NEWS

 

High Heid Yins!

Stan, our chairman, welcomes the Chief of our Clan Sir Charles and accompanied by Lady Fergusson along with their son Adam and his wife Jenny to his Ardmaleish boatyard on the Isle of Bute. Adam is the President of the Clan Society.

 

 

Welcome To New Life Members!

A belated welcome to Colin Renwick Ferguson our DNA sleuth and genealogist in USA who joined some time ago. Sorry this has taken so long Colin! As previously mentioned we also welcome David John Powell in Germany and David Grorge Rowley in USA. Thank you all for the support

 

 

 

THE GATHERING 2009

 

www.clangathering.org

 

The Society have reserved accommodation in the Stirling University Management Centre from 22nd July until the morning of 30th July. ( View www.smc.stir.ac.uk )This is a commercial arm of the University and has just completed an upgrade with victualling facilities, meeting rooms, and around 200 bedrooms. Patrons are free to use the campus for leisure activities such as swimming.

Cost quoted at £35 for bed and breakfast per day, but there may be a small percentage increase by next July. Deposits are required now of 10%, which amounts to £25 for the full week.

Overseas deposits will be accepted as Bankers' Drafts in sterling made payable to Clan Fergus(s)on Society, and forwarded to the Treasurer Mrs Madge Caution, 4 Buchan Road, Perth, PH1 1NH, Scotland, UK. Group activities will be arranged by the Society, transport organised, and these transport costs will be shared. All involved are invited to our AGM whether members in UK or not.

For the weekend of the Gathering in Edinburgh we have reserved tented accommodation in the tented village (bring your shooting stick, only a few chairs), but it is the responsibility of individuals to acquire passports  which cover all activities, or other individual tickets e.g. Highland Games, as necessary. Keep a check on the web site and it is advantageous to register as an interested party to receive updates. (View www.clangathering.org ).

To all members of the Society and to all who wish to join us, I urge them to make plans now and please let me know what they are. This also includes all residing in UK.

 

.PROGRAMME

 

July 22nd

Arrive Stirling Management Centre after 12 noon

 

  July 23rd 

Civic Reception by Stirling City Council - evening time 5 p.m.

            Fit in local visits to Stirling Castle/Wallace Monument

 

July 24th

Visit Burn's cottage Ayr/ move on to Kilkerran House home of our Chief Sir Charles Fergusson. In the evening at our Stirling residence he will receive members and guests at 7 pm followed by dinner and a ceilidh (Scottish social evening).

 

July 25th/26th

The Gathering Edinburgh - tents ordered - see Gathering web site and worth registering as an interested party for up to date info. Also consider passports - a personal choice.

 

July 27th

Sail on Loch Katrine (Sir Walter Scott's Lady of the Lake) during day

        

July 28th

Killiekrankie Day trip including Moulin Kirk Heritage Centre & Edradour Distillery

 

July 29th

Bannockburn (scene of Robert the Bruce's Battle)/ Falkirk Wheel (modern canal lock)

AGM in evening

 

More details of times and outings will be available in Centre on Clan Noticeboard when in residence and with travel details.

Each person will be responsible for their own residential accounts including food and beverages, a share of the costs incurred in group travel and hire of function rooms (excluding AGM), and incidentals such as newspapers. The sports facilities are available to the residents e.g. swimming.

Please access on internet www.smc.stir.ac.uk to obtain details. Please liaise with me if clarification required on any matter. (dochie_doh@yahoo.co.uk)

 

July 30th 

For Auld Land Syne - Departure by 10 a.m

 

 

 

Falkirk Wheel
   
Stirling Castle
   
Wallace Monument
   
Robert the Bruce

 

 

July 30th Auld Lang Syne! Departure by 10 a.m.

