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Port
a' Bhata
by
Sandra Evans
The
story of a township settlement on the southern shore of Loch Moidart,
now abandoned; directions for a walk along the lochside to reach
it and a description of the ruined buildings remaining.
Clansmen
on the Clanranald estate occupied Port a' Bhata until late in
the nineteenth century, although there were one or two examples
of folk living there until the First World War. It seems likely
that their way of life was a mixture of subsistence agriculture,
whisky distilling and connections with the sea.
Records
show a population of at least fifty people, living in nine houses,
but by the mid-eighteen hundreds, economic hardship forced many
to leave. The ruins of their houses and the traces of their occupation
can still be clearly seen today.
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General History
Port a' Bhàta (the bay of the boat) is one of
many deserted townships in Moidart. The ruins that can
be seen in the 2004 reflect the drastic changes that
took place in the 18th and 19th centuries.
It is difficult to ascertain when Port a' Bhàta
came into existence. There may have been intermittent
human use of the site since prehistory. Recessed platforms
on the west side of Torr Port a' Bhàta may be
sites of pre-medieval round huts59.
Local tradition holds that boat building may have taken
place here in the Middle Ages, but documentary evidence
of occupation before the late 18th century has been
elusive.
Unfortunately, some of the Clanranald family papers
may have been lost in a shipwreck1
and early records are limited. Port a' Bhàta
does not appear on a list of tenant's agreements for
Moidart in 1718.2 The township
is not mentioned in the estate forfeiture records3
following the 1745 rising. It does not appear in a list
of Moidart tenants for 1748/49 although the one-and
a half farthing land at neighbouring Briag is recorded
as being "waste" at that time. Very significantly,
the settlement is not listed in a " Valuation of
the lands of Moydart belonging to John MacDonald of
Clanranald... 1782", although the neighbouring
settlements of Breag, Blain, Scardoish, Langal and East
and West Mingarry were all recorded.4
It is possible that Port a Bhàta was considered
to be a branch of the neighbouring township of Briagh
or was known by another name. It may have been omitted
from various documents for a host of different reasons
but it seems probable that although there may have been
earlier activity at the site, Port a' Bhàta did
not exist as a township until the late 18th century.
The finding of the remains of probable shieling huts
just to the south of the main settlement suggests that
the site was used for summer grazing before being in
full-time occupation. The change is likely to have taken
place in the late 1700s when the population of Moidart
was steadily increasing. There is documentary evidence
that permanent settlement at former shieling sites occurred
in neighbouring areas such as that at Poll Luachrain
in Morvern61.
The name of Portvait or Portvate or Portvat or Portavata
appears on late 18th century documents. At some time
in the late 1700s, a widow of a member of the Kinlochmoidart
MacDonalds lived at a place called Innis-a-Rudha that
may have occupied the promontory to the north of the
main part of the settlement5 or
the small headland to the east of the mill. In 1790
a carpenter named Alexander Corbet from Portvait in
Moydart appears on the passenger list of a ship taking
emigrants to Canada6, and a William Corbett became the
principal tenant in 17917.
The township certainly existed in the late 18th century
and the inhabitants would have been affected by the
changes in highland society that took place prior to
and after the 1745 Jacobite rebellion.
Prior to 1745 the lives of the people of Moidart would
have been influenced by the clan system in which the
clan chief provided land for his clansmen and held responsibility
in exchange for loyalty and military service. However,
clan society had been gradually declining long before
that time8. In 1724 a list of
expenses for the Clanranald household includes the item
"Expenses for holding court and entertaining the
natives...£1.16s.3d.9 Although
the nuance of meaning has probably changed with time,
the entry probably does give some indication that the
member of the Clanranald household dealing with the
accounts perceived a gulf between the clan chief and
his clansmen. In spite of the changes, many male inhabitants
of Moidart played an active role in the 1745 rising,
loyally following their chieftain's son and the tacksmen,
MacDonald of Kinlochmoidart and MacDonald of Glenaladale.
No men from Port a' Bhàta appear on the list
described as " part of the roll of men upon Clanranald's
Mainland Estates-with their arms-made up in the year
1745" published in Father Charles MacDonald's book
" Moidart Among The Clanranalds", but Father
MacDonald states that a relation of a man who fought
in 1745 resided in the settlement in 188910.
After 1745, the Clanranald chiefs abandoned the concept
of heritable trusteeship, and became full members of
the landed gentry. The Scottish Estates were expected
to finance lavish lifestyles in London, Edinburgh and
elsewhere. In the late 18th century and early 19th century,
the estate affairs were managed by the Clanranald tutors
in Edinburgh on behalf of the heir, Ranald George. Their
aim was to make the estates as profitable as possible
for the owner. With large profits from the kelp industry,
mainly carried on in the Uist estates, Clanranald's
annual income was reportedly as much as £20,000
to £25,000 per annum11.
Little of this income appears to have been invested
in the estates or used to improve the land or to develop
diverse industry. Ranald George lived the life of a
fashionable gentleman but when the kelp industry collapsed
the lands were sold off to meet his debts. The Lochshiel
Estate which incorporated Port a' Bhàta was acquired
by Alexander MacDonald of Glenaladale in 1811 for the
sum of £6,100 paid in three instalments with interest.
An 1815 Bond of Caution for Alexander MacDonald of Glenaladale
includes the words "...the following land sold
to me 4th July 1811...Island of Shona and kelp shores,
town and lands of Scardoise, Breig, Portavait with the
lands of Mullan ull detached from the lands of Langal
by a line from Lochan Glacgillan to Lochan Druin to
be pointed out by the factor Robert Brown."12
Following Alexander Macdonald's death the estate passed
to Mr Archibald MacDonald of Rhu13.
This gentleman was a well-loved character who never
lived on his Moidart lands but continued to live at
Arisaig. On his death the property passed to Alexander
MacDonald (often called Lochshiel) who was unable to
make it self-supporting.
The estate factor's accounts show that Port a' Bhàta
was regarded as one farm consisting of 7.71 acres of
arable land and 396.81 acres of pasture.14.
The farm was let jointly to a number of tenants. In
1814 and 1815 there were three tenants, William Corbet,
Alexander Corbet and Angus MacDonald paying rents of
£28, £14 and £14 respectively15.
The 1814 records show that all three tenants were in
rent arrears to varying degrees. The annual rent collected
fell to £50 8s in 1816 and 1817. William Corbet
was still the main tenant paying £25.4s and the
other two each paid £12.12s. In 1821 and 1822
the annual rent was £60 and the three named tenants,
John Corbet and Alan Corbet (both known to be sons of
William Corbet) and Peter MacGregor paid £20 each.
In 1823 the rents were the same but the widow MacGregor
was named as a tenant in place of her husband. The tenants
remained the same in 1825 but the overall rent was reduced
to £50.8s. By the 1830s seven or eight people
were named as joint tenants each year. In 1836 the total
rent was £60 shared between seven tenants. John
and Alan Corbet were the main tenants paying £20
and £15 annual rent respectively .The rents of
other tenants varied between £6.13s.4d and £3.6s.8d.
In 1838 a note recorded the fact that the overall annual
rent of the township was reduced to £45 because
of poor cattle prices. In 1841 three tenants, John Corbet,
Alan Corbet and Alexander Corbet, were recorded as having
rent arrears. In 1843 five tenants paid a combined rent
of £5016.
The Port a' Bhàta mill would have been built
by the estate and was already derelict by 1800. In that
year, papers proposing improvements to the Kinlochmoidart
estate63 suggest that a new grain
mill should be built on the site where a mill formerly
stood and that on the opposite side of Loch Moidart,
on Clanranald property (i.e. at Port a' Bhàta)
there stood a "sleat" mill that had become
derelict "for want of watter". The outer machinery
was "gone" but the inner work was "perfect".
It was proposed that an attempt should be made to obtain
the machinery for the new mill in Kinlochmoidart. Expense
could then be saved since it would no longer be necessary
to take grain to the Ardnamurchan mill. If grain was
taken to Ardnamurchan to be processed it is possible
that no mill was operating in the neighbouring Clanranald
land at that time.
Alexander Macdonald was in financial difficulties by
the 1840s. On the 16th July 1838 he borrowed the not
inconsiderable sum of £11,000. Various schemes
were sought to make the estate viable. A letter from
Lochshiel written in 183818 indicated,
" the fish curing house is about to commence"
In 1846 the decision was made to remove the majority
of people from the land to make sizable sheep farms.
In the estate rent records for that year19
an entry indicating that "Portavata" was let
to John Corbet and others in five separate holdings
for £50 was crossed out. At the foot of the page,
the following words were entered "The farms of
Blain, Briag and Portavate are made into one sheep tenement
at present in the hands of the proprietor." Most
of the inhabitants of Port a' Bhàta were cleared
from the township about that time and by the 1851 census,
there were only four households in the settlement including
that of the shepherd.
The financial problems continued and Mr Hope Scott bought
the estate in 1855. Lord Howard of Glossop succeeded
him in 1871. In the late 19th century the estate was
managed for sport and estate buildings were generally
improved. The most modern house in Port a' Bhàta
was built in the late 1870s and was lived in by the
same family until it was vacated in about 1915. The
township has remained deserted since.
Agriculture.
Highland townships grew up around small patches of land
suitable for farming. At Port a' Bhata the arable land
was only 7.71 acres. A turf and stone wall called the
head dyke defined the township separating the infield
from the hill grazing. Originally, the arable land in
Moidart was cultivated by the township tenants using
a system of shared labour that was probably less well
defined than the Run-rig system20.
This was replaced by the crofting system when the arable
land was divided into separate holdings and the surrounding
hill grazing was held in common by the tenants. Typically,
the parcels of land were too small to provide a family
with full subsistence so that the labour of tenants
would always be readily and cheaply available to the
landlord. At Port a' Bhàta the small area of
cultivated land seems to have been leased jointly to
a group of tenants who paid different rents. The remaining
dykes and field divisions do not appear to indicate
the definite division of the land into separate crofts,
but presumably there was some way of sharing the land
in proportion to the rent paid. The area of land worked
by individual households must have been pitifully small.
The Scottish breed of small black cattle was important
in the local economy and droves to Falkirk took place
annually21. The annual sale of
cattle provided the means to buy in meal to supplement
the inadequate quantities that could be grown on the
meagre and poor arable acreage and to pay rents. Cattle
prices were good in the late 18th century and sale of
cattle financed many emigrations to Canada. The cattle
were usually kept close to home and the byres were often
next to or near dwellings. Sometimes the cattle occupied
one side of the main house, people and animals being
separated by a wooden or stone partition. Providing
enough food for cattle during the winter was a problem
and there are descriptions of cattle becoming so weak
that they would need to be carried from the byres in
spring22. In the summer they moved
to summer pasture at the shielings together with the
women and children. Rough shelters were built as accommodation
at the shielings and butter and cheese making would
be carried out there in the summer months23.
At Port a' Bhàta the remains of a large number
of rough shieling shelters can be seen on the hillside
above and south of the settlement along the burn that
eventually flows through the glen south of the Torr.
Other remains of shieling huts can be found adjacent
to the township itself. These remains indicate that
the Port a' Bhàta site was probably used for
summer grazing before it was used for permanent settlement.
It is quite possible that these shielings could all
have been used by people from the nearby township of
Mingarry (later called High Mingarry). It is likely
that Mingarry existed from very early times and is reputed
to have been the home of Clanranald's smiths and armourers.
A John Corbet was a tenant in Mingary in the late 18th
century and it seems likely that his sons became the
first permanent occupants of Port a' Bhàta. The
practice of seasonal transhumance may have become limited
by the time Port a' Bhàta was established. Lazy-beds
at shieling sites such as Meall an Aoil indicate that
some summer sites were eventually used for cultivation.
Sheep or goats were usually left to forage on the hillsides
surrounding the township. The fleeces were processed
into yarn by the women and woven into cloth locally
on their own or neighbours looms until well into the
19th century. A weaver inhabited Port a' Bhàta
at the time of the 1841 census.
Crops were grown in the small irregular fields. These
cultivation patches were cleared of stones which were
piled into clearance cairns which can be seen at various
places within the head dyke at Port a' Bhàta.
Crops were also grown in lazy beds, which were made
in any suitable small patch of land. There are usually
many patches of lazybed cultivation surrounding townships
in Moidart but there appear to be very few around Port
a' Bhàta. There are some visible on the high
ground between the track to the township through the
glen and the main township. Clearance cairns and lazybeds
can also be seen in the woods in the east of the settlement.
