Kirrie Fair Brings Family and Local History to Life

Family trees gained more branches, long-lost relatives were discovered, graves of ancestors were uncovered and tales of life in Angus in days gone by were swapped at the first Tayroots Local History and Genealogy Fair, which was held in Kirriemuir on May 15.

The Fair, which was held by Tayroots in partnership with Barrie 2010, was attended by a steady stream of visitors from far and near, including a family historian from Alberta, Canada. Visitors to the Fair were able to discover more about their family or about the history of the towns and villages of Angus by visiting stalls held by groups and organisations such as Angus Archives, Kirriemuir Heritage Trust, Forfar & District Historical Society and Scottish Monumental Inscriptions, as well as Deceased Online and local genealogist, Flora Davidson.

One visitor to the Fair, Colin Thom from Blairgowrie, came along in the hope of either proving or disproving his family legend of a connection to Kirriemuir’s most famous son, JM Barrie. While Colin was chatting to Fiona Scharlau, Angus Council’s Senior Archivist, about ways of doing this, Vera McNicoll from Edinburgh, who was waiting to speak to Fiona, overheard Colin mention that his family had lived at Meikle Mill, at the head of Kirrie Den.

“That’s where my family lived, too,” revealed Vera. “And, after comparing family trees, Colin and I realised we are related and can both trace our families back to Alexander Rollo, a farmer from Lintrathen.”

As well as helping Colin and Vera link their family trees together, Fiona Scharlau shared her expertise with many other visitors. “I talked to so many lovely people,” said Fiona, who also gave a fascinating talk on using fashion to date old photographs. “For me, one of the highlights of the day was the talk by historian and lecturer Lisa Simmons, which centred around an interview Lisa had recorded with her aunt, who was evacuated from Dundee in 1939 with her mother, five brothers and sisters to a cottage at Lintrathen, where they stayed for the next ten years.”

Experts from the University of Dundee Archives Services provided information about the records held in the University’s immense archives, including collections from jute factories in Dundee and jute mills in India and medical records from local hospitals and asylums. “One lady I spoke to had discovered that her grandfather had been killed by a train while working in the jute industry in Calcutta,” said Deputy Archivist Caroline Brown. “She is trying to find his grave and I was able to suggest a couple of organisations that might be able to help her.”

Tayroots is the initiative established by Angus Council and Dundee City Council to help people uncover their ancestral links to Angus and Dundee and the members of the Tayroots team entered into the historical spirit of the Fair by wearing various period costumes.

Coincidentally, Euan Campbell from Utopia Costumes, suppliers of the outfits worn by the Tayroots team, was one of the many visitors to the fair. “One side of my family – the Moncurs - has been in Kirriemuir since at least the 1700s,” said Euan, who is currently researching his family tree. “My Kirrie ancestors built the tannery at Tannage Brae while another invented Kirriemuir Gingerbread.

“While at the Fair, I had a very interesting chat with one of the family historians from Tay Valley Family History Society, who gave me lots of advice about how to find out more about my ancestors.”

The Tayroots Local History and Genealogy Fair also provided the setting for the launch of the new Tayroots Pass. The Pass, which provides discounts and special offers at local historical visitor attractions, proved very popular with visitors to the fair, with many of them hoping to take full advantage of the bargains on offer. The Pass is available at Tourist Information Centres in Dundee, Arbroath & Brechin as well as participating venues. 

For more information about the Barrie 2010 events, visit www.barrie2010.org.uk.  For more information about Tayroots, visit www.tayroots.com