 

 

 

 

 

The Clan Fergus(s)on Society

Report of ANNUAL GATHERING in Swallow Fisher's Hotel,

PITLOCHRY, on Saturday 24th May '08

 

                         

 

REPORT:

"GUID GEAR GAES INTO SMA' BULK"

And so it was when 25 loyal CLAN members met at this venue, with quality rather than quantity to the fore. An informal Friday evening was  pleasantly passed catching up with each other on the gossip front with the odd libation thrown in. Although the Hotel was being upgraded and refurbishment  taking place, we were immune from this apart from entering via a temporary wooden door!

The AGM on the Saturday morning, chaired by Stan, went smoothly and thanks to all  present, and to all who contributed in their own way to the meeting. It would not be invidious to mention new members who were present, namely Anne Guild, Maralyn Donnelly, and Neil Ferguson from a' the airts, - Essex, St. Andrews, and Ayrshire respectively. It is not intended to post the minutes here, but it must be mentioned that Meg Fergusson of Baledmund (just up the road) was presented with an arresting photo sent by the Hon Ralph Ferguson from Canada, and taken at the Fergus Highland Games whilst on a North American  visit by the.Clan Society from Scotland. An interesting snippet was that Neil Ferguson's grandfather was the last postmaster on St Kilda, an island still very much in the news despite its complete depopulation. And lastly, but not least, subscription costs will be up for discussion at the next AGM, and this before the recent gloomy economic forecasts - so we are ahead of the game!!

The Saturday afternoon was free time and this was taken up by many invitees of Viviennes' to visit the Moulin Church Heritage Centre in the nearby village of Moulin. This display in a most attractive and striking Church depicts historical aspects of the area, and where a section is reserved for the Fergussons of Dunfallandy. Worth a visit for anyone in the area, and with a nice cup of tea/coffee too!!

The Sat evening Reception, Dinner and Ceilidh went well, the latter being augmented by a party of Swedish tourists who joined in the dancing and succeeded in winning  many of our raffle prizes - but the Vikings were good at pillaging!  However on this occasion the ladies were left untouched, and they did buy the tickets! Thank you to our overseas friends for their company.

As at previous Saturday Ceilidhs, the music was provided by Roger Sharp who had travelled from Balquhidder Glen with "box" and "pipes". As Rabbie Burns wrote in Tam o' Shanter:- "He screwed the pipes tae mak them skirl, till roof and rafter a' did dirl". Because of a family wedding we missed out on our Crawford Clan Highland dancers. Next year girls? A few hardy souls finished the night off, or should it be morning, with a few nightcaps. Good on them!

Sunday, a day of rest for some, was taken up by two car loads visiting Culloden and the new Visitor Centre. The weather was excellent, and we were delighted to see our Clan stone in the Walkway. The centre was busy, an international flavour, but perhaps a second visit is necessary to appreciate and take in all facets of such an impressive building with displays, artefacts, and dining facilities. The Battlefield has not changed, and the sense of reverence, awe, and sadness still grip one.

 

 

                               

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Honorary Secretarys' Comments

 

I take on the mantle of this bunch of renegades in my bar at home, in particular wearing different hats.

Firstly I put on my balmoral, with the Clan Crest of course, to say thank you to all who have corresponded with me, mostly by e-mail. To the new members I say welcome and thank you for your support and to remind all involved that the success of this Society is the sum of all the parts and the collective input of the members.

Recruitment/Officebearers: I remove my balmoral and put on my tin hat to fend off the bricks while delivering this lecture! Recruitment, and particularly of the younger variety, is necessary to stimulate and nurture the organisation. It behoves all of us to encourage young blood, so start by looking around your families first, and then further afield.  The advert in the Scots Magazine is continuing for another year asking interested parties to access the web site and can be found under Ancestry Research in small adverts section at the rear.

Society Gathering & AGM 2009: This is being held in conjunction with "The Gathering 2009" which is being held in Edinburgh on the weekend of July 25/26 2009. Please see separate report on this meeting.

Looking forward to meeting up with you, no matter what hat you are wearing!

