Irene Frances Jenner Coalfin, Kintyre Way in Skipness by Tarbert, Argyll, Scotland xxii Do Not Forget Your Loved Ones – Ne Obliviscaris Introduction Coalfin he old farmhouse has been renovated, and is now a holiday lodging, sleeping ten people. The original building is still intact but it’s been extended. At one Tend is a recreational room including a television, and at the other end is extra accommodation. Feeling rather overwhelmed but very pleased with the outcome I spent the rest of the day wandering around Tarbert, and reflecting on the life of Alexander Campbell. xxiii Irene Frances Jenner Portrait of Alexander Campbell, 1796-1870. ‘A Socialist Co-operative Pioneer’, from Glasgow Museum. His story is the basis of this book xxiv Do Not Forget Your Loved Ones – Ne Obliviscaris Chapter 1 y great, great grandfather, Alexander Campbell, (1796 – 1870) was the first of twin sons born to Mary (McConachy) and Archibald Campbell, in Mthe parish of Skipness & Saddell. Here I was, two hundred years on, standing in the very spot where my great, great grandfather, Alexander Campbell, was baptised on 12th July 1796, and had lived as a young boy! I could not quite believe how all this had fallen into place. Could I be dreaming? This story, which commenced in the old stone farm house “Coalfin” (Caolfin to the locals) high on a hill above Skipness, Scotland, is not only that of the life and times of my ancestors, the Clan Campbell, it is also the story of my own journey of discovery. What a journey it has been!! 1 Irene Frances Jenner Copy of baptismal certifi cate of alexander campbell. Coalfi n,12th july, 1796. Parents - Archibald campbell and Mary McConachy For many years I had been researching my Family Pedigree. I have written one book already. Th ey Let Th eir Light Shineis the history of William Weeks, his son John Charles Weeks (my paternal grandfather) and my own father Frank Alexander Weeks. Now I was on a mission to discover all I could about John Charles Weeks’ wife Frances Annie (Campbell), and her grandfather, Alexander Campbell, who was renowned for his work with the trade unions in Glasgow in the 1800’s. To assist me with my research I had joined the Glasgow & West of Scotland Family History Society (GWSFHS) and at one stage I belonged to four ancestral research organisations. I’d receive their monthly newsletters, then would pick up a clue or see that someone else was researching the same ancestor. I would immediately send a letter off , then back would come the response – “No, I am doing a diff erent line” – so I would cancel that line of enquiry and try another. Th ere were guest speakers at the meetings I attended. Th ey would show slides and photos, and also taught us what each birth certifi cate should include. From that birth certifi cate they would identify how to fi nd another clue. I just got sucked into it all and enjoyed it so much. Th at’s why I have so many fi les and have kept so much detail. 2 Do Not Forget Your Loved Ones – Ne Obliviscaris The GWSFHS was particularly good value. Through this organisation I found out all kinds of information about my ancestral heritage and I also made some very good friends! I found a distant relative on the Campbell side, Jan Stewart, who lives far up in the fishing village of Ullapool, on the north-west coast of Scotland. When Jan knew I was visiting Scotland in 2009, she invited me to stay in her home. We had such a lot of family history to talk about and we discovered we had a common ancestor. I also made one particularly good friend, Sheila Duffy, editor of the GWSFHS newsletter. It was thanks to Sheila that I was now standing in this very place. Irene with Sheila Duffy from the Glasgow & West of Scotland Family History Society 3 Irene Frances Jenner During a conversation with Sheila I happened to mention that I had an address to follow up in Skipness, where Alexander Campbell had been baptised. Sheila became very excited as she knew Mr Duncan Henderson, the local postman in Tarbert, which is very close to Skipness. She rang him straight away. In addition to running the local post office, Mr Henderson also ran the school bus and the local taxi service, so he’s a busy man! Tarbert - Mr Duncan Henderson in his post office with Irene Jenner and Ian Jenner just arrived from Glasgow and Australia Mr Henderson suggested I catch a coach to Tarbert, on Loch Fyne, and meet him there for the Skipness route. I was told to call in at the Post Office to visit him. I think he may have wanted to see what I was like, as he may not have wanted to commit himself to carting me around without meeting me. After an exciting and wonderful visit to GWSFHS and leaving Sheila with a copy of “They Let Their Light Shine”, I set off 4 Do Not Forget Your Loved Ones – Ne Obliviscaris on my next adventure. I enjoyed quite a long and picturesque coach trip from Glasgow before finally arriving at the Tarbert Post Office. The journey also included a stop at Inveraray, where the magnificent Castle is the ancestral home of the Dukes of Argyll and the seat of the Clan Campbell. Mr Henderson met me and said, “Oh good, now go down to the water’s edge of Loch Fyne, have a coffee and come back in half an hour!”