Bere barley and oats were usually grown24
together with root crops such as turnips. Potatoes were
increasingly grown in the late 18th century and would
certainly have been an extremely important part of the
diet of the inhabitants of Port a' Bhàta in the
19th century. The people still living in the Moidart
area in the years following 1845, would have suffered
privation during the time of the potato blight. Thanks
to the provision of relief, the disaster did not cause
loss of life on the same scale as in Ireland, but records
of annual deaths in Moidart show significant increases
in 1845, 1847 and 1848. However, the recorded number
of deaths in 1849 was actually fewer than the average
in the 10 years before the famine25.
Cultivation in Moidart was usually by
the cas dhireach or straight spade until the late 18th
century26. In the wet climate,
harvesting and drying grain was difficult. The township
would have shared the corn-drying kiln at the heart
of the settlement and grain would have been ground using
household querns, or taken to the mill along the shore
to the east of the township. The landowner would have
owned the mill. There were other corn-drying kilns associated
with the buildings along the shore to the east of the
mill. The site of this mill is puzzling because there
could have been relatively little grain production on
this side of the estate to warrant such a building and
complex of corn kilns.
The inhabitants of the settlement would have used peat
for fuel27. Evidence of peat cutting
exists on an area of hill above the shielings some distance
to the south.
Income from sources other than agriculture.
Life would have been hard in Port a' Bhàta and
it must always have been difficult to obtain sufficient
food to last out the long winters. It is evident that
in a township with so little arable land and very rough
grazing, the inhabitants must have earned money to buy
in meal.
Boat building.
Local people maintain that boat building was carried
on at the township, and there is some evidence for this
in that the Alexander Corbett who emigrated in 1790
was a carpenter and another Alexander Corbett who lived
there in 1841 and 1851 was described in the 1851 census
as being a joiner. Alexander MacDonald who moved to
Dalilea from Port a' Bhàta in the 1840s was listed
as being a "carpenter-boat" in the 1861 census.
Kelp.
One of the ways of augmenting the income in townships
on the west coast was by participation in the kelp industry28.
People were paid to collect, dry and burn kelp throughout
the summer months. The alkaline product was shipped
to the Clyde and used in bleaching and the manufacture
of glass and soap. This industry was very lucrative
for the landowners especially during the Napoleonic
wars but finally declined and died out in the 1820s.
At the end of the war, imported foreign barilla became
freely available and it was discovered that cheaper
alkali could be manufactured from common salt by the
Le Blanc process. The people were paid little for their
labours but even the little helped. However, although
Kinlochmoidart estate papers indicate that kelp collection
occurred at Kyles and Shonabeg in the 1780s and through
into the early 19th century29,
it is uncertain that any collection took place at Port
a' Bhàta. The shore at the township itself is
too muddy for good kelp growth but growth is quite prolific
at the bay to the west of the glen that lies to the
south of the Torr. The inhabitants would certainly have
been adversely affected by the decision made by the
Clanranald tutors in 1800 to prosecute anyone removing
kelp for manure30.
Whisky production.
Another means of acquiring cash was the production of
whisky31. Distillation for household
consumption at places like Port a' Bhàta would
have been legal until the 1780s when legislation was
passed imposing licensing, a heavy duty on whisky production
and regulating the size of stills, thus putting the
small producer out of legal business. Whisky continued
to be distilled illegally in stills hidden along the
burns throughout the Highlands. There was a good market
for a product that was considered to be far superior
in quality to the whisky produced by the large Lowland
distilleries and both overland and sea-coast distribution
routes operated. "Smuggling" flourished until
after 1815 when a degree of relaxation of regulation
and duties plus vigorous deployment of excise officers
made the trade far less profitable. In remote places
such as Port a' Bhàta illicit spirit production
may have persisted until much later in the 1800s. Bere
barley was usually used and the malted barley was processed
in corn-drying kilns32. The priest,
Charles MacDonald stated in his book written in the
1880s that local "smuggling" had come to an
end about 50 years previously but that excessive consumption
of whisky had become such an established habit among
local inhabitants that it continued to be a problem
for some families after emigration to Australia in the
1850s 57. He also states that
vessels from Uist and Tiree would bring cargoes of barley
into Loch Moidart to be converted into malt and then
whisky and would leave laden with timber
58. Port a' Bhàta is likely to have been
one of the main sites for this illicit industry and
in local tradition is reputed to have been infamous
for the production of illicit whisky. The presence of
the remains of four corn-drying kilns and indeed the
site of the mill at Port a' Bhàta is puzzling.
There were only about 14 acres of possible arable land
at the combined townships of Briagh and Port a' Bhàta,
so that large quantities of grain could not have been
produced. The northern shores of the loch were under
a different proprietor and would be served by the mill
at Kinlochmoidart. It therefore seems probable that
the corn kilns and mill were intended to process grain
brought into the area and would have been used in processing
grain for distillation as described by Charles MacDonald.
Remains along the burn above the mill certainly indicate
the presence of hidden stills.
Excisemen were stationed at Altegil and Briaig. Tales
are still known locally about the exploits of Port a'
Bhàta smugglers. One describes an episode when
an excise man pursuing a smuggler at Port a' Bhàta
was led out onto the mud at low tide. The local smuggler
knew the safe parts of the mud banks but the unfortunate
officer sank and became stuck. He was left until the
incoming tide made his position perilous and was rescued
on the understanding that the smuggling incident would
be forgotten33.
Charcoal.
In the late 18th century, charcoal produced on the estate
along the north side of Loch Shiel and around Dalilea
was transported over the hill from Langal by pony and
shipped from Port a' Bhàta.34
It is difficult to see where the charcoal might have
been taken aboard since there is no sign of a substantial
jetty at Port a' Bhàta but a small jetty on the
northeast side of the promontory could have been used
at high tide. There are at least three recessed platforms
on the wooded west slopes of the Torr that may have
been used for charcoal production. Investigation of
similar platforms by Elizabeth Rennie revealed rings
of post holes dated to pre-medieval times59.
It is postulated that such platforms represent the foundations
of small round huts or houses but they may have been
used for charcoal hearths in the 18th century. No Moidart
platforms have been excavated.
Herring.
Preserved herring became an important item of food on
the west coast in the 19th century. The people of the
coastal areas of Moidart are likely to have fished inshore
waters from small boats. It is reported locally that
descendents of Port a' Bhàta emigrants to Canada
said that their forebears were involved in fish smoking
and boat building in Moidart and continued these occupations
in the New World.
Hardship, emigration and clearance.
In spite of harsh living conditions, the population
of Moidart grew steadily throughout the 18th century
and early 19th century. Between 1801 and 1841 the population
along the western seaboard and islands increased by
53%35. It became increasingly
difficult to produce adequate food to support the population.
A letter written on 7th July 1808 by the factor of the
Kinlochmoidart estate to Col. Robertson the proprietor,
mentions the fact that some meal was coming into the
coast that would enable the poor people of the area
to survive in miserable circumstances until the potato
harvest36. As the population grew,
previously uncultivated land was used. It is possible
that the township of Port a' Bhàta came into
existence as a response to the need for more land. It
seems an unlikely site for a very early farming settlement
because of its relatively small area of arable land
and its position to the north of the hill with consequent
limitation of sunlight. With increasing population the
available land was shared between larger numbers of
people. This certainly occurred in Port a' Bhàta
as evidenced by the estate rent rolls and the census
records. At the time of the 1841 census fifty seven
people were living in this township with only 7.71 acres
of arable land.
Emigration from the area was initiated because of the
growing dissatisfaction of the tacksmen and more wealthy
tenants in the years following 1745 but was later driven
by the need of poor clansmen for land and opportunity.
In May 1772 a party of 210 people sponsored by the Roman
Catholic Church and who mainly came from the Moidart
area, joined 11 South Uist families and sailed for St
Johns Island, Canada37. Glenaladale,
who recruited all but the Uist families for the venture,
led the emigration. The emigrants from the Moidart area
paid their own passage and tended to be the better off
members of the population. The settlement in Canada
had initial problems but began to flourish after a few
years. Emigrant families would have written to their
friends and relations in Scotland thus encouraging further
emigration38. Many people who
could afford to do so paid their own passage to Canada
in the late 18th century and early 19th century. At
least one young man left Port a' Bhàta for Canada
in 1790.
By the 1840s Moidart was overpopulated and hardship
was widespread. Overcrowding was made worse by an influx
of families who were displaced from Rhu Arisaig39.
The failure of the potato crop in 1846 caused a crisis40.
In the 1840s the general hardship was such that many
felt that assisted emigration was necessary. The local
priest at the time, Father Ranald Rankin, was an advocate
of emigration and wrote to local landlords expressing
his views and urging them to assist their tenants to
emigrate. At the same time the landlords were seeking
to make their estates profitable by making large sheep
farms. Large-scale clearances and assisted emigration
from the area took place from 1848 to 1854. Some people
from Moidart sailed to Port Phillip Australia on the
Allison in 1852 and the Hornet in 1854. Father Rankin
joined them in 185741. No tenants
from Port a' Bhàta left for Australia on those
ships but it is evident that some people who had originally
come from the township but were living elsewhere by
the late 1840s or early 1850s, did go to Port Phillip,
Australia on the Araminta, sailing from Liverpool on
20th of June 185252. Some Lochshiel
estate tenants left for Canada in 185042
and it is possible that people of Port a' Bhàta
were among them. It is known that the family of Ranald
Corbet of Port a' Bhata left for North America some
time after 1847 but relatively few of the families cleared
from the township appear to have emigrated. Many relocated
in the area and others probably moved to cities such
as Glasgow or Dundee.
Religion.
The population of the township followed the Roman Catholic
faith and their religion would have been important to
them. Generally, the people of Moidart maintained their
faith throughout the years of suppression of the Roman
Catholic Church. When soldiers were stationed at Castle
Tioram, the priest's hiding place was said to be a small
cave in a hillside between Port a' Bhàta and
Dorlin. Although it is described by Father Charles Macdonald
in his book written in the late 19th century and was
mentioned by Wendy Wood in her book "Moidart and
Morar" nobody now knows the location43.
The Inhabitants of Port a' Bhàta.
Father Charles MacDonald in his book " Moidart,
Among the Clanranalds" states that following the
1745 uprising, all but one of the members of the MacDonald
family of Kinlochmoidart sailed to France and did not
return. The exception, Ranald Macdonald, married a daughter
of the Dalilea family and settled for his lifetime at
Roshven. Following his death his widow lived at a place
called Innis-a-Rhuda5 that he
describes carefully as being sited on a promontory on
the south shore of Loch Moidart. On the map included
in the 1997 edition of the book, the site is marked
as occupying the north part of Port a' Bhàta,
and on the 1875 Ordnance survey map, the north end of
the peninsula is labelled Rudha Port a' Bhàta.
This lady and her invalid priest son Eoin, may therefore
have lived at Port a' Bhàta at that time, although
it is strange that Father Charles did not describe the
place in relationship to Port a' Bhàta. It seems
likely that he was unsure of the exact location. After
the death of her son, the widow moved to Langal where
she spent the remainder of her life.
Records definitely link the name of the Corbett (or
Corbet) family with Port a' Bhàta in the late
18th century. The Corbett family were originally Normans
who settled in Shropshire. Later, a branch of the family
gained lands in the borders and descendants are spread
widely throughout Scotland. The name is a corruption
of Corbeau, meaning a crow44.
Alistair Cameron (North Argyll) States in his booklet
"St. Finnan's Isle" that Corbets moved into
Moidart from Easter Ross. " North Argyll"
also mentions a tradition that the flagstaff of the
standard raised at Glenfinnan in 1745 was made by a
Corbet from Moidart. When and why the Corbet family
appeared in Moidart is unclear. In the Robertson Macdonald
Papers a John Corbet is recorded as being a tenant at
Inchrory in Glenmoidart in 1764. A John Corbet submitted
an estimate for repairs to the house at Kinlochmoidart
in 1773 and a man of the same name was mentioned in
1782 as a ground officer. Also in 1782 a John Corbitt
living at Mingarry was recorded buying two stirks at
a farm sale45. In 1836, when giving
evidence in a dispute over rights to collect shell sand46,
a John Corbet of Port a' Bhàta stated that his
father William Corbet moved from the Kinlochmoidart
estate at the age of 30 years. William died aged 93
years in 1833 and would therefore have left the Kinlochmoidart
estate about 1770. In 1836 John stated that the family
had lived at Port a' Bhàta for 45 years, that
is from 1791. However William was not the first Corbet
to live in the township. In 1790 a carpenter named Alexander
Corbet left Port a' Bhàta to sail to the Island
of St John on the Lucy47. On the
same ship were12 people from Eilean Shona, 14 people
from Caolas, 11 from Glenuig, 1 from Samalaman, and
3 from Kentra together with others from the area. The
relationship between William, Alexander and the John
Corbet mentioned in connection with the Kinlochmoidart
estate earlier in the century remains a matter for speculation
but it seems likely that both William and Alexander
were sons of John. Certainly William Corbet of Port
a' Bhàta had at least two sons, Allan Corbet
born probably in the early 1770s and John born in 1784.
