Portree Local History Society

Chair: Morna MacLaren
Vice Chair: Bruce McGhie
Secretary: Nanette Muir
Treasurer: Tim Moore

History: the study of change?

The Portree Local History Society is dedicated to understanding and recording the past of an area centred on,
but not exclusive to, Portree itself.
Any History necessarily involves the study and recording of change.
Portree and Skye represent a fascinating example of change across the millennia, the centuries, the years, the days.

Our New Season
2008 - 2009
at Tigh na Sgire, Portree
7.30 p.m.

Programme of Meetings: 2008 - 2009

• October 14, 2008
  High Pasture Cave and developments at Fiskavaig
  Stephen Birch
  

• November 11, 2008
  MacLean family of Raasay.
  Iona MacDonald
  
• December 9, 2008
  NB VENUE: Dunvegan Castle
  - The Castle, The Clan, The Homecoming
  
• January 13, 2009
  All Creatures Great and Small- 50 Years as a Vet on Skye.
  D.J. Maclennan
  
• February 10, 2009
  UHI History Department.
  Dr Jim Hunter
  
• March 10, 2009
  St Maolrubha & St Columba.
  Norman Newton
  
• April 14, 2009
  Col. Jock Collection and Museum of Isles Collection.
  Maggie MacDonald

Previous Meetings: 2007 - 2008

October 9 - Ian Suddaby - The Excavation at Home Farm
November 13 - Dr Jeff Stone - St Kilda: Two Decades of Digging and Scraping
(in association with Aberdeen University Centre for Lifelong Learning )
December 11 - Dr Martin MacGregor - The Lordship of the Isles
January 8 - Seonachan MacLeod - Deserted Villages of Skye
February 12 - Professor Brian Sykes - Vikings in the Blood?
March 11 - Murray MacDonald - Mobile Banking by Land and Sea in the Highlands and Islands
April 8 - AGM, with guest speaker - Ronnie Armstrong - Para Handy and the Clyde Puffers

Programme of Meetings: 2006 - 2007

October 10 - Bill Cowie - Kirk Cave, Rona
November 14 - Alister Ross – Education – PHS100
December 12 - Norman Newton - Skye and Raasay
(in association with Aberdeen University Centre for Lifelong Learning )
January 9 - Pat Myhill - Telford’s Stein
February 13 - Fiona MacKenzie – Màiri Mhòr nan Orain -
A song-lecture
March 13 - Ian McCrorie - The MacBrayne Story
April 10 - AGM, with guest speaker - Roger Hutchinson - “Calum’s Road”

All meetings are held at Tigh na Sgire, Portree,
at 7. 30 p.m.,
on the second Tuesday of each month.

• The Secretary: Nanette Muir
• Website issues: Steve Clarke

Across the millennia:

As part of our activities beyond Tigh na Sgire, members of the Society visited the ongoing examination of High Pasture Cave.

Across the centuries:

In a year that has seen a major change to the face and practice of Education in Portree, our "Summer Walk" focused on the development of Education in the village.

Across the years:

So many small changes pass almost unnoticed. Together they can represent major alterations to the appearance of, and life in the village.

For instance, the "old" Swimming Pool, closed to allow for the opening of the new facilities at the High School, dated only from the 1970s, and may therefore be thought of as something unremarkable. Not all the users of the old pool, however, would have known that the attractive tiles that surrounded the pool were made from designs created in, yes, the High School. Many of them were signed. How many will be preserved?
Apologies that conditions did not allow for a complete record to be made, but thanks to Jean and the staff for allowing us to try, and we hope these few shots will provoke a few memories.

You can see slightly larger versions of some of these pictures by following this link.

• Introduction to the History Society
• Some sites worth visiting
• A meeting place for Historians
• Michael Davitt on Skye