. When I came back, Mr Henderson had his car out, and after handing management of the Post Office to his wife, he said, “Let’s go.” After a 30 minute 12 mile drive from Tarbert, down around the Mull of Kintyre, we arrived at Skipness, a small town on the beautiful Sound of Kilbrannan. After Mr Henderson had shown me the old Skipness Castle (which dates back to the 13th century) and some other ruins, I mentioned to him that I had Alexander Campbell’s 1796 baptismal certificate which referred to “Coalfin”. “Oh,” he said, “See that house up there? That’s it. That’s “Coalfin Farm House”. He was so excited and drove me straight up the hill to the stone built farmhouse, sitting on its own, overlooking Skipness, as well as the sandy beaches of the Sound of Kilbrannan, and with a magnificent view of the Isle of Arran, (also known as ‘Scotland in Miniature’). Mr Henderson explained enthusiastically to Mike, the man who answered the door at “Coalfin”, that he must show me the building. I found it hard to believe. Here I was at “Coalfin Farm House” on the Kintyre Peninsula – the very place where Alexander Campbell had been baptised. In that moment I decided that I must return to the old farmhouse one day!! 1795 Archibald Campbell – Mary McConachy Way back on 9th September 1795 in Killean, Argyll, Scotland, Archibald Campbell married Mary McConachy (aka McConnachie). Both the Campbells and the McConachys were important family names in the Argyll community, where they 5 Irene Frances Jenner lived at that time. McConachy was a popular name in the south – around Campbelltown. It was not long before they moved to Skipness where on 12 July 1796, Mary gave birth to my great, great grandfather, Alexander Campbell. 6 Do Not Forget Your Loved Ones – Ne Obliviscaris Chapter 2 1700 – Scottish History uring the 1700s the two main industries in Scotland were farming and linen manufacturing. Many people lived in the countryside, growing crops and Dlooking after animals. They spun woollen yarn on spinning wheels, and wove cloth on handlooms in their cottages. Other people worked in the linen industry. Many of them worked in their own homes too. At this time, the two main materials for making clothes were wool from sheep and linen from the flax plant. Around 20 years before Alexander was born, bales of cotton appeared in Britain for the first time. This new fibre became more popular than linen for making material and clothing. Cotton fibres could be turned into thread more quickly and cheaply than linen, thanks to the invention of new spinning machines. 7 Irene Frances Jenner 1800 – Scottish History By the 1800s, Scotland was fast becoming a hive of new industry. In Glasgow industries producing cotton and textiles, chemicals, glass, paper and soap grew very quickly. Primarily due to the Highland Clearances which commenced around 1780, many Highlanders and Irish immigrants moved to the southern cities in search of work. In 1846, the spread of the potato famine and the Clearances were still occurring. It was a hard time. A large number of factory workers were children, some as young as four or five years. They worked long hours in unhealthy and dangerous working conditions, such as farms, coal mines and even in chimneys and were often ill-treated by the supervisors. Their income was pitiful, but what little they did earn, even a few pence, would be enough to buy food and help the family. It wasn’t until the Industrial Revolution was well under way (1760 to sometime between 1820 and 1840) that the majority of workers gained some rights and protection from exploitation. In the mid 1800’s Alexander Campbell played a very important part in this outcome. Many mill owners often took in orphans, as cheap labour. These pauper apprentices lived and worked at the mill until their teens. Not all mill owners were so exploitative. Robert Owen at New Lanark, who had a huge influence on Alexander as he grew up, revolutionised children’s and workers’ lives, creating an employment model that was based on fairness and compassion.