A reference to a John Corbet appears in a letter from
the Kinlochmoidart factor in 1805. The factor complained
that John Corbet had not paid his rent and indicated
that he feared others may follow his example48.It
is unclear if this John Corbet is William Corbet's son
or another member of the Corbet family.
Information about the inhabitants
of the Township after 1811 are gained from the Lochshiel
estate records held in the National Archives of Scotland
as part of the Macdonald of Glenaladale papers. Other
useful information has been gained from Roman Catholic
Church records of Baptisms (Appendix II) and
marriages (Appendix III), from records relating
to poor relief and from census records (Appendix
I.).
Successive census records give valuable information
on the population of Port a' Bhàta, though there
is some inconsistency of accurate age and precise Christian
names in successive 10 yearly records. The first census
in 1841 did not record relationships of individuals
within households or their marital status and the ages
of adult individuals appear to have been rounded up
or down and recorded as a multiple of five! Although
the households are enumerated in each census, their
exact position is not described so that it is not possible
to ascertain which ruin corresponds to individual dwellings
listed as occupied, in the various years.
In the years 1814 to 1817 the main tenants
recorded in the township15were
William
Corbet(t) and Alexander Corbet(t )(exact relationship
uncertain) and an Angus
MacDonald who was married to Mary Corbet(t) and was
therefore certainly related to
the other families by marriage.
Rents in the 1820s show that John and Allan Corbet(t)
(sons of William) had become the main tenants with at
first Peter MacGregor and later with the widow MacGregor
(Catherine MacIntyre). In the 1830s the number of tenants
expanded to include a Duncan Corbet and an Alexander
Corbet(t) and a Donald MacDonald and an Angus Macdonald
as well as John and Allan Corbet(t) and widow MacGregor.
It is likely that all the families were related in some
way with the exception of Catherine Macgregor(MacIntyre).
For example, from church and Census records it is apparent
that a son of Donald Macdonald named Alexander was married
to a Flora Corbet.
It appears that there was considerable
change in the population in the years before the clearance
of the township circa 1846. In 1829 a MacNeil family
lived in the township but they were resident in Scardoish
at the 1841 census. Although few families appear to
have emigrated directly from Port a' Bhàta it
is evident that individuals connected to the township
did emigrate prior to the clearance. The Angus MacDonald
and Mary Corbet who resided in the township in the early
1800s had a daughter Catherine and a son Donald. Their
daughter Catherine married a Duncan MacDonald and sailed
from Skye on the Midlothian bound for Port Jackson on
31/12/1837. Their son, Donald Macdonald (born in 1810)
married a Marcella Macdonald from Kylesmor at Mingarry
church on 25/1/1837. Marcella was born on 20/7/1811.
The couple sailed to Port Jackson (Sydney) Australia
on the British King, leaving from Tobermory. 51
There was certainly hardship. In 1839
the widow MacGregor received 2 stones of meal as poor
relief. A Duncan MacIsaac resident in the township in
1839 received similar help but was not resident by 1841.
The family of Duncan Corbet also received assistance
in 183949.
In 1841 there were 57 people living
in 9 households in Port a' Bhàta. There were
two dwellings occupied by single women. These houses
may have been small and rudimentary. All the other seven
households were involved in working the land to some
degree although there was a publican, a weaver and a
merchant.
The first household enumerated in the 1841 census was
that of John Corbet, his wife Sarah (sometimes called
Marcella or Marion) and six of their children. John
was a publican but the site of his public house is uncertain.
He gave evidence to the inquiry into a dispute over
shell sand collection in 1836 at the public house at
Ardmorlich7, but whether he ran the Ardmorlich establishment
or a public house at Port a' Bhàta is unknown.
He employed servants to work his land and as domestic
servants. Three of these employees were named MacVarish
and were likely to have been relatives of his wife whose
maiden name was MacVarish. John appears to have been
well regarded by his neighbours and was frequently named
as sponsor in the Roman Catholic Baptismal records in
the 1840s. The family moved several times after 1845.
They lived at Kylesmor then at Sloch, and were living
at Samalaman by 1851. In the 1851 census Marion Corbet
is listed as a farmer's wife in Samalaman, and their
children Margaret, William, and Ann are listed with
her together with two younger daughters; Ann aged 7
and Catherine aged 4 years. John Corbet appears as a
visitor in Ardtoe on the 1851 census but is recorded
as a farmer in Samalaman with his wife Sarah and three
of the children in 1861. Descendents of John and Sarah
still live in Moidart.
The family of Duncan Corbet who was
described as a farmer, occupied the second house enumerated
in the 1841 census. This family moved to Blain Moss
and all were recorded there in 1851. Norman and two
of his sisters became well known in the area
in the 20th century because of their longevity.
The family of Alexander Corbet, farmer,
resided in the third house recorded in the 1841 census.
Although the ages do not correspond exactly, it is probable
that Alexander Corbet and his wife Margaret were still
living in Port a' Bhàta in house 3 in 1851. Their
son, Ranald and his wife Ann MacDonald, and 3 children
emigrated to North America sometime after the birth
of their son Charles in 1847. It is likely that this
was the Ranald Corbet who was described by North Argyll
as competing successfully at games held at Glenfinnan
in 1845 to commemorate the centenary of the '45 Rising50.
He stated that this Ronald Corbet emigrated to Canada
in 1846 and that he was possibly the man who had led
the excise man out onto the mud at Port a' Bhàta
when caught at an illegal still. Another son of the
household, Allan, married Ann MacPherson and moved away
from the township after the birth of their first four
children. The 15 year old Ann Corbet on the census record
was almost certainly Ann MacPherson who had given birth
to her first child, James, four months previously. This
family eventually moved to the High Street Fort William
and a daughter Flora Corbet married the jeweller Englebert
F Angler in Fort William. The family are commemorated
on the Green Isle.
The family of Alexander Macdonald,
agricultural labourer, occupied the fourth house recorded
in 1841. This family were still resident in 1851 but
their daughters Catherine and Mary were not with them
at that time. Catherine would have been 19 years old
so that she could have married or emigrated or could
have left home to work, but Mary would only have been
11 years old in 1851 and so was possibly staying with
relatives. By 1861 Alexander's family had moved to Dalilea
and Alexander's occupation is recorded as Carpenter-Boat.
Mary had rejoined the family. It is possible that Alexander
was a son of Angus MacDonald and Mary Corbet who had
resided in the township in the early 1800s.
The fifth house was occupied by a Sarah Grant who lived
alone.
The sixth house listed, was occupied by the family of
Alexander MacIntyre, handloom weaver in 1841. This family
do not appear to be resident in the area by 1851. They
do not appear on the known passenger lists of the ships
that left for Australia, but could have gone to Canada,
or elsewhere in Scotland. It is possible that they were
related to the widow MacGregor who had lived in the
settlement in the 1820s and 1830s.
The seventh house was occupied by Jessie MacDonald,
an 85 year-old woman living alone.
The family of the farmer Allan Corbet occupied the eighth
house enumerated in 1841. Of the occupants of the house,
several remain unaccounted for in 1851, but a widow
named Mary Gillies (probably her maiden name) was recorded
with her two daughters Margaret and Marjory Corbet in
Blain in the 1851 census. The two girls were likely
to have been the two youngest members of Allan Corbet's
1841 household. They emigrated to Geelong, Australia
on the Araminta in 1852 when they were listed as Dairymaids
on the passenger list52*.
The last and ninth house enumerated in 1841 was occupied
by a family of eight Macdonalds headed by the patriarch
Donald Macdonald, farmer. One of his sons, John, is
described as a merchant, but the nature of his business
is unspecified. The Flora MacDonald in this household
was Flora Corbet before her marriage. By 1851 Donald
Macdonald had died and the family had moved to a place
recorded as "Moidart" on the census returns.
This was probably Mingarry. By 1861, Flora's husband,
Alexander MacDonald, had died and the family were living
at Dorlin. Flora's uncle, Allan Corbet had joined the
household and was described as a pauper. Flora's brother
in law, John MacDonald, was still a member of the household
and was working as a gardener.
Of the inhabitants of Port a' Bhàta whose whereabouts
cannot be accounted for after the clearance, some individuals
would have moved to cities such as Glasgow and others
may have emigrated. John Watt, in his notes in the appendix
to Father MacDonald's book, states that some tenants
from Loch Shiel Estate appear on passenger lists of
a ship that left for Canada in 1850.
Some former residents of the township who do not appear
on the 1841 census records, perhaps because they were
away from home at the time of the census, appear on
known passenger lists of the ships that left for Australia.
In 1848 Father Ranald Rankin married a Clementina MacDonald
of Port a' Bhàta to a Ewen MacDonald of Morar
prior to the couple's emigration to Australia. In 1850,
Kitty Corbet of Port a' Bhàta married Archie
Macdonald (also known as Archie MacIsaac) of Scardoise
and the couple with their son Allan and four of Archie's
siblings, left for Port Philip Australia in 1852 aboard
the Araminta52*. The couple had
8 more children in Australia before Archie died in 186553*.
The early years must have been hard since records show
that the family applied for a pauper's funeral for Archie
and had been receiving aid for some time prior to his
death54*. Catherine lived in Geelong
until her death in 1910. One son became a local government
councillor in Geelong and at least three others appear
to have prospered. Descendants still live in the Melbourne
area.
Since
the mill to the east of the settlement had ceased operation
prior to 1800, there was no miller at Port a' Bhàta
in the 1841 census. There was a miller and his apprentice
living in Kinlochmoidart and it is possible that any
grain produced by the people of Port a' Bhàta
would have been taken across Loch Moidart to be processed
or ground in small quantities within households using
rotary querns.
By the time of the 1851 census,
the township had been largely cleared for sheep.
There were only four households in Port a' Bhàta,
and a total population of 22. Ten persons made up the
shepherd's household. The enumerators recorded family
relationships in 1851 so that it is possible to see
the composition of households. The parish where individuals
were born is also recorded. Occasionally enumerators
listed the actual place of birth instead of just the
parish and this information can be useful in tracing
family origins.
One of the houses was still occupied by Alexander MacDonald
and his family. His occupation had changed to occasional
fishing. Another house was occupied by Alexander Corbet
and his wife Margaret. The couple were living with one
servant, Ann Kennedy. Alexander was described as being
a joiner by trade.
The shepherd, Donald Campbell and his wife and five
children together with two of his servants, came from
Morar/ Arisaig. Only one of their servants, Archibald
MacIsaac, was from Moidart.
An eighty-year-old widow, Sally Macdonald, described
as a temporary pauper and her daughter occupied the
fourth house.
By 1861, Port a' Bhàta consisted of one farm
and a house occupied by a gamekeeper. The keeper, John
Macdonald, originally hailed from Abertarff. The place
where his elder child had been born shows that this
family had been living in Lochalsh just two years before
the census suggesting that estate workers probably moved
jobs frequently and had little security.
The family of Roderick Macdonald occupied the farm.
They had been living in Kinlochmoidart a decade earlier.
In 1861 the household consisted of Roderick and his
wife Margaret and their three young adult children,
Donald, Donald (it was not unusual to have 2 children
with the same Christian name) and Ann. Roderick's brother,
Archibald and his spinster sister-in-law also shared
the house.
By the time of the 1871 census only
one house was occupied. The gamekeeper's family had
moved to Resipole. His little daughter Angusina had
died aged 15 months and is buried on the Green Isle.
The MacDonald family were the only residents of Port
a' Bhàta. Roderick Macdonald was recorded as
being a forester instead of a farmer. One of the sons
was not recorded as living at the house and the sister-in-law
was not present. In this year, the recorded information
started to include the number of rooms with at least
one window in the house. The family were occupying a
two-roomed house. The Ordnance Survey map produced in
1875 shows east facing roofed buildings in the north
part of the main settlement. These would have been the
house and outbuildings used by the family at that time.
