Tour Scotland Video Old Photographs Isle Of Mull

Tour Scotland video of old photographs of the Isle Of Mull, the second largest island of the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. In the 6th century, Irish migrants invaded Mull and the surrounding coast, establishing the Gaelic kingdom of Dál Riata. The kingdom was divided into a number of regions, each controlled by a kin group, of which the Cenél Loairn controlled Mull and the adjacent mainland to the east. Dál Riata was a springboard for the Christianisation of the mainland; the pivotal point was AD 563, when Columba, an Irish missionary, arrived at Iona, just off the south-west point of Mull, and founded a monastery, from which to start evangelising the local population. In the 9th century, Viking invasions led to the destruction of Dál Riata, and its replacement by the Norse Kingdom of the Isles, which became part of the crown of Norway following Norwegian unification. After the collapse of the Lordship in 1493 the island was taken over by the Clan MacLean, and in 1681 by the Clan Campbell. During the Highland Clearances in the 18th and 19th centuries, the population fell from 10,000 to less than 3,000. 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 Whifflet Foundry Scotland

Old photograph of Whifflet Foundry near Coatbridge, North Lanarkshire, Scotland. The town is part of the Greater Glasgow urban area. Founded by a long established local family, R. B. Tennent & Company, it opened in 1857 for roll making. Starting on a small scale they quickly grew to become the largest roll making unit in Britain. At its height the Whifflet Foundry produced 40% of the chilled cast iron rolls and 60% of the cast steel rolls manufactured in the United Kingdom. Their steel rolls were also the largest to be made in the country and were marketed world-wide. Until 1915 they manufactured complete rolling mills. In 1942 the company became a leading partner in the British Rollmakers Corporation. In the early seventies there was a big explosion in the Meadow Work Casting Bay when 3 men died. A water pipe which cooled the mould whilst it was being cast burst and water got into the molten metal causing the explosion. The Whiffiet Foundry was closed down in 1995, although the adjacent Meadow Works (also owned by British Rollmakers) remain in operation.



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

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Old Photograph Signal Box Railway Station Dalwhinnie Scotland

Old photograph of a Signal Box outside the railway station in Dalwhinnie near Newtonmore, Scotland. The station opened in 1863. The station buildings were completed in 1864 by Joseph Mitchell & Company. Originally, all signalling was done by mechanical means. Points and signals were operated locally from individual levers or handles, requiring the signalman to walk between the various pieces of equipment to set them in the required position for each train that passed. Before long, it was realised that control should be concentrated into one building, which came to be known as a signal box. The signal box provided a dry, climate controlled space for the complex interlocking mechanics and also the signalman. The raised design of most signal boxes, which gave rise to the term " tower " in North America, also provided the signalman with a good view of the railway under his control. The first use of a signal box was by the London and Croydon Railway in 1843 to control the junction to Bricklayers' Arms in London, England.



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

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Old Photograph Railway Station Forres Scotland

Old photograph of the railway station in Forres, Moray, Scotland. There are thirteen daily departures from the station westbound and twelve eastbound, Monday through Saturday. Most are through trains between Aberdeen and Inverness, but two westbound trains start from Elgin in the morning and one evening train, which runs through from Kyle of Lochalsh, that terminates there. The first departure to Aberdeen each weekday and Saturday continues south to Edinburgh Waverley and there is a return working in the evening. On Sundays there are five through trains each way to Inverness and Aberdeen, with a through working to Glasgow Queen Street and two more from Glasgow to Elgin via Inverness that call eastbound.



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

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Old Photograph Railway Station Corkerhill Scotland

Old photograph of a steam train at the railway station in Corkerhill, Glasgow, Scotland. The railway station was built on 1 July 1885. It is on the Paisley Canal Line from Glasgow, and still houses engine sheds and sidings, although Corkerhill signal box was demolished in the late 1970s. In the 1920s building in Glasgow expanded as far as Mosspark making Corkerhill part of the Glasgow conurbation.



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

View the most recent Tour Scotland photographs.