News
A Very Happy New Year to all of you!
Please note, there is a change of both the date and the topic covered by the March talk. A slide presentsation by Sam Everington on 100 Postcards of Appin & Benderloch from 1900 to the 1970s will now take place on Saturday 30th March at 2.30, replacing the planned talk on March 16th.
The programme of talks for 2023/4 got underway on Saturday 16th September with a fascinating talk by Bruce Keith about the bridges of Scotland, and was well attended.
This was followed by an extremely interesting talk by Ailsa Clarke, who was brought up on Lismore, on Dr Elsie Inglis. Ailsa is passionate about telling the little-known but remarkable story of Elsie Inglis and her work in the Scottish Womens' Hospitals in the First World War.
The Lighthouse Exhibition Annniversary event was very well attended with a fascintating talk by Eric Smith about the history of the Northern Lighthouse Board, followed by a Q & A session where Iain talked with Moira Thomson about her time living in lighthouses. A way of life that no-one now will experience.
The AGM in December brought a close to the year. Following the usual AGM business, Becky Coope gave a brief talk on the history of the Appin area in the first half of the 20th century, through the eyes of landscape artists of the time, after which welcome festive refreshments were enjoyed by all.
In January, Alastair McDermott gave an intriguing talk on Scotland's link with Spain through history. He assures us that there are many more anecdotes in addition to those that he had time to share with us, so another talk may well be on the cards in the future.
The hall was packed to the gunwales for Susan Kemp's personal and passiontate account of the extraodinary escape of three Ballachulish men (one of them her uncle) from the Germans in 2nd World War France. A tape recording of the escape in the men's own voices added to the poignanacy of this presentation.
We ended the season a bit later than normal, on a sunny Easter Saturday. An enthusiastic and knowledegable audience contributed greatly to Sam Everington's interactive presentation of over 100 postcards from his collection, which featured Appin and Benderloch. Trips down memory lane for many of us and a fitting end to a hugley enjoyable series of talks.
Look out for next year's programme later in the summer!
Members will be kept up-to-date and reminded of future meetings by email as well as on this website. We recommend that you check here on the morning of the relevant meeting for any change of plan.
The next edition of the Archive magazine is now at the printer and should be with you in the next weeks. We hope that you enjoy it.
Sales of the larger book, Appinarchived, are going well. It is available, along with a range of past Archives, in local shops, at our monthly talks and through this site. Please visit the 'Publications for Sale' page of the website for details of the contents of the publications. All would make a perfect gift for anyone with an interest in and love for Appin! A second edition of Appinarchived is planned for later in the year.
The "Appin and District: A Visitor Guide including the island of Lismore" (revised July 2021) is also available. Including updated walks and Appin and Duror history.
If you wish to place an order for any of these publications, please email us on appinhistoricalsocietymail@gmail.com for cost, including postage and packing. We can accept payment only by £Sterling cheque, cash or BACS.