By 1881 the same family were still living
at Port a' Bhàta in a six-roomed house. This
is likely to be the more modern two storied south facing
house, the ruins of which can be seen standing to the
north of the settlement roughly in the same position
as one of the east facing buildings recorded on the
1875 map. The household consisted of only Roderick and
Margaret and their daughter Ann and a nine-year-old
grandson, Hugh.
In 1891 the same family occupied the
house but Roderick and Margaret had died. The two brothers,
both named Donald, had returned. One of the brothers
is described as a plasterer by trade and the other as
a shepherd. Ann was keeping house and the nineteen-year-old
Hugh was working as a farm servant.
In the 1901 census, the 6-roomed house
is described as the crofter's house, and is enumerated
as 14 on the census returns on the Loch Shiel Estate.
It was occupied by one of the brothers who was described
as being a shepherd/crofter, and by his sister Ann and
nephew Hugh. Hugh MacDonald is recorded as being married
but his wife does not appear on the record as being
resident on the day of the census. The members of the
household were all recorded as Gaelic and English speakers.
Hugh was known as Hugh (French) MacDonald
and worked on the Cameron-Head estate until his early
death at 38 years of age. After his death his wife,
who came from Gorteneorn, went to live at the old Poors
House situated between Langal and Kinlochmoidart, and
brought up their children with the help of local relations.
Hugh's uncle Donald remained the tenant at Port a' Bhàta
until about 1915 when the township was finally deserted.
|
Appendix I. INFORMATION FROM CENSUS RECORDS
1841 Census Porta' Bhàta
House 1
|
Name
|
|
Sex
|
Age
|
Occupation
|
|
John Corbet
|
Head
|
Male
|
57
|
Publican
|
|
Sarah Corbet
|
|
Female
|
40
|
|
|
Margaret Corbet
|
|
Female
|
10
|
|
|
Joan Corbet
|
|
Female
|
8
|
|
|
William Corbet
|
|
Male
|
6
|
|
|
Mary Corbet
|
|
Female
|
4
|
|
|
Ann Corbet
|
|
Female
|
2
|
|
|
Allan Corbet
|
|
Male
|
11 months
|
|
|
Hugh MacDonald
|
Serv
|
Male
|
20
|
Agricultural Labourer
|
|
Mary MacVarish
|
Serv
|
Female
|
70
|
Farm Servant
|
|
Mary MacVarish
|
Serv
|
Female
|
20
|
Servant
|
|
Roger MacVarish
|
|
Male
|
15
|
Cattle-herd
|
|
Not Known
|
|
Male
|
30
|
Not Known
|
House 2
|
Name
|
|
Sex
|
Age
|
Occupation
|
|
Duncan Corbet
|
Head
|
Male
|
70
|
Farmer
|
|
Mary Corbet
|
|
Female
|
35
|
|
|
Allan Corbet
|
|
Male
|
15
|
Agricultural labourer
|
|
John Corbet
|
|
Male
|
13
|
|
|
Margaret Corbet
|
|
Female
|
11
|
|
|
Norman Corbet
|
|
Male
|
9
|
|
|
William Corbet
|
|
Male
|
7
|
|
|
Jean Corbet
|
|
Female
|
5
|
|
House 3
|
Name
|
|
Sex
|
Age
|
Occupation
|
| Alexander
Corbet |
Head
|
Male
|
60 |
Farmer |
| Margaret
Corbet |
|
Female |
60 |
|
| Ranald
Corbet |
|
Male |
35 |
Agricultural
Labourer |
| Allan
Corbet |
|
Male |
20 |
Agricultural
Labourer |
| Ann
Corbet |
|
Female |
15 |
|
| Ann
Corbet |
|
Female |
9 |
|
| James
Corbet |
|
Male |
4
months |
|
House 4
|
Name
|
|
Sex
|
Age
|
Occupation
|
|
Alexander MacDonald
|
Head
|
Male
|
35
|
Agricultural Labourer
|
|
Ann MacDonald
|
|
Female
|
20
|
|
|
Catherine MacDonald
|
|
Female
|
9
|
|
|
John MacDonald
|
|
Male
|
7
|
|
|
Alexander MacDonald
|
|
Male
|
4
|
|
|
Mary MacDonald
|
|
Female
|
1
|
|
House 5
|
Name
|
|
Sex
|
Age
|
Occupation
|
|
Sarah Grant
|
|
Female
|
65
|
|
House 6
|
Name
|
|
Sex
|
Age
|
Occupation
|
|
Alex. MacIntyre
|
Head
|
Male
|
55
|
Handloom Weaver
|
|
Catherine MacIntyre
|
|
Female
|
55
|
|
|
Catherine MacIntyre
|
|
Female
|
25
|
|
|
Jessie MacIntyre
|
|
Female
|
20
|
|
|
John MacIntyre
|
|
Male
|
20
|
Agricultural Labourer
|
|
Peter MacIntyre
|
|
Male
|
8
|
|
|
Mary MacIntyre
|
|
Female
|
2
|
|
House 7
|
Name
|
|
Sex
|
Age
|
Occupation
|
|
Jessie MacDonald
|
|
Female
|
85
|
|
House 8
|
Name
|
|
Sex
|
Age
|
Occupation
|
|
Allan Corbet
|
Head
|
Male
|
60
|
Farmer
|
|
Mary Corbet
|
?
|
Female
|
45
|
|
|
Ann Corbet
|
|
Female
|
20
|
Agricultural Labourer
|
|
John Corbet
|
|
Male
|
20
|
Agricultural Labourer
|
|
Margaret Corbet
|
|
Female
|
14
|
|
|
Margery Corbet
|
|
Female
|
12
|
|
House 9
|
Name
|
|
Sex
|
Age
|
Occupation
|
|
Donald MacDonald
|
Head
|
Male
|
87
|
Farmer
|
|
John MacDonald
|
|
Male
|
45
|
Merchant
|
|
Mary MacDonald
|
|
Female
|
40
|
Servant
|
|
Alexander Macdonald
|
|
Male
|
35
|
Agricultural Labourer
|
|
Flora MacDonald
|
|
Female
|
20
|
|
|
Alexander Macdonald
|
|
Male
|
5
|
|
|
John MacDonald
|
|
Male
|
3
|
|
|
Angus MacDonald
|
|
Male
|
1
|
|
|
Allan Robertson
|
|
Male
|
11
|
|
1851 census. Port a'
Bhàta.
Port a' Bhàta was listed with Eignaig Kylesmhor, Caolasbeg
and Shonabeg, therefore the four houses at Port a' Bhata are
listed as 16, 17, 18,and19.
House 16
|
Name
|
Relation
|
Age
|
Marital
|
Occupation
|
Birth place
|
|
Sally MacDonald
|
Head
|
80
|
Widow
|
Temporary pauper
|
Inv/ Arisaig
|
|
Ann Macdonald
|
Daughter
|
30
|
Un M
|
|
|
House 17
|
Name
|
Relation
|
Age
|
Marital
|
Occupation
|
Birth place
|
|
Alexander Corbet
|
|
78
|
Married
|
Joiner
|
Inv/Ardnamurchan
|
|
Margaret Corbet
|
Wife
|
73
|
Married
|
|
Inv/Moidart
|
|
Ann Kennedy
|
Servant
|
18
|
Unm
|
Servant
|
Glenelg/Knoydart
|
House 18
|
Name
|
Relation
|
Age
|
Marital
|
Occupation
|
Birth place
|
|
Donald Campbell
|
Head
|
43 |
Married |
Shepherd |
Inv/Lochabair |
|
Margaret Campbell
|
Wife
|
30 |
Married |
|
Inv/Morar |
|
Mary Campbell
|
Daughter
|
19 |
|
|
Inv/Morar |
|
Ann Campbell
|
Daughter
|
4 |
|
|
Inv/Morar |
|
Coll Campbell
|
Son
|
9m |
|
|
Inv/Morar |
|
John Campbell
|
Son
|
3 |
|
|
Inv/Morar |
|
Angus Campbell
|
Son
|
3 |
|
|
Inv/Morar |
|
John McEachen
|
Servant
|
18 |
Unmarried |
Servant |
Inv/Arisaig |
|
Archibald MacIsaac
|
Servant
|
26 |
Unmarried |
Servant |
Inv/Moidart |
|
Margaret McLellan
|
Maid Serv
|
25 |
Unmarried |
General Servant |
Inv/S.Morar |
House 19
|
Name
|
Relation
|
Age
|
Marital
|
Occupation
|
Birth place
|
|
Alexander Macdonald
|
Head
|
42
|
Married
|
Fisher occasionally
|
Inv/Acharacle
|
|
Ann MacDonald
|
Wife
|
37
|
Married
|
|
Inv/Acharacle
|
|
John MacDonald
|
Son
|
16
|
Son
|
|
Inv/Acharacle
|
|
Alexander MacDonald
|
Son
|
13
|
Son
|
|
Inv/Acharacle
|
|
Donald MacDonald
|
Son
|
9
|
Son
|
|
Inv/Acharacle
|
|
Archibald Macdonald
|
Son
|
5
|
Son
|
|
Inv/Acharacle
|
|
Angus Macdonald
|
Son
|
3
|
Son
|
|
Inv/Acharacle
|
1851 Census
Scardoish. House 21
|
Name
|
Relation
|
Age
|
Marital
|
Occupation
|
Birth place
|
|
John MacDonald
|
Head
|
73
|
Married
|
Crofter
|
Moidart
|
|
Margaret MacDonald
|
Wife
|
65
|
|
|
Ditto
|
|
John MacDonald
|
Son
|
35
|
Unmarried
|
|
Ditto
|
|
Alexander MacDonald
|
Son
|
26
|
Unmarried
|
|
Ditto
|
|
Ann MacDonald
|
Daughter
|
24
|
Unmarried
|
|
Ditto
|
|
Margaret MacDonald
|
Daughter
|
22
|
Unmarried
|
|
Ditto
|
|
Nagus
|
Son
|
18
|
Unmarried
|
|
Ditto
|
|
Allan MacDonald
|
Nephew
|
8
|
|
|
Ditto
|
|
Archibald MacDonald
|
Son
|
32
|
Married
|
Salmon Fisher
|
Moidart
|
|
Catherine Corbett
|
Daughter-in-law
|
32
|
Married
|
|
Ditto
|
|
Allan MacDonald
|
Nephew
|
3m
|
|
|
Ditto
|
1861 Census Port a`Bhàta
House 1
|
Name
|
Relation
|
Age
|
Marital
|
Occupation
|
Birth place
|
|
Roderick MacDonald
|
Head
|
59
|
Married
|
Farmer
|
Inv/Ardnamurchan
|
|
Margaret MacDonald
|
Wife
|
53
|
Married
|
|
Inv/Arisaig
|
|
Donald Macdonald
|
Son
|
22
|
Unmarried
|
|
Inv/Ardmurchan
|
|
Ann MacDonald
|
Daughter
|
20
|
Unmarried
|
|
Inv/Ardnamurchan
|
|
Donald MacDonald
|
Son
|
17
|
Unmarried
|
|
Inv/Ardnamurchan
|
|
Catherine MacDonald
|
Sister-in-law
|
50
|
Unmarried
|
Domestic Servant
|
Inv/Arisaig
|
|
Archibald Macdonald
|
Brother
|
46
|
Unmarried
|
Agric' Labourer
|
Inv/Ardnamurchan
|
House 2
|
Name
|
Relation
|
Age
|
Marital
|
Occupation
|
Birth place
|
|
John Macdonald
|
Head
|
40
|
M'd
|
Gamekeeper
|
Abertarff
|
|
Mary Macdonald
|
Wife
|
20
|
M'd
|
|
Arisaig
|
|
Mary MacDonald
|
Daughter
|
2
|
|
|
Lochalsh
|
|
Angusina Macdonald
|
Daughter
|
0
|
|
|
Ardn'murch'
