PerthshireCrieffStrathearn Local History

  The Last Thatched House In Crieff   Extracted from Crieff Past & Present published 21 January 1888   Hill Street or Hill