Duncan

 

 

 

The Culloden Centre

 

 

Whilst wearing a busby in deference to the outcome, the official opening was held on the 16th April this year, the anniversary of the battle. The walkway will include the Society granite stone, and despite an initial flurry of grateful donations from members reaching a third of the cost, apathy seems to have crept in. Donors need not be members of the Society, they are referred to as friends on the inscription, so please "tap" as many others as you can pointing out this is an unique situation in Scottish history and a memorial in perpetuity. Our overseas fans are especially welcome and we look forward to them firming up on their verbal support. Treasurer's address inside front cover of Newsletter. ( The phrase "I was theeerr" should be avoided!).

Check www.cullodenwalk.org.uk

 
Photo of our Stone in situ  
 
   
 
   
 
   
 

 

 

 

CANADIAN COUSINS

Six generations ago a 90 year old left the Comrie St Fillans area in 1818 with his wife and 4 sons. Now this up to date photo has arrived, so watch this space!

We were delighted to welcome Donna Mae Ferguson (see above) to the Clan Picnic along with her husband Emmett Griffiths.

They were exploring their roots here with Donna particularly interested in St Fillans.

She knows her forbears left the area and sailed on the SS Curlew to Canada in 1818

Emmett's family came from Thornhill Dumfriesshire

 

The Griffiths Family

Thank you Donna for the interesting and fascinating pictorial story of your trip here in Scotland. The DVD was expertly crafted and produced and will be a poignant addition to our archives.

 

 

Clan Picnic

 

Held on Sunday 7th September 2008

Thanks once more to the Fergusson Family at Kilkerran for making us so welcome with BBQ facilities, tea or coffee, and a conducted tour of historical areas of the house by Sir Charles. Unfortunately, Adam his son was absent because of flying commitments, but brother Joe was an able deputy. Thanks to Emmet and Donna Griffiths from Canada for their contribution to the picnic which included maple syrup and tablet, Stan for his "bubbly", and young Jamie for his hair raising acrobatics with a remote controlled plane.

Lastly, thank you to all who supported this event.

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
 
 

 

   

The Culloden Walk

 

The National Trust for Scotland is now the custodian of this internationally significant site. As part of the 2007 Year of Highland Culture, the Trust will open a brand new Visitor Centre. Funds need to be raised; hence the Culloden Walk.
Feed back is invited to this website from our Clan Society members, and indeed any non member, concerning sponsorship of a stone. Fergus(s)ons were present on both sides. Just like any happy family!  Full details at www.cullodenwalk.org.uk

 

ATTENTION


At the last AGM it was agreed to support the Culloden Walkway by sponsoring a stone. The original details of this Walkway are available on the website link, and this is still so. The project has recently been activated, and an Insignia Stone with the inscription " Clan Fergus(s)on Society Members and Friends" will be incorporated in the Walk, using Caithness granite.
Now we invite members of the Society, and indeed non members (friends) to support this sponsorship and donate a sum of their choice. The Clan Society will keep a list of donors in their Records, publishing names, but not individual sums, of the supporters.
Like so many Scottish Clans, Fergus(s)ons were involved on both sides, and the motivation by the Society is not a "declaration of intent" for either side, but to commemorate this uprising of 1745, and on 16th April 1746, the last major battle on British soil, as an historical event. For those hazy about their history, this was an attempt by the supporters of the deposed Stuart Kings to re-establish their monarchy and reinstate Prince Charles Edward Stuart ( Bonnie Prince Charlie) on the throne of Great Britain. The ruling Monarch was George the Second, a Hanoverian. It was his son, the Duke of Cumberland, who defeated this Jacobite army at the battlefield of Culloden, just outside Inverness.
Now we have a further opportunity to write our name in history as a Scottish Clan and maintain and promote the bonds we have with so many of our kith and kin throughout the world.

Please support our aims and send donations to our Treasurer, Mrs Madge Caution (a Balquhidder Fergusson), at 4 Buchan Road, PERTH, PH1 1NH

P.S. We have already received £300 towards our target of £1500, and the fund has just been opened. 'Every mickel maks a muckle.' Don't be too late. THANK YOU!