|
1861 Census Samalaman.
House 2
|
Name
|
Relation
|
Age
|
Marital
|
Occupation
|
Birth place
|
|
John Corbett
|
Head
|
80
|
Married
|
Farmer
|
Acharacle
|
|
Sarah Corbett
|
Wife
|
58
|
|
|
Acharacle
|
|
Margaret Corbett
|
Daughter
|
29
|
Unmarried
|
Domestic Servant
|
Acharacle
|
|
William Corbett
|
Son
|
24
|
Unmarried
|
Herring Fisher
|
Acharacle
|
|
Catherine Corbett
|
Daughter
|
13
|
Unmarried
|
Domestic Servant
|
Acharacle
|
1861 Census Moss
House 10
|
Name
|
Relation
|
Age
|
Marital
|
Occupation
|
Birth place
|
|
Duncan Corbett
|
Head
|
73
|
Married
|
Farmer
|
Acharacle
|
|
Mary Corbett
|
Wife
|
58
|
|
|
Arisaig
|
|
Norman Corbett
|
Son
|
28
|
Unmarried
|
|
Acharacle
|
|
William Corbett
|
Son
|
25
|
Unmarried
|
|
Acharacle
|
|
Jane Corbett
|
Daughter
|
23
|
Unmarried
|
|
Acharacle
|
1861 Census Dorlin
House 4
|
Name
|
Relation
|
Age
|
Marital
|
Occupation
|
Birth place
|
|
Flora MacDonald
|
Head
|
40
|
Widow
|
|
Ardnamurchan
|
|
Angus Macdonald
|
Son
|
22
|
Unmarried
|
Labourer
|
Ardnamurchan
|
|
John MacDonald
|
Son
|
18
|
Unmarried
|
Labourer
|
Ardnamurchan
|
|
Mary MacDonald
|
Daughter
|
16
|
Unmarried
|
Domestic Servant
|
Ardnamurchan
|
|
Ann MacDonald
|
Daughter
|
14
|
|
Domestic Servant
|
Ardnamurchan
|
|
Catherine MacDonald
|
Daughter
|
12
|
|
Scholar
|
Ardnamurchan
|
|
John MacDonald
|
Brother-in-law
|
72
|
Unmarried
|
Gardener
|
Ardnamurchan
|
|
Allan Corbett
|
Uncle
|
80
|
Widower
|
Pauper
|
Ardnamurchan
|
|
Isabella MacDonald
|
Daughter
|
9
|
|
Scholar
|
Ardnamurchan
|
1861 Census Dalilea
House 4
|
Name
|
Relation
|
Age
|
Marital
|
Occupation
|
Birth place
|
|
Alexander MacDonald
|
Head
|
55
|
Married
|
Carpenter-Boat
|
Acharacle
|
|
Ann MacDonald
|
Wife
|
50
|
|
|
Morvern
|
|
Mary MacDonald
|
Daughter
|
20
|
Unmarried
|
Domestic Servant
|
Acharacle
|
|
Donald Macdonald
|
Son
|
18
|
Unmarried
|
|
Acharacle
|
|
Archibald Macdonald
|
Son
|
16
|
Unmarried
|
|
Acharacle
|
|
Angus Macdonald
|
Son
|
12
|
|
|
Acharacle
|
1871 Census Port a'Bhàta
|
Name
|
Relation
|
Age
|
Marital
|
Occupation
|
Birth place
|
Rooms
|
|
Roderick Macdonald
|
Head
|
71
|
M
|
Forester
|
Moidart
|
2
|
|
Margaret MacDonald
|
Wife
|
65
|
|
|
Arisaig
|
|
|
Ann Macdonald
|
Daughter
|
27
|
Unm
|
Foresters daughter
|
Moidart
|
|
|
Donald Macdonald
|
Son
|
23
|
Unm
|
Foresters son
|
Moidart
|
|
|
Archibald Macdonald
|
Brother
|
58
|
Unm
|
Formerly Fisherman
|
Moidart
|
|
1881 Census Port a'Bhàta
|
Name
|
Relation
|
Age
|
Marital
|
Occupation
|
Birth place
|
Rooms
|
|
Roderick Macdonald
|
Head
|
81
|
M
|
Crofter
|
Moidart
|
6
|
|
Margaret MacDonald
|
Wife
|
74
|
M
|
Crofters Wife
|
Arisaig
|
|
|
Ann Macdonald
|
Daughter
|
36
|
Unm
|
General Domestic
|
Moidart
|
|
|
Catherine Macdonald
|
S-i-l
|
72
|
U
|
Pauper
|
Arisaig
|
|
|
Hugh MacDonald
|
Gr'dson
|
9
|
|
Scholar
|
|
|
1891 Census Port a'Bhàta
|
Name
|
Kinship
|
Age
|
Marital
|
Occupation
|
Birth place
|
Rooms
|
|
Donald Macdonald
|
Head
|
43
|
U
|
Plasterer
|
Moidart
|
6
|
|
Donald MacDonald
|
Bro
|
48
|
U
|
Shepherd
|
Moidart
|
|
|
Ann Macdonald
|
Sister
|
45
|
U
|
House Keeper
|
Moidart
|
|
|
Hugh MacDonald
|
Neph
|
19
|
|
Farm Servant
|
Moidart
|
|
1901 Census
The 6 roomed house is described as the crofter's
house, and is enumerated as 14 on the census returns and as
being on the Loch Shiel Estate.
|
Name
|
Kinship
|
Age
|
Marital
|
Occupation
|
Birth place
|
Rooms
|
|
Donald MacDonald
|
Head
|
48
|
Unmarried
|
Shepherd/Crofter
|
Moidart
|
6
|
|
Ann Macdonald
|
Sister
|
56
|
Unmarried
|
|
Moidart
|
|
|
Hugh MacDonald
|
Nephew
|
29
|
Married
|
Labourer
|
Moidart
|
|
Appendix II
Information from Moidart Roman Catholic Church
Record of Baptisms of children born at Port a' Bhàta
1829-1838 Priest- Father Alexander MacDonald
|
Name
|
D.O.B.
|
Legal status
|
Father
|
Mother
|
Sponsor
|
Sponsor's address
|
|
Donald MacNeil
|
31/12/29
|
Legitimate
|
John MacNeil
|
Catherine MacDonald
|
Ranald Corbet
|
Port a'Bhata
|
|
Mary MacVarish
|
14/7/31
|
Legitimate
|
Angus MacVarish
|
Mary MacAskil
|
Alexander Macdonald
|
Port a' Bhàta
|
|
William Corbet
|
28/8/34
|
Legitimate
|
John Corbet
|
Marion MacVarish
|
John Gillies
|
Scardoish
|
|
Jane Corbet
|
1/1/36
|
Legitimate
|
Duncan Corbet
|
Mary MacLean
|
Alexander Macdonald
|
Port a' Bhàta
|
|
Alexander Macdonald
|
8/4/36
|
Legitimate
|
Alexander Macdonald
|
Flora Corbet
|
Ranald Corbet
|
Port a' Bhàta
|
1838-1855 Priest - Ranald Rankin
| Name |
D.O.B. |
Legal
Status |
Father |
Mother |
Sponsor |
Sponsors
address |
| John
Macdonald |
26/2/38 |
Legitimate |
Alexander
Macdonald |
Flora
Corbet |
John
MacDonald |
Rhu
Arisaig |
| Ann
Corbet |
8/5/38 |
Legitimate |
John
Corbet |
Sally
MacVarish |
Archie
MacDonald |
Eilean
Shona |
| Mary
Macdonald |
3/9/39 |
Legitimate |
Alexander
Macdonald |
Ann
MacDonald |
Roderick
MacDonald |
Caolas |
| Mary
Macdonald |
3/1/40 |
Legitimate |
Alexander
Macdonald |
Ann
Macdonald |
Roderick
Macdonald |
Caolasmor |
| Angus
Macdonald |
3/3/40 |
Legitimate |
Alexander
Macdonald |
Mary
Macdonald |
John
Corbet |
Port
a’ Bhàta |
| Allan
Corbet |
16/6/40 |
Legitimate |
John
Corbet |
Sally
MacVarish |
John
MacPherson |
Briag |
| James
Corbet |
13/1/41 |
Legitimate |
Allan
Corbet |
Ann
MacPherson |
John
MacDonald |
Port
a’ Bhàta |
| Alexander
Corbet Died 4 months |
21/10/41 |
Legitimate |
John
Corbet |
Sarah
MacVarish |
John
MacPherson |
Briag |
| Ann
Corbet |
1/11/41 |
Legitimate |
Ranald
Corbet |
Jean
MacDonald |
John
MacPherson |
Briag |
| Ranald
MacDonald |
21/1/42 |
Legitimate |
Alexander
MacDonald |
Flora
Corbet |
John
Corbet |
Port
a’ Bhàta |
| Duncan
Corbet |
20/2/43 |
Legitimate |
Allan
Corbet |
Ann
MacPherson |
Donald
MacPherson |
Blain |
| John
MacDonald |
15/9/43 |
Legitimate |
Alexander
Macdonald |
Flora
MacDonald |
John
Corbet |
Port
a’ Bhàta |
| Sarah
Corbet |
4/1/44 |
Legitimate |
John
Corbet |
Sarah
MacVarish |
John
MacPherson |
Port
a’ Bhàta |
| Margaret
Corbet |
2/7/45 |
Legitimate |
Allan
Corbet |
Ann
MacPherson |
John
MacDonald |
Port
a’ Bhàta |
| Archibald
Corbet |
10/7/45 |
Legitimate |
Ranald
Corbet |
Ann
MacDonald |
Jean
MacDonald |
Lochshiel |
| Mary
MacDonald |
7/8/45 |
Legitimate |
Alexander
MacDonald |
Flora
MacDonald |
John
Corbet |
Caolasbeg |
| Charles
CorbetWent to America |
5/3/47 |
Legitimate |
Ranald
Corbet |
Ann
MacDonald |
Joanna
MacDonald |
|
| Hugh
Corbet |
21/5/47 |
Legitimate |
Allan
Corbet |
Ann
MacPherson |
John
MacDonald |
Port
a’ Bhàta |
| Ann
MacDonald |
4/6/47 |
Legitimate |
Alexander
MacDonald |
Flora
Corbet |
Duncan
Corbet |
Port
a’ Bhàta |
| Catherine
MacDonald |
1/6/49 |
Legitimate |
Alexander
MacDonald |
Flora
Corbet |
John
Corbet |
Sloch |
| Jean
Macdonald |
8/4/51 |
Legitimate |
Alexander
MacDonald |
Ann
MacDonald |
Peggy
MacArthur |
Port
a’ Bhàta |
|
|
Appendix
III
INFORMATION
FROM MOIDART ROMAN CATHOLIC PARISH RECORDS
MARRIAGES
involving inhabitants or known ex-inhabitants of Port a’ Bhàta.
NAS
REF: RH21/48/2
Emigrant
notes, by Fr R Rankin, in capitals.
1830
None recorded
1831
None recorded.
1832
Jan 25 Ewen McIsaac, Langwall & Marianne McGregor,
Port Bata
Witnesses: Alexander McVarish & Dugald McGregor
1833,
1834, 1835, 1836 None recorded
1837
Jan 25 Donald McDonald, Kylesmore & Marcella
McDonald, Kylesmore AUSTRALIA 185?
Witnesses: Dugald McDonald & John McDonald. Rev. A McD
1838,
1839 None recorded.
1840
Jan 30 Allan Corbet, Portavata & Ann McPherson,
Briaig FORT WILLIAM 1852
Witnesses: John Corbet ?Caol & Alexander McDonald Portavata
Feb
11 Angus McPherson, Smirisary & Mary Corbet, Portavata
Witnesses: John Corbet & Allan Corbet, Portavata
1841,
1842, 1843, 1844, 1845, 1846, 1847 None recorded.
1848
EMIGRANTS TO AUSTRALIA MARRIED JUNE 1848 (Written at top)
(In margin crossed out)
June
8 Ewen McDonald, Morar & Clementina McDonald, Portavata
Witnesses: Angus McDonald & Allan Corbet, Portavata. Rev.
R R
(Then below, in proper place)
June
8 Ewen McDonald, Morar & Clementina McVarish, Portavata
Witnesses: Malcolm Kelly, Dorlin & Ewen McDonald, Scardoise.
Rev. R R
1849
None recorded.
1850
Feb
6 Archy McDonald (or McIsaac), Scardoise & Kitty Corbet,
Portavata PORT PHILIP JUNE 1852
Witnesses: Ewen McDonald & John McDonald, Scardoise. Rev.
R R
1851.
NO MARRIAGES RECORDED
1852
May 25 James McDonald & Marcella McDonald, Caolas More.
EMIG. TO PORT PHILIP JUNE 1852
Married Altgille.
