In our own words
In Our Own Words: Voices from the Collections
This year Perth & Kinross Archive are launching the In Our Own Words project to catalogue our rich collection of oral histories. Through the voices of those who lived and worked in Perth & Kinross between the early twentieth and twenty-first centuries we celebrate the unique histories and cultural traditions that shaped the landscape and people of Perth & Kinross.
Thanks to funding from Archives Revealed this collection, unique to our region, will be accessible for the first time, allowing us to develop a richer understanding of the past crafts, industries, agriculture, recreation and home life of Perthshire.
In this exhibition we invite you to listen to a small sample from the Perth & Kinross Sound Archive, a collection of recordings made in the 1980s where rural residents share their memories of living and working on the land.
TA1986/5A James McLaren
James McLaren was a dairy farmer at Dargill Farm, Crieff, Perthshire. In this recording, made in 1986, he reminisces on life as a dairy farmer including some of the processes of dairy farming, machine milking for the first time, transporting milk to market and his family’s history with farming. (Run time: 23:20:00)
TA1986/8B Lizzie Henderson
Lizzie Henderson was a domestic servant at Corsiehill, Perth. In this recording, made in 1986, she reminisces on life as a servant including feeding the family, work parties from the prison, the arrival of the packman and doctors and home remedies. (Run time: 12:19:00)
TA1986/28B Jimmy Morton
Jimmy Morton was a farmer at Stobhall Mains, by Guildtown, Perthshire. In this recording, made in 1986, he reminisces on life as an arable farmer including crop rotation, the land, historic landmarks in Cargill Parish and the threshing mill. (Run time: 20:10:00)
TA1968/31A Ella Kirk y
Ella Kirk was a farmer at Kaimknowe Farm, Glendevon, Perthshire. In this recording, made in 1986, she reminisces on life as a farmer including the livestock at Kaimknowe, the old roads around Gleneagles, the sale of wool and building hay ricks. (Run time: 22:57:00)
TA1986/40A Tom Jarvis y
Tom Jarvis was a fisherman at Ferryfield of Carpow, Perthshire. In this recording, made in 1986, he reminisces on life as a fisherman including the process of fishing with cobble and net, living in the bothies, stake net fishing and maintaining the riverbank. (Run time: 22:26:00)
TA1986/40B Sandy Gray y
Sandy Gray was a cattle man at West Rhynd, Perthshire. In this recording, made in 1986, he reminisces on life as a cattle man including working in the hills at Glenlivet, farm conditions in the 1930s, working with horses and how to identify a good bull. (Run time: 22:48:00)
TA1986/32A Ogg Lawrence y
Ogg Lawrence was a thatcher at Kirktoun of Rait, Perthshire. In this recording, made in 1986, he reminisces on life as a thatcher including his early years fencing and digging drains, where he sourced reeds, the process of thatching and the tools used. (Run time: 23:22:00)