RootsChat.Com

Hello Kay99
Many thank you’s for your research. It was several years ago I started looking for this George Mackay in the 1851 census records so your info is really appreciated. The location is appropriate, that he was a teacher & unmarried also fits.
The 6/6/1841 Tongue census showed his age to be 11 yrs. His marriage report stated he was  born, but not registered, 1830 at Melness to John Mckay and Mary Mckay, residing in West Strathan, Parish of Tongue, normally resident of Culkein, Stoer, Parish of Assynt, age 25. On the basis he was born say December 1830 he would have been 20yrs 4 mths at the time of the 30/03/1851 census. Being a school teacher I had anticipated he would try to be as accurate as possible with his age. However I have found numerous inaccuracies with recorded ages. I will now try to locate info on school teachers at Bettyhill around the 1851 period.
Thanks again
Donald

Achriesgill Mill
Looking for any information relating to this grain mill. From information so far researched it would appear this was a horizontal grain mill, built where the stream from General’s Loch enters Achriesgill Bay, Loch Inchard.
It seems possible the son of the miller at Oldshoremore, Donald Morrison may have been the person who was the initial miller. However there would need to be more than a single miller to run such a mill, so other millers must have been involved.
Donald Morrison was recorded in the 1851 census as “Crofter & Miller” and in the 1861 census as “Miller” and by the 1871 census as a Crofter and Fisherman, so if he was involved in the development and running of the Achriesgill mill it may have stopped its operations in the 1861 -1871 period. If so what were the circumstances relating to its closure?. The Oldshoremore mill north of Kinlochbervie was apparently still operating in the early 1900 period

As yet I have not done a search around the general Achriesgill region over this period to look for other persons who recorded their occupation as miller.
Such an exercise would give an indication of over what period of time the Achriesgill mill operated. If someone with ready access to census records over this period could locate the time frame of when miller occupations were recorded, it would give a general timeframe of when the Achriesgill mill was in operation.
Are there any known photos, paintings or sketches of the Achriesgill Mill in existence?

Donald NZ

John Mackay’s daughter’s eldest son, Donald Morrison married and lived in Achriesgill where there was for a short period a horizontal mill. Donald was recorded in the 1851 census as “Crofter & Miller” and in the 1861 census as “Miller” and by the 1871 census as a Crofter and Fisherman, so seemingly he was involved in the development and running of the Achriesgill mill and it may have stopped its operations in the 1861 -1871 period.

As yet I have not done a search around the general Achriesgill region over this period to look for other persons who recorded their occupation as miller.
Such an exercise would give an indication of over what period of time the Achriesgill mill operated.
I have not been able to find much information about this mill on the internet. If someone with ready access to census records over this period could locate the time frame of when miller occupations were recorded, it would give a general timeframe of when both Oldshoremore and Achriesgill mills were in operation. The information would also be informative to historians.

Donald NZ

Hello mariong, thank you for your County Sutherland advice.
Yes I was aware of the excellent website; however I have done very little over recent years on my Scottish ancestry, mainly due to working on another family tree section. I note it is over two years since I was last on line with Roots Chat.

As I only returned home a few hours ago from having been in Sutherland, I found it most interesting that after my long absence from Sutherland research, advice of your today’s posting in my first download of emails.

I visited the mill ruins a little over a week ago and took several update photos of the ruins. If anyone wishes other update photos of the mill ruins let me know and I will email them.

Re John Mackay; you ask “What is your relation to him?” – he is my 3x Gt. Grandfather, born about Abt. 1756

Absolutely fantastic is all I kept saying to myself when viewing the photos. As a team you are “tops”, particularly as what I have managed to unscramble from your inputs and of the little background I had to work on. All evidence shows this is the family I have been searching for, and to have these photos as well is a tremendous bonus. Not only to me, but to other researchers looking for the same information.
Hopefully some of them may add further information to this posting.
An extra thank you to Bryo for taking the time to visit and photograph the headstone and church.
Best wishes to the team and thank you all again.
Donald NZ