen who spent most of their lives in horse drawn caravans. Samuel White Baker purchased an actual Gypsy caravan in Britain and shipped it to Cyprus for his tour in 1879. The world's first leisure trailer was built by the Bristol Wagon & Carriage Works in England in 1880 for Dr. William Gordon Stables, a popular author of teenage adventure fiction, who ordered a " gentleman's caravan ". It was based on Bible Wagons, used by traveling preachers in America's Wild West. Stables named it Wanderer. He travelled around the British countryside in it and later wrote a book documenting his travels in 1885 called The Gentleman Gypsy. This moved the Duke of Newcastle to commission his own caravan, The Bohemian. Blog post of interest to folks with ancestry, genealogy or Scottish Family Roots in Scotland who may wish to visit one day.



All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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Old Photograph Red Cross Nurse Perth Perthshire Scotland

Old photograph of a Red Cross Nurse in Perth, Perthshire, Scotland.



All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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Old Photograph Middlebie Scotland

Old photograph of a cottage in Middlebie located two miles East of Ecclefechan, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. Middlebie Parish consists of the ancient parishes of Middlebie, Pennersaughs and Carruthers, united in 1609. Middlebie was the seat of a Presbytery from some time after the Reformation until 1743. It was then divided to form the Presbyteries of Langholm and Annan. Middlebie parish is now in the Presbytery of Annandale and Eskdale. It is bounded by the parishes of Tundergarth, Langholm, Canonbie, Half Morton, Kirkpatrick Fleming, Annan and Hoddam. The West Coast Main Line railway runs through the parish from London to Glasgow. In 1841 the population of the parish was 2,154 and about sixty of these people were hand loom weavers. There were inns and shops and the Lime Works at Blacketridge. Tradesmen listed in 1841 included joiners, shoemakers, tailors, cloggers, masons, millers, carters, grooms, gardeners, dressmakers and straw hat makers.



All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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Old Photograph Howmore South Uist Scotland

Old photograph of a Crofters thatched cottage by Loch Druidibeg near Howmore on South Uist, Scotland. The area is largely flat but is dominated by the mountain Beinn Mhòr. The ruins of Flora MacDonald's birthplace can be found South of here, marked with a commemorative cairn. The area is also home to one of Scotland's best collections of thatched buildings.



All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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Old Photograph Harbour Scrabster Caithness Scotland

Old photograph of the harbour in Scrabster, Caithness, Scotland. Scrabster Harbour was constructed in 1841 to provide deep water anchorage to seafarers and quickly became a key gateway to locations such as Orkney, Shetland, the Faroe Islands and also Scandinavia. It is an important port for the Scottish fishing industry. During the Second World War, Scrabster harbour was the base for a ferry operation started to carry military explosives to Scapa Flow. Blog post of interest to folks with ancestry, genealogy or Scottish Family Roots in Scotland who may wish to visit one day.



All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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