Cromarty Archive

Hugh Miller's Birthplace - c1865

Hugh Miller's Birthplace - c1865

Date Added: 24 May 2005 Contributor: Martin Gostwick Year: 1865 Picture No: 1197

Painting by Harriet Miller captioned
'My Father's Birthplace' 'With Harriet's Love'.

The monument was built in 1859, so this must have been painted after that date.

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Albums: Buildings, Hugh Miller, Paintings and Prints

5 Comments

This is an interesting piece of local architectural history, it's from old paintings such as this that we get an idea of what many of the houses now demolished, looked like. This looks like it was painted ten years (plus, minus) after Miller shot himself. Some of the window details are suspect, but the drying fish certainly tell us about a way of life now gone! Comment left on 24 May 2005 at 17:57 by Clem Watson
Did Hugh Miller shoot himself Clem I wasnt aware of that we had a huge portrait of him in our house in Jemimaville I have no idea why but I recently found out that the house I grew up in was either designed or built by him maybe you could find out up there. My grandmother owned the house she was Mrs Catherine Mackay my mother was Isabel Mackay we were quite well known Id be very very interested to learn "Anyone?" Comment left on 24 May 2005 at 20:58 by Anonymous
Drying fish outside is not that long gone Clem. When I was a wee boy in Scalloway in Shetland in the early 60's every other house seemed to have Saithe hung on lines outside to cure and dry. Anybody remember that in Cromarty? Comment left on 24 May 2005 at 21:08 by Calum Davidson
I certainly remember fish being dried in Cromarty sixty years ago, in the lanes adjacent to Seabank,
my grandparents house, but certainly not as recently as the '60's in Cromarty. Sa't herring from Matheson's, or 'poached' salmon, sea trout, and mullet were more easily obtained from under a bright yellow 'ileskin' any day in Summer! Orkney/Shetland/Lewis still retain fish drying this way.
Relative to Cromarty, very few of the non locals would know, currently, if a kipper swam flat or folded!
Comment left on 25 May 2005 at 13:47 by Clem Watson
you're making my moo' watter at the thought of "yalla fish" and kippers! Some bad imitations are available in the supermarkets, here in the San Francisco area, but nothing like the real thing! Maybe I'm looking in the wrong places! Comment left on 26 May 2005 at 00:37 by Margaret
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