Local historian to give talk on history of Portgower

Did you know that there’s an Iron Age grave in Portgower? Or that local crofters carried out a land raid there in the closing months of World War One?

These are just two of the fascinating facts Esther McDonald will cover in her presentation, “Portgower and What Came Before,” the inaugural talk in Timespan’s summer programme of local heritage events.

Esther, who is a popular and well-known speaker on local history, has put together a slide show for the talk from her own archive, which comprises photos, family letters and historic documents, including the photo below of Portgower School, which closed in 1945, and a rare photo of an entry from local excise records.

The period which Esther is most keen to shed light on is the time immediately before the notorious Kildonan Clearances at the beginning of the 19th century.

Although Portgower was developed as a village at that time, there were already people living there who were moved and lost part of their land to make way for those evicted from Kildonan, whom Esther describes as "forgotten people, not mentioned in history books".

She says: "I do these talks because I love history and all the townships and as I walk round, I think of the people in the past looking at the same landscape I see now."

Whether you do know about the ancient grave and the Land League raid or whether it’s all new to you, Esther’s talk is aimed at everyone with an interest in Portgower past and present.

The talk takes place in Timespan, Helmsdale, on Saturday, June 10, 11am-1pm.

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