Witnesses: John McDonald & Duncan McDonald, Caolas More.
Rev. R R.
1853
None recorded
1854
June 22 Ronald McDonald, Ardnish Arasaig & Joanna
Corbet, Samalaman
Witnesses: Ranald McDonald & Ewen McDonald. Rev. R R
1855
Father R Rankin left for Australia.
1856,
1857, 1858, 1859, 1860, 1861 None recorded.
1862
Jan 14 Alexander McDonald or McIsaac, Smerisary &
Margaret McPherson , Smirisary at Smirisary
Witnesses: Alexander Stewart, Glenuig & William Corbett,
Glenuig. Rev. C McD.
Feb
5 Charles McInnes & Mysie ?McVvarish , Dalnabreck at
Mingarry
Witnesses: William McInnes & William Corbett. Rev. C McD.
Sept
9 Angus McDonald, Smirisary & Sarah McDonald, Smirisary
at Glenuig
Witnesses: William Corbett, Samalaman & John McDonald.
Rev. C McD
1863
Jan 21 Roderick McPherson, Smirisary & Barbara McMaster,
servant Samalaman
Witnesses: John McLellan, Blain & William Corbett, Glenuig.
Rev. C McD.
1864.
No marriages in this year. C. McD.
1865
None recorded
1866
None recorded
1867
Feb 20 ?Duncan McDonald, ?Smirisary & Jane McDonald,
Glenuig at Glenuig
Witnesses: William Corbett & ----. Rev. C McD.
1868
Feb 12 John McDonald, Dorlin & Catherine McDonald,
Dalnabreck married by Rev ?Jack McDonald
Witnesses: Allan McDonald, Dorlin & William Corbett, Glenuig.
C McD.
1869
None recorded
References.
-
Charles
Macdonald. Moidart or Among the Clanranalds 1989 edition.
Appendix Letter to Admiral D R Macdonald.
-
Clanranald
Papers. NAS GD201 5/1217.
-
SRO
E. 744/1/70 1748 Survey of the Forfeited Estates.
-
MacDonald
of Glenaladale Papers. NAS GD234 4/14
-
Charles
MacDonald. Moidart. Among the Clanranalds. Birlinn 1997.
Ch 11. P175
-
Bumsted
The People’s Clearance 1770-1815. Appendix B.
-
Robertson
MacDonald Papers. NLS MS3984 p158
-
Devine
T.M. Clanship to Crofters War. Manchester University
Press 1994 Ch.1 Page 34-38.
-
Clanranald
Papers. NAS GD201 5/1260.
-
Charles
Macdonald. Moidart Among the Clanranalds. Birlinn 1997.
Ch.9. P 149.
-
Charles
Macdonald. Moidart Among the Clanranalds. Birlinn1997.
Ch.12.P 202
-
MacDonald
of Glenaladale Papers. NAS GD243 4/14
-
Charles
Macdonald. Moidart Among the Clanranalds. Birlinn 1997.Ch.
12. P 202
-
MacDonald
of Glenaladale Papers. NAS GD243 4/10
-
MacDonald
of Glenaladale papers. NAS GD243 4/15
-
MacDonald
of Glenaladale Papers. NAS GD243 4/14.
-
MacDonald
of Glenaladale Papers. MS. 1-13 Factors Accounts to Alexander
Macdonald 1815 to 1824. Clandonald Centre, Skye.
-
MacDonald
of Glenaladale Papers. NAS GD 243 4/14
-
MacDonald
of Glenaladale Papers. NAS GD 243 4/14
-
Hugh
Cheape, Management and Mismanagement in Moidart since
the Seventeenth Century. National Museums of Scotland.
P.34.
-
I.F.Grant.
Highland Folk Ways.Birlinn 1997. Ch IV. P 69-71.
-
Grant
I,F. Highland Folk Ways. Birlinn 1997. ChIV. P75.
-
Hugh
Cheape, Management and Mismanagement in Moidart since
the Seventeenth century. National Museums of Scotland.
P 37-38.
-
Hugh
Cheape, Management and Mismanagement in Moidart since
the Seventeenth Century. National Museums of Scotland.
P36.
-
Devine
T.M. The Great Highland Famine. John Donald 1988. Ch 3.
P58.
-
Hugh
Cheape, Management and Mismanagement in Moidart since
the Seventeenth Century. National Museum of Scotland.
P 34-35.
-
Grant
I.F. Highland Folk Ways. Birlinn 1997. ChIX. P199.
-
Malcolm
Gray, The Highland Economy1750-1850. Edinburgh 1957. Ch
3. P 125-136.
-
Robertson
MacDonald Papers. NLS MS3945
-
Bumsted,
The People’s Clearance.1750-1815. P 85.
-
T.M.
Devine, Clanship to Crofters’ War. Manchester University
Press 1994. Ch9. P 119-134.
-
Smith
Gavin D. The Secret Still. Birlinn 2002. Ch 2. P 48.
-
Alastair
Cameron, St. Finan’s Isle. P 19.
-
National
Library of Scotland MS995 f.55.
-
T.M.Devine,
Clanship to Crofters’ War. P45.
-
Robertson
MacDonald Papers. National Library of Scotland MS 3945.
-
Bumsted,
The People’s Clearance 1770-1815. P57.
-
Bumsted,
The People’s Clearance 1750-1815. P136.
-
Royal
Commission (Highlands and Islands, 1892) p1228-1229.
-
T.M.Devine,
The Great Highland Famine, Ch2-3.
-
Charles
MacDonald, Moidart Among the Clanranalds, Birlinn 1997.
P218-219,
-
John
Watt. Notes in Moidart Among the Clanranalds, Birlinn
1997. P 223.and T.M.Devine, The Great Highland Famine.
P 330. and P 324.
-
Charles
MacDonald, Moidart Among the Clanranalds, Birlinn1997.
P109. Wendy Wood, Moidart and Morar. P 59.
-
Alastair
Cameron, St. Finan’s Isle. P 13. and Corbet Website.
-
Robertson
MacDonald of Kinlochmoidart Papers. National Library of
Scotland. MS 3983. P 61.
-
Robertson
MacDonald of Kinlochmoidart collection. MS. No. 3984.
National Library of Scotland. P 158.
-
Bumsted,
The People’s Clearance 1770-1815. Appendix B. p 240.
-
Robertson
MacDonald of Kinlochmoidart Papers. National Library of
Scotland MS. 3946. P 102.
-
Ardnamurchan
Parish Registers. Sunart Archives. 6.P.F.
-
Alastair
Cameron. St. Finan’s Isle. 1957. P18.
-
Malcolm
Macdonald, Research into Macdonalds of Innes a’ Chulun.
Clandonald Centre, Skye/ Moidart Local History Group Website.
52*.
Nominal Passenger and Disposal Lists, Araminta. Public Records
Office,
Melbourne, Australia.
53*.
Baptismal Records, St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church, Geelong,
Australia.
54*.
Death Registration/Wills? Probate Records, Public Records
Office, Melbourne,
Australia
55*.Cemetery
Records, Eastern Cemetery, Catholic Section, Geelong Historical
Records Centre, Australia.
56.
Ian Whitaker, Two Hebridean Corn-kilns, Gwerin I 1956-1957,
P164-166.
57.Charles
MacDonald, Moidart or Among the Clanranalds. Birlinn 1997.
Page 219.
58.Charles
MacDonald, Moidart or Among the Clanranalds. Birlinn 1997.
Page 212.
59.Elizabeth
B Rennie, Who Built the Platforms?
60.Clanranald
Papers. NAS. GD201/1/281.
61.
Phillip Gaskell, Morvern Transformed-A Highland Parrish in
the Nineteenth Century. Cambridge University Press 1980. Page
158.
63. Robertson MacDonald Papers, National Library of Scotland,
MS 3983 f145
*
All information from Australian Public Records has been researched
by Michael Murray of Melbourne.
Port a' Bhàta in
2004.
Port a' Bhàta is situated on the south
shore of Loch Moidart on and around a promontory dominated
by Torr Port a' Bhàta.
The steep lower slopes of the Torr and the lower parts of
the hillsides to the south of Loch Moidart are covered in
deciduous trees (mainly birch, oak rowan and alder although
some ash, holly and hazel trees are present and a wych-elm
grows in the rock strewn southern slope of the Torr). Mature
trees surround most of the ruined houses with many growing
inside the ruins. Some sycamore and larch grow in the centre
of the settlement. Several very large larch trees appear to
have been planted in a symmetrical pattern in relation to
one of the houses. One of these trees has fallen and caused
a great deal of damage to the house. The same house has a
blackcurrant bush growing in one wall.
Most of the ground that was once used as arable is sited on
land in front of the houses, and in an area to the north of
the Torr. Cultivation ridges can also be seen in a non wooded
area on the west side of the mill bay, and extend into what
is now woodland. Most of this land is now covered in coarse
grass and bracken. The poorly drained areas are covered in
reeds and mosses. Mosses grow thickly under tree cover and
lichens cover rocks and trees. The higher ground and some
of the lower ground is covered with a mixture of coarse grass
and heather.
In the spring, the areas around the buildings and the wooded
slopes are covered with primroses, wood sorrel, celandines,
violets and wild hyacinths.
Tracks and Dykes.
The main approach to the township is by the old track that
passes the abandoned settlement of Briagh. The silver walk,
a path around the shoreline made in the time of Lord Howard
of Glossop in the late 19th century, joins the track just
to the west of Torr Port a' Bhàta.
The well made path passes through the glen to the south of
the Torr and turns northwest towards the main group of house
ruins where it meets the head dyke at a ruined house. The
first addition Ordnance survey map completed in 1875, shows
this track turning north towards the main group of houses,
to the west of the house ruins at 3 and 4. Although this second
route involves negotiating a very steep bank, it is possible
that it was used in the late 1800s when only the house on
the north side of the township was occupied.
The remains of the head dyke can be seen at Port a' Bhàta
running east from a point on the northwest shore of the Torr
Port a' Bhàta peninsula to a point on the west shore
of the bay in front of the mill. Most, but not all of the
dwellings of the township were within the dyke. There are
also dykes forming boundaries between houses, field boundaries
and other smaller enclosures within the area defined by the
head dyke. A stone dyke that still stands to a height of 1m
to 1.2m surrounds an enclosure situated next to the corn kiln
in the heart of the settlement . This may have been a kail-yard.
There appear to be two entrances to this enclosure with steps
leading to the entrance near the corn kiln. A dyke extends
from this enclosure along the high water line to the south
and east and a branch extends south to a steep slope. An oval
enclosure between the houses in the centre of the settlement
was also probably a Kail-yard.
One remarkable high dry stone dyke can be seen to the west
of the most northerly house. This dyke appears to end abruptly,
but the remnants of an earlier turf dyke can be seen extending
north to the shoreline. The dyke is shown clearly on the 1875
map but many other dykes including large parts of the head
dyke are not evident. One ruined house is situated in the
glen to the south of the Torr where there is a dyke crossing
this glen and some small dykes crossing the incline between
the glen and the main settlement.
A wellmade track extends along the shoreline to the west of
the mill towards Port a' Bhàta, and remnants of another
can be discerned extending towards Ardmorlich from a point
on the shoreline east of the mill.
Shoreline.
There are three bays at Port a' Bhàta.
1. The bay at the west end of the glen South of the
Torr (NM68016. 72487).
The beach is made of rough stones. There is also a dyke across
the upper part of the shore just below the high water line
that extends along the side of the burn for a short distance.
Its purpose is unclear but it may have been a boundary dyke
to keep stock in or out. The bay is rich in kelp. Near the
steep slope at the south of the glen, above the flag irises
that grow above the high water mark, there are low stone mounds
covered with moss and vegetation that appear to outline a
structure 7m by 3.5m. These could be clearance but may have
been used for kelp burning.
2. Bay to the east of Torr Port a' Bhàta.
This was the bay for the main part of the township. It is
very muddy with poor kelp growth. The shore is of small irregular
stones with much of the area at the north end cleared of large
stones enabling small boats to be drawn up. Along the rocky
shoreline at the north end of the bay, a stone dyke exists
that extends on to meet the enclosure around the most northerly
house. Near the centre of the bay is a pile of stones projecting
onto the mud that may have been a very short jetty to be used
at high water. A single wooden post projects from the mud
well below high-water level near the centre of the bay that
appears to be the end post of a former fence.
A channel has also been cleared of large stones at the southern
angle of the bay.
