Old Kintyre

From the Introduction
...The language lives on in many place names, including Ronachan ('place of seals'), Tayinloan ('marsh house') and Ben Gullion ('hill of shoulders') - and Kintyre itself comes from the Gaelic Cinntire, meaning the 'head of the land' or 'land's end'. Other place names are of Norse origin from the early invaders - Saddell ('sandy valley'), Skipness ('ship point'), Muasdale ('valley of the monks'), and Tangy ('tongue of land') are just some of these.As with many other parts of Scotland, one of Kintyre's main exports was its people, who travelled to America, Canada and Australia in search of a better livelihood for themselves and their families. They often named their new settlements after towns, villages or districts in the 'old country', and today echoes of Kintyre place names can be found .in Queensland (Kilkivan Shire), New South Wales (Campbelltown) and Ontario Tayinloan, Killean, Largie and Barrhill). More than 400 people in the parish of Killein and Kilkenzie alone emigrated in 1840. In what became known as the 'six wet years' from around 1839, when the potato and oats crops failed in the constant rainfall, people began to starve as their staple diet disappeared. Large numbers went to Australia or New Zealand - a journey which in the 1830s took four months by sea from Oban. Ontario was chosen by many farmers to relocate to, as its land was in many ways similar to that which they had left behind; but no matter how skilled they were with animals or crops, they were designated only as agricultural labourers in the records of their adopted countries.With the once all-essential fishing industry diminished beyond recognition, and other industries struggling to survive, Kintyre has a high rate of unemployment which has never been helped by the sense of comparative remoteness from the central belt. However, recent initiatives to encourage visitors to come to discover for themselves Kintyre's scenic beauty and heritage are encouraging, and surely this is a part of Scotland which is well worth visiting and to keep coming back to.

Author: Carol McNeill
Publisher: Stenlake
Extra Details: Pictorial Card Covers 10 x 7 inches tall, Lavishly illustrated with Old B&W Photos throughout.