Generation 1 - The Shepherd from Traquair [William Scott (born about 1755) and Euphemia Smail (born about 1755)]

The earliest generation of our family that I have found records for are William Scott and his wife Euphemia Smail.  They were both born sometime between 1749 and 1759...over 250 years ago.  An 1855 death record of their son states that William (the father) was a shepherd from Traquair Parish.

Traquair is in  Peeblesshire which is one of the 4 counties that make up the Border Counties of Scotland. Locate Edinburgh on the map below and travel about 20 miles straight south on the A703 road to reach Peebles.  The A72 road east of Peebles takes you to Innerleithen and Traquair is situated directly to its south on the B709.



Kathy and I have visited the Borders several times over the years and during the summer of 2011 we rented a lovely terraced cottage in Peebles, the largest town in the county of Peeblesshire.  The best part of the visit was that a newly found cousin, Jean, joined us in Peebles and toured the countryside with us for a few days.

                                          Our Peebles' cottage is on the left bank of the canal, 2011.

Peebles is very picturesque and lies alongside the historical Tweed River. A short stroll up the Tweed from Peebles takes you to Neidpath Castle.  Situated high up the river's bank one can see how Neidpath provided its residents with a great view of the Tweed which at one time meant a great view of any invaders travelling up the Tweed, whether they be from England or from rival Scottish clans.

                                         
                                                               









                                                             



                                                                   Neidpath Castle

                                                               
                                                            Tweed River below Neidpath.

Scott is a very historical name in the Borders and residents with that name can be found in most towns and areas around the Borders.  On the other hand there have been very few Smail families in the Borders over the past couple of centuries therefore it surprised me to find that a primary tourist attraction of the Peebleshire area is the Robert Smail Printing Works located in the village of Innerleithen.  Now owned and operated by the National Trust of Scotland the print shop was established in 1866 by Robert Smail but I haven't yet found a connection between him and our Euphemia.

Just south of Innerleithan on the B709 is the famous Traquair House which dates back to 1107.  Link to Traquair House: http://www.traquair.co.uk/.  Originally a hunting lodge for Scotland's Kings and Queens Traquair House has long been owned by the Stuart family.  Its colourful history included providing safety for Catholic priests during times of terror for them and support for Mary Queen of Scotts and the Jacobite Rebellions.  Over the centuries the reivers and bandits in the hill country around Traquair were replaced by sheep and it's no surprise that our William was therefore occupied as a shepherd there in the later part of the 1700's.  As the Stuarts where the major land owners of the area it's likely that our shepherd was employed by them.

Travelling on the B709 southward from Traquair House we quickly came upon a small group of houses and Traquair Church.

Traquair Church, 2011, with rolling hills in background.

A bronze plaque in the churchyard explains that a church has been at Traquair since 1116 and that the present parish church was erected in 1778...about a year before my Great Great Great Grandfather was born in Traquair Parish. The plaque also states that buried in the churchyard is David Bel who died in 1691.  Upon his tombstone is carved a pair of scissors and flat-iron to denote his trade as a tailor.  Remember the Bel name and his trade because it will come up again in a later posting.  

As we continued our drive south on the B709 we next climbed into the very hills where our shepherd would have tended his flock.  To give you some sense of their humble and meagre living conditions during the late 1700's click on the link below and scroll down to the photograph that shows the cottage of a shepherd named Jaimie Tait who lived in neighbouring Dryhope Haugh till the late 1800's.  Mr. Tait's cottage was typical of the farming cottages found in these parts and therefore it's probable our shepherd lived in something quite similar:   http://heritagehub.tumblr.com/post/1091447160/emigration-in-1848 .

Scotland's famous novelist, Sir Walter Scott, grew up in nearby Ashetiel and walked these very hills collecting stories and poems about Scotland's past from the local characters he met along the way.  Sometimes joining Sir Walter on his well documented walks was his dear friend and colleague, James Hogg, the poet known as "the Ettrick Shepherd".  Hogg was born and raised just over the hills to the south of Traquair and down into the valley of the Yarrow Water at Mountbenger House.  As all three lived in these hills during the same years I picture in my mind Mr. Scott and Mr. Hogg meeting our shepherd as they strolled these hills.  Maybe our shepherd even provided Scott with some stories of his own.

I recently found a very old etching of a shepherd in the Traquair hills that depicts the very years our shepherd tended his flock there.  The etching was published in one of Hogg's books, titled "Works of the Ettrick Shepherd".  The image portrays a shepherd and his dog standing guard on their flock in a beautiful and tranquil setting.  It's the closest thing to a photograph of our shepherd that we'll ever find.  Rather than thinking of the poverty and hardships our shepherd most assuredly had to endure I prefer to think of a more tranquil life that he and his wife would have enjoyed: http://www.graven-image.co.uk/2010/10/traquair-scottish-borders/.