Old Travel Photograph Boat Trip Clamshell Cave Island Of Staffa Scotland

Old photograph of tourists on a boat trip to the Clamshell Cave on the Island Of Staffa, Inner Hebrides, Scotland. Staffa lies about six miles west of the Isle of Mull. The Vikings gave it this name as its columnar basalt reminded them of their houses, which were built from vertically placed tree logs. The island came to prominence in the late eighteenth century after a visit by Sir Joseph Banks. He and his fellow travellers extolled the natural beauty of the basalt columns in general and of the island's main sea cavern which Banks renamed Fingal's Cave. Their visit was followed by that of many other prominent personalities throughout the next two centuries, including Queen Victoria and Felix Mendelssohn. The Clamshell Cave, on the East coast, is 10 metres high, about 6 metres wide at the entrance, and some 45 metres long, and on one side of it the ridges of basalt stand out like the ribs of a ship.



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Old Travel Blog Photograph Corner Titwood Road And Vennard Gardens Shawlands Glasgow Scotland

Old travel Blog photograph of houses and people at the corner of Titwood Road and Vennard Gardens in Shawlands, Glasgow, Scotland. Shawlands is a district of Glasgow, located less than 2 miles south of the River Clyde. Neighbouring districts include the areas of Crossmyloof, Langside and Pollokshaws with Shawlands itself overlapping the Glasgow City. Within walking distance of Shawlands is Queens Park, acquired in 1857 and designed by the world renowned Sir Joseph Paxton, also responsible for noted public parks in London, Liverpool, Birkenhead and the grounds of the Spa Buildings at Scarborough, England. The park was dedicated to the memory of Mary, Queen of Scots and not Queen Victoria.



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

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Old Travel Blog Photograph Shields Glen Motherwell Scotland

Old travel Blog photograph of people in Shields Glen in Motherwell, North Lanarkshire, Scotland. The main Roman road through central Scotland ran along Motherwell’s side of the River Clyde, crossing the South Calder Water on the north west side of today’s town. At this crossing a fort and bath house were erected, but the Roman presence in Scotland did not last much later than this. There were definitely people living in the area from an early point. The name comes from an ancient religious well, the Mother's Well, dedicated to the Virgin Mary. By the start of the 19th century Motherwell was a small hamlet, a farming community of some 600 people living adjacently to the 16th century laird’s manor, Jerviston house. The hamlet remained reasonably small, reaching 1,700 people by 1841, and centred on the crossroads between the main road following the Clyde, and the road connecting Edinburgh with Hamilton and the west. Motherwell’s fortunes changed dramatically in the second half of the 19th century. With the coming of the railway in 1848, came industry and money. By 1881 David Colville had opened both an iron and steel works; Motherwell had a new piped water supply; had been granted burgh status and had its population swelled to 13,800 people.



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Old Travel Blog Photograph Sunken Gardens Forres Scotland

Old travel Blog photograph of the sunken gardens in Forres, Moray, Scotland. The designed landscape at Grant Park was developed in the early nineteenth century around two houses, Cluny Hill House and Forres House, the home first of the Tulloch family and later the Cummings of Altyre. In 1922, Forres House and gardens were put up for sale and were purchased by Forres Town Council for £5,000. Sir Alexander Grant gifted money for the purchase, together with a further £1,000 for the laying out of a public park in 1924. In 1971, Forres House burned down and the remains were demolished. The site of the house is commemorated by a sunken garden designed by Alistair Sinclair. 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 Travel Blog Photograph Stobo Castle Scotland

Old travel Blog photograph of Stobo Castle in the former county of Peeblesshire in the Borders of Scotland. A Tower House, known as Hill House, formerly stood on the site of Stobo Castle. The Stobo estate was owned by the Murrays of Tweedsmuir around 1750. In 1767, the Stobo estate was bought by James Montgomery, a judge who served as Lord Advocate and Lord Chief Baron of the Scottish Exchequer from 1775. He was created a Baronet in 1801. On his death in 1803, his son James inherited the estate, and commissioned a new house from the architect James Elliot, brother and partner of Archibald Elliot. Stobo Castle was constructed between 1805 and 1811 in a castellated style. In 1849 the porte cochère was added by Sir Graham Graham Montgomery, 3rd Baronet, to a design by John Lessels. Sir Graham also had the grounds redesigned by John Hay in 1872. In 1905 Stobo was sold to the English cricketer Hylton Philipson. A keen gardener, Philipson laid out the Japanese-influenced water gardens and terraces, and formed three large lakes on the estate. In 1939, after Philipson's death, the estate was sold again to the Countess of Dysart. In the post war years the estate was subdivided, and the contents of the house were auctioned by Sotheby's in April 1972. Stobo Castle was purchased in 1975 by the Winyards, who established a health resort. A large extension, incorporating new hotel rooms and a swimming pool, was opened in 2003.



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

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