 

 

Digging up your Fergus(s)on Roots

Is this near the bone? Of course, but the 'funny bone', so please access information on Historical Section if you are interested in your ancestry. Thank you!

 

Douce France!

It is a well known fact that Scotts are all over the world... And some not so far away at all:

'Alliance France-Ecosse' : www.alliance-france-ecosse.com

 

Curling - A Scottish Game

The Lake of Menteith in reflective mood

Approval from the Lake of Menteith

The Lake is where winter curling is carried out, including a Grand match between the North and South of Scotland when the ice is thick enough!

     
On 6th August a small group visited Robert Fergusson's grave in Canongate where a wreath was laid.

Thank you to those involved

Date for your diary:

Visit to Robert Fergusson's grave at Cannongate: 2009 date to be announced.

 

 

 

New Zealand Branch...

 

Alan!

 

Thanks for mail and News of Scottish Clan's Association Dinner. We note that Guest of Honour was George Fergusson,

 the British High Commissioner in the country and his good lady wife. The former is of Kilkerran stock.

Our best wishes to all Fergus(s)ons and related septs in the country.

 

 

Clan Society in Australia

 

Duncan & Kathleen were delighted to have a visit from Mrs Carole Bancroft & her husband Graham,

President and Secretary respectively of the Clan Society in Australia whilst touring in Scotland.

Thank you for calling and best wishes to all members Down Under

 

 

A Canadian Ferguson Wedding!

 

Duncan & Betty Ferguson are delighted to announce the marriage of their son Ian to Kendra

   

Family reunion for the wedding.

Duncan & Betty standing to the right of the bride

 

 

From Holland... with Love!

A memorial to a Ferguson family, discovered in Cowal, with thanks to the Dutch lady who uncovered it and provided these two pictures:

 

Els' message: This is the  stone on the hill near Melldalloch,  between Kames and Kilfinnan.On the stone is the name of  Derrick Ronald Haddon Ferguson, Ceylon 1910 – Scotland 1992 and his wife Betsy Annis Ferguson  born Eustace 1911   England 2001

 Els 't Hooft

 

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Kilkerran Cup

This picture shows the Kilkerran Cup being presented to the winning owner at Ayr Races in September 2005 by Jenny, the wife of Sir Charles' son Adam.

The Cup was again won in 2006 but for a race sponsored by Saga Radio. The history of this trophy seems to be elusive in both Kilkerran and Ayr Race Course!

 

Know Your DNA!

Colin Ferguson is searching away... Please take a moment to visit this site.

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~colin/Ferguson/DNA/

 

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Seamus Stra-Chur

Picture courtesy of the late Mrs Highgate whose father W. Pettigrew Ferguson 

was treasurer of the Clan Society during its first formation.

 

MERCHANDISE

CLAN STICK PIN £2.50
SCARF £7.50
CAP £15.00
TIE WITH TARTAN £6.00
TIE WITH CLAN CREST £11.00
SWEAT SHIRTS WITH CLAN CREST £24.00
CREST BADGE £9.00
KEY RING £1.50 & £9.00 (art pewter)
PENS £1.00 for two
POST CARDS £0.20 each
TARTAN TO ORDER
For further details please contact: Mrs Elizabeth Crawford, Merchandising Officer, Stuck Farm, North Bute, Isle Of Bute PA20, Scotland   -   Tel: 01700 503 743 Fax: 01700 502 257

NB: Prices include VAT but not Post & Packing

 

CLAN CENTRE

Our Clan Centre at Stronvar, Balquhidder, has had to be mothballed*! The Society is having difficulty locating another

 home and are open to ideas and suggestions. 

Nevertheless, the Society is still keen to collect memorabilia and associated material.

*This means that the centre is closed!

 

          

CURRENT MEMBERSHIP SUBSCRIPTIONS:

Ordinary: £7.00; Family: £12.00; USA $25.00; Life: £100.

Enquiries to interim Honorary Secretary : dochie_doh@yahoo.co.uk

 

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