3. Bay to the north of the mill.
This bay is very muddy and treacherous. A well made track
winds around the shoreline between the mill and Port a' Bhàta
above the high water line. In the southwestern angle of the
bay, stones have been cleared and piled up making an area
where boats could have been drawn up at high water.
Buildings.
The remains of the buildings at Port a' Bhàta are very
varied. Some buildings had been built mainly of turf and have
nearly melted back into the ground. Low mounds can sometimes
indicate where they once stood. Others have probably disappeared
completely.
The ruined stone walled buildings were all almost certainly
built in the late eighteenth century or 19th century.
An estate map probably prepared shortly after Alexander MacDonald
acquired the land in 1811 shows only seven buildings in the
settlement itself. Five are clustered above the bay to the
east of the Torr where the remains of at least eight substantial
buildings can be seen today. Two were sited to the southeast
of a patch of arable land in the east of the settlement. Although
remains of houses and byres can be seen in this area, the
positions of the ruins do not correspond with the buildings
marked on the old estate map. There were no buildings in the
north of the township in 1811. There does appear to have been
a building near the site of the ruined mill, but it is not
adjacent to the burn. It is possible that the early map was
not entirely accurate and the marked building may represent
the mill. The two buildings marked to the east of the mill
appear to correspond to the ruined buildings with corn-drying
kilns that can be seen today.
From the census records it is evident that there were nine
households in the township in 1841. Two households consisted
of lone women and their homes would probably have been small.
Most of the houses would have had out-buildings associated
with them.
The ruins of earlier stone houses in the township are rectangular,
single storied and of dry stone construction. The corners
are rounded exteriorly but right-angled inside. There is little
evidence of cruck-framed construction in Port a' Bhàta.
The roof would have rested on the top of the walls and would
have been thatched possibly with bere barley straw, reeds,
heather or even bracken. Many of the houses would not have
had dividing walls within. The open hearth would have been
in the centre of the floor and the smoke would have slowly
made its way up through a hole in the thatch. Some of these
round cornered houses did have an interior dividing wall with
a hearth and chimney within the wall. Later houses were built
with square exterior corners and gable ends. Dressed stones
and mortar were used. Hearths and flues were built into the
gable walls. The roofs of these houses were hipped, but except
for the one house built in the late 19th century, they were
probably thatched. One of the houses appears to be a combination
of a round cornered structure with the later addition of a
square cornered gable ended structure. It is likely that the
later part of the house would have been used for human habitation,
while the older rounded cornered end would have been retained
as a byre. There were many thatched roughly built stone byres
and shelters of various sizes and shapes throughout the settlement.
The house built in the 1870s stands out as being of a different
style. It was two storied with gable ends and had a slate
roof.
Most, but not all ruined structures
are listed on the following pages.
Although the mill is not within the township, it is included
because of its proximity and the linkage provided by a well-built
track between the mill and the settlement. The ruined buildings
to the east of the mill, which incorporate corn kilns, are
described because of their proximity and connection with the
mill. Remains along the burns and on the hillsides around
the settlement are also included.
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Key to Map.
1. Ruined house.
This ruined house is situated on a knoll north of the old
track from Briagh to Port a' Bhàta in the steep sided
glen south of Torr Port a' Bhata. The east-facing house of
dry stone construction has a doorway flanked by two small
windows. There are no gable ends and the exterior corners
are rounded. Interiorly the corners are right-angled. There
are no cruck-slots visible. Part of the building is surrounded
by an outer "shell" of rough stone and turf. There
is no definite partition within the house. A very rough stone
wall across the northwest corner makes a small nook. (This
is likely to have been added at a date after habitation to
accommodate an ewe and lamb.)
2. Dyke and ruins on burn side.
A rough stone dyke crosses the glen south of Torr Port a'
Bhàta from the steep escarpment to the north to the
burn. At the southern end of the dyke there is a ruined dry
stone structure with no definite entrance. The south wall
is fairly well constructed but the others are roughly built.
There is an arc of wall to the west of this structure. Abutting
the walls to the south and on the edge of the burn there appear
to be wall foundations enclosing a low space 3.4m by 2.4m
on the bank of the burn. Thus there appears to have been an
earlier building on the bank of the burn that was later dismantled
and the north part adapted to form a rough store or animal
shelter.
3.Ruined house.
This building is situated to the left of the track as it descends
to the east having passed through the glen to the south of
Torr Port a' Bhàta. The building faces roughly east
and has rounded exterior corners. There are no gable ends.
The narrow doorway is placed towards the southern end of the
east wall and there is a tiny window space to the north of
the door in the east wall and a possible cruck-slot near the
window. There is a larger window space in the ruined north
wall. The west wall is badly ruined in places. There is no
definite partition wall within, but considerable amounts of
rubble in the north part of the interior. There is some indication
that there may have been a dividing wall to the right of the
doorway on entering. There is a very rough stone walled small
enclosure in the northeast corner (see structure 1).
4. Ruined house and byre.
This substantial ruined house and probable byre are situated
to the north east of structure3 and to the west of a small
watercourse. The house faces approximately northeast over
arable land towards the loch. The exterior corners of the
house are rounded but the interior corners are right-angled,
and there are no gable ends. Remains of lime-mortar adhere
to the stones in places. The main entrance is in the centre
of the north wall and the lintel is still in place. There
is a window on each side of the door. There is a small window
space in the south wall opposite the entrance. There is a
niche with a double lintel formed by a blocked window in the
west wall. The blocking of this window indicates that the
house was in use before the byre was built close beside this
side of the house. A wall to the left of the entrance doorway
divides the interior of the house. There is a doorway in the
north end of this wall with a stone lintel still in place.
This dividing wall contains the chimney space and the hearth
is open in the room to the east. There is a small niche in
the east wall of the room.
The byre is built adjacent but not joined to the west wall
of the house. The entrance is in the centre of the north wall.
There is no evidence of any window space but the north wall
is very ruined. The remains of a stone dyke encloses an area
of ground to the south and east of the house and a stone dyke
extends eastwards from this as a field boundary and as part
of the head dyke. The small watercourse on the west side of
the wall runs over a step of stone at one point and there
is a boggy area to the north of this. (This could be the remains
of a small dam) A field boundary dyke extends west of the
byre and this is also part of the head dyke.
Just to the south of the dyke behind the house
and with the small watercourse now running through the centre,
are the remains of dry stone walls outlining a former rectangular
building with rounded corners.
5. Ruin of a roughly built building with enclosure filled
with rubble.
Situated on a rise in open ground, this ruined shelter faces
approximately east. There is an entrance in the centre of
the east wall. The corners of the building are rounded and
there are no gable ends. There are no window spaces apparent
and this was probably a store or animal shelter.
To the south of this building is a raised boat shaped area
enclosed by a rough stone dyke. Although a small part of the
west section of this dyke appears to have collapsed there
is no definite entry to the enclosure. The area within the
dyke appears to be filled with rubble and the purpose is unknown.
6. Ruined roughly built building and enclosure.
Sited just south of the track passing along the head dyke
from structure 4 toward the main group of ruined houses, is
this very rough stone subrectangular shelter that has an entrance
to the north. The building has rounded corners and there are
no signs of gables or window spaces. There is a small enclosure
to the rear and to the east of the building with the south
wall of the enclosure built into the steep bank.
7. Ruined roughly built small dry stone shelter.
8. Ruined house with byre attached.
This structure is sited on the north side of a small watercourse
that runs roughly from west to east into the "port".
The building is to the west of the path to the main row of
houses. It is constructed of roughly built dry stone walls
on uneven ground, the side adjacent to the watercourse being
lower than the north side. The structure is in two parts.
The main part of the structure consists of a round cornered
east-facing building without gable ends. This was probably
a house. There are no signs of window spaces but the walls
are ruined and stand to a maximum height of about 1.3m. A
structure with an entrance in the north wall has been built
on to the north. It has a drain hole in the foot of the east
wall and would probably have been a byre.
9. Ruined gable ended house.
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This ruined house stands on the path above
the "port" and faces east. The bank slopes up steeply
at the back of the house and the back wall is partly built
into the bank. The south part of the building has been badly
damaged by a large fallen tree. Most of the walls stand to
a height of approximately 2.6m and are made of large stones
with smaller flat stones placed carefully horizontally around
them. There is evidence of pointing with mortar containing
lime and there is dressed masonry in places such as around
the doorway and at the corners. The corners of the house are
square and the entrance is roughly in the centre of the east
wall. There are window spaces on either side of the door.
The north wall is a gable end and has a chimneybreast and
hearth. The south wall was also a gable end but has been badly
damaged. The south part of the interior contains a great deal
of rubble and hazel trees and it is not possible to easily
tell if there was a hearth in the south wall or if the house
had an interior dividing wall. The house is approximately
11.6m long and 5.2m wide.
This house appears to have been built at a later date than
all the settlement buildings with the exception of the two-storied
house erected in the late 1870s. Although it could have been
built in the early 19th century, it is typical of other neat
mid or late Victorian houses built on the Lochshiel estate.
The date of its construction and occupation remains a matter
of speculation. An unroofed house appears at the location
on the 1876 first Ordnance Survey map, and census returns
indicate that only one family lived at Port a' Bhàta
in 1871 to 1914 and that they lived at the north end of the
settlement. In 1861, a gamekeeper and his family lived at
Port a' Bhàta and it is possible that this house had
been built for this estate employee. In front of the house
there is a flat area and then the bank slopes steeply down
towards the loch. A field boundary dyke encloses an area of
the slope in front of the house and there are some large larch
trees and a holly tree in the enclosure. At the south end
of the terrace in front of the house are the remains of a
small shelter.
The huge larch trees in the enclosure in front of the house,
one of which has fallen on the south gable, appear to have
been planted symmetrically in relation to the house and were
probably planted by people who dwelt there. It may be possible
that dating the trees would indicate when this house was occupied.
10. Ruined house with 5 outbuildings.
This substantial ruined house faces east. The walls are well
constructed of carefully placed stones without mortar and
have tumbled where damaged by growing trees. The building
is single storied with rounded exterior corners and right-angled
interior corners. There are no gable ends and no sign of cruck
frame construction. The building measures 11.53m by 4.88m.
The entrance still has its lintel in place and is flanked
by two windows. There is also a small window in the rear wall.
Five mature trees are growing in the interior (oak ash and
sycamore) and there is no interior-dividing wall visible.
In front of the house is a flat area with some large flat
irregular stones visible under the moss and it appears that
this area was probably paved.
To the rear of the house with the rear walls built into the
steep bank, stand the ruins of three east facing outbuildings.
These are all of rough dry stone construction with round corners.
Above this, there are two dry stone walled shelters built
at the level of the head dyke. Just to the north of the house
there is an oval enclosure that was probably a kail yard.
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11. Corn Kiln and enclosure.
The substantial remains of this corn drying kiln are sited
below a steep bank The back of the kiln is built into the
bank and the rear part of the basin is obscured by mud from
the bank. The flue can be seen on the east side.
To the north of the corn drying kiln is an irregular enclosure
with two entrances, one in the north side and one in the southwest
corner with steps leading towards the kiln.
12. Ruined roughly built building, probably a small byre.
This very ruined roughly built stone building is under the
trunk of a fallen tree, and the uprooting of the tree has
damaged particularly the back wall. The building faces roughly
southeast and the entrance is in the centre of the southeast
wall. It has round corners and there is no evidence of any
window space. There is a roughly built 62cms high platform
against the outside wall just to the north of the entrance.
13. Buildings and features built on and around a spur of
high ground, including a house and a barn.
13 A. This ruined house faces east with the entrance
in the centre of the east wall. The south part of the building
has square cornered walls, which are built of a mixture of
larger stones and smaller flat stones carefully placed horizontally.
The south wall was probably a gable end but is very ruined.
There appear to have been windows in the south and east walls.
At a distance of approximately 6.7m from the south end of
the building there is a dividing gable wall with a hearth
and chimney. The North end of the building is very ruined
but appears to be much earlier than the south (i.e. The south
end appears to have been built onto an earlier building leaving
a gap as an entrance between the two buildings on the east
side.) This north end is very ruined and has rounded corners.
It is not clear where the entrance to this older building
was situated and intriguingly the floor level is considerably
higher than that of the later addition. It is quite possible
that the older part was retained as a store or as a byre but
the higher floor level would have been a problem if animals
occupied it.
13 B. Behind and to the north of A. there are the remnants
of shelters built into the bank.
13 C. In front of A. There is a very ruined roughly
built subrectangular building that is likely to have been
used as a store or byre.
13 D. To the east of A and C there are the remains
of a long building that appears to have had a main entrance
in the east wall and a gap in the west wall. The structure
has round corners and the dry stone walls appear to have been
built with gaps between the stones for ventilation. This was
probably a barn and the floor was probably used for threshing
and winnowing. The structure has been built on a platform,
which has been built up with stone at the south edge.
13 E. Below the steep bank to the south is another
roughly built very ruined stone structure with rounded corners
that is likely to have housed animals.
13 F. Under the steep bank to the north of E. there
are the remains of another roughly built stone shelter with
the rear wall built into the bank. The entrance appears to
have been in the centre of the very ruined front wall.
13 G. To the west of structure F there is a concave
area in the north side of the bank. This hollow has steep
sides and remnants of a dyke can be seen at the top edge of
the bank. There is a line of large rocks at the west end of
the entrance to the hollow. At the east end of the entrance
there is a rock overhang. Stone walls have enclosed the sheltered
space under the overhang and a quantity of rusted rolled up
wire lies there. A very large and ancient hazel tree grows
out of the bank to the south.
13H. On the south side of the promontory is a rock
overhang with a small platform below it. The south edge of
the platform is delineated by a line of stones.
14. Ruined roughly built buildings and features sited against
a bank.
These appear to be the remains of small shelters but at the
southern end low turf mounds outline the position of a large
former sub-rectangular building.
15. Ruined house.
This house is sited just below the head dyke and to the north
of a small watercourse. There was probably arable land in
front of it. Although very ruined, rounded exterior corners
and rectangular interior corners can be seen.
16. House built in the 1870s with outbuildings.
This south-facing house would have been built in the 1870s
and was occupied at that time by the family of Roderick Macdonald.
It is constructed of stones with mortar between. Many of the
stones are shaped. The house had square corners and gable
ends and had two floors and a small lean-to scullery at the
back. There was a dividing wall within the house, which contained
the chimneybreast. Most of this wall has collapsed. Outside
the house is a small collection of rubbish including smashed
bottles, an earthenware jar, part of an enamel bowl and the
base of a metal scales indicating that it was occupied into
the 20th century. The house is surrounded by a walled enclosure,
which extends mainly to the south. The remains of metal posts
and wire, top the enclosing stone dyke. The main entrance
to the enclosure is near the centre of the south dyke and
the main outbuildings are to the west of this entrance.
The west part of the collection of outbuildings is earlier
than the rest and is a rough stone structure with round corners.
There is an entrance in the south side. Part of the east wall
of this structure shows signs of having been built up presumably
to support the roof of buildings later added to the east side.
There is a blocked doorway in this wall but no obvious sign
of blocked windows. The later buildings joined on to the east
side are constructed of smaller flatter stones laid horizontally.
These walls have square corners and enclose two small "rooms"
with entrances to the north side. There is a partitioned space
at the west end next to the wall of the older building that
possibly housed the toilet.
To the north of the main outbuildings and situated on a bank
there are the remains of a small shelter built of rough stones
and with rounded corners. The doorway is in the north wall
and the west wall has been built up to form a small gable.
On the slope below the house to the east there stands the
remains of another small shelter built against a large rock.
Terracotta drainage pipes lie on the ground nearby.
The initials "J M D" are carved into a rock to the
southeast of the house.
There are no buildings on this site on the early 19th century
estate map.
The main house does not appear on the first Ordnance survey
map of 1875. The parts of the outbuildings with rounded corners
do appear. At that time there was a building standing near
the site of the later house. The long axis of this structure
was north/south. It possibly stood just east or northeast
of the later house.
17. Small stone jetty.
18. High stone dyke.
This dyke varies from approximately 1.5m to 2.15m in height.
There is one obvious gateway but there are also two large
gaps that have at one time been filled by high wire fencing.
It suddenly ends in rough open ground and its purpose is unclear.
It possibly follows part of an earlier dyke that extended
to the loch shore and may have been built in sections as part
of a relief project in the 1840s.
19. Remnants of circular shelter.
Stone and turf mounds outline a former small circular structure
with an entrance to the south east This was possibly a shieling
hut.
20. Remains of shieling huts.
On high ground to the southeast of the Torr there are a series
of remains consisting of low mounds that indicate the past
existence of oval or subrectangular shelters. These are probably
the remains of shieling shelters and indicate that the site
of Port a' Bhàta was used for summer grazing before
becoming a township.
21. Stone outlines of two roughly built buildings and lazy
beds with clearance cairns.
These are sited in woodland west of the bay in front of the
mill.
22. Ruined house with enclosure.
This ruined house faces northeast across the bay of loch Moidart
into which Allt a'Mhuilinn flows. The rough dry stone walls
mainly stand to a height of approximately 1.7m but the wall
to the northwest of the entrance is very ruined. The building
is round cornered exteriorly but has rectangular interior
corners. There are no gable ends or interior partitions. The
house is surrounded by a walled enclosure.
23. Ruined roughly built rectangular building and outline
of small shelter.
Both these structures stand in the southwestern angle of the
bay north of the mill. The area of shoreline below the ruins
has been cleared for boats to be drawn up. Since only shallow
draft craft could be brought in and only at high tide, it
seems unlikely that charcoal would have been loaded at this
place.
24. Mill.
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The ruined mill is built on the west bank
of the burn and faces north across the loch. It has square
corners and gable ends. The walls are constructed of mainly
flat stones (some shaped) and lime mortar. The entrance is
in the centre of the north wall. There are two window spaces
that appear as narrow slits exteriorly but widen interiorly.
One is situated at the east end of the north wall and the
other towards the east end of the south wall. Mill windows
were shaped like this to minimise drafts that would blow the
meal dust about. There is a gap centrally placed in the lower
part of the east gable end wall where the shaft was housed.
There is also a narrow gap in this wall at ground level near
the south east corner. The floor of the building is covered
in rubble. A millstone projects from the rubble near the southeast
corner.
Outside and adjacent to the east gable end wall there is a
shallow ditch containing large stone slabs where the water
wheel was sited. To the north of this ditch is the end of
a built up bank which once supported the leat (lade). This
can be followed up the glen to a point where water could have
been diverted from Allt a' Mhuillinn. Old tracks along the
loch shore can be traced to the east and the west.
The mill was well built with the use of lime mortar and some
dressed stones. The exterior corners were rectangular. It
would have been built by the estate, and was probably sited
on Loch Moidart with the intension of using it to process
both locally grown grain and any brought into the coast from
the Islands. From information contained in a manuscript proposing
improvements to the Kinlochmoidart Estate63,
it is clear that the mill was already derelict by 1800 and
had been abandoned because of an inadequate water supply.
Although there appears to be the remnants of a possible dam
upstream, it is not clear if this was ever complete or was
positioned in a suitable place to form a large millpond.
The proposed improvements to the Kinlochmoidart estate included
a suggestion that an attempt could be made to obtain the internal
mechanism from the mill at Port a' Bhàta to be used
in a new mill to be built on the opposite shore. This plan
was probably carried out since there is no trace of any iron
machinery in or around the ruined building
25. Structures along the mill burn including a probable
still site.
A. The support for the mill leat (lade) can be followed up
the burn for several hundred meters.
B. Some distance above the end of the leat (lade) support
on a steep section of the burn there is a wide area of piled
up stones and boulders that encroaches on the burn and could
be the remains of a dam.
C. A short distance upstream from the dam remains there are
the remains of rough stone walls on the east bank. The structure
that stood on this site may have had something to do with
the mill pool or could have been a still site.
D. Upstream, just where the gorge opens out into a wider bowl,
there are the remains of very rough stone walls that have
been built out from a large rock overhang to enclose a space
7.1m by 4.3m. This structure may have been used for illicit
distillation but could also have been associated with two
probable oval shieling shelters on higher ground just to the
east.
E. Upstream, the glen narrows again and is crossed and recrossed
by the remains of a dyke. On the west bank, at a point where
the gorge is fairly narrow and steep sided, there are rough
stone walls that enclose a roughly oval space approximately
6.2m by 3.7m. To the west of this, built into the steep bank,
is a small oval chamber approximately 1.85m by 2.5m which
communicates with the larger structure by a gap only 60cms
wide and 1m tall. The stone walls of the inner chamber slope
inwards as if the chamber once had a domed roof. There is
a shallow water channel to the north that now drains seepage
from the steep bank into the burn. There are no shieling hut
remains in the close vicinity and the site is well hidden
and quite difficult to access. This was almost certainly the
site of an illicit still.
26. Ruined buildings with corn kilns.
Along the coast to the east and around the promontory from
the mill is a group of ruined buildings and corn-drying kilns.
A northeast-facing round cornered irregularly shaped dry stone
building is built against a steep bank. The remains of a corn
kiln are set into the bank 2m to the south of this building
.The flue of the kiln can be seen on the east side.
Down the slope and to the north are the ruins of a substantial
dry stone round-cornered building that was probably a house.
The entrance is in the centre of the south wall. There are
no discernable window spaces but the south wall is very ruined.
The remains of round cornered walls outline a former building
measuring approximately 5m by 4.3m. built against the north
wall of the house. Within the north part of this added building
there is a platform with an oval depression in the centre.
The depression is stone lined and has the appearance of being
the bowl of a very small kiln. A possible internal flue entrance
can just be discerned in the south side. Between the south
of the platform and the wall of the main building is a low
area filled with rubble. Corn-drying kilns of similar design
in South Uist and Benbecula have been described by Ian Whitaker
who reported that others had been reported elsewhere including
mainland sites56.
In the angle between the rear wall of the main building and
this very ruined structure is a larger corn-drying kiln of
the usual design for the Moidart area. Its flue faces north.
The site of this kiln is puzzling because if the main building
was in use at the time the kiln was in use, the thatched roof
of the main building would have overhung the kiln.
These corn kilns were probably used to dry grain to be ground
at the nearby mill. The very small kiln set into a platform
or sorn in an outbuilding added on to the north of a substantial
house appears to be far too small to have been intended for
use in drying grain for the mill. Perhaps it and the house
were present before the mill was built. The area of land divided
into fields to the south of the ruins indicates that at some
point this could have been a homestead inhabited by people
cultivating the surrounding land.
These ruined kilns are in an out-of-the-way site and are likely
to have been used in the malting of barley used in the illegal
distillation of whisky since remains of structures that could
have been used to conceal stills can be seen along the mill
burn to the south.
27. Remains of shieling huts.
These structures are all situated on the hillside along the
burn running north from the direction of Ben Bhreac down the
steep slope south of Port a' Bhata before it turns west to
run through the glen to the south of Torr Port a' Bhata to
enter Loch Moidart. The outline of fourteen probable shieling
shelters can be discerned. Some consist of low turf mounds
outlining circular or oval shelters but others consist of
rough stone walls. One subrectangular structure built on the
bank of the burn with its entrance directly adjacent to the
water has substantial walls built mainly of thick stone slabs
piled horizontally to a height of 1m. The walls enclose an
area measuring approximately 5.5m. by 3m. This could have
been a small animal enclosure but may have been a shelter.
It may have been used for dairy work because of its proximity
to the burn.
28. Ruined shelter on a burn, possibly
a still site.
This rough stone shelter is sited on the bank of the burn
that eventually enters the southwest corner of the bay in
front of the mill. It is fairly well hidden and has been built
immediately adjacent to the water. There are no other shelters
nearby.
29. Ruined structure high on the hillside.
Low stone walls built against a gently sloping bank enclose
a space with a wide opening to the north. The purpose of this
structure is unknown.
30. Recessed platforms.
There are three recessed platforms on the west slopes of the
Torr.
Two have front edges built up with dry stone walls. The third
has a front edge raised by a low turf bank. These platforms
may have been pre-medieval house sites that would probably
have been used for later charcoal production, or they may
have been built by the charcoal burners (colliers) in the
late 18th century.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
My thanks go to the landowners Colin Corlett
and Suzanne Stevens for granting access to the township, providing
helpful advice and access to the early estate map. My thanks
also go to all the following who gave advice information and
guidance: Gordon Barr, Jean Cameron, Jim Kirby, John Dye,
Jean Lawson, Tearlach MacFarlane, Angus Peter MacLean, Alasdair
Roberts and Iain Thornber. My thanks also go to Michael Murray
in Australia and Allan Gillis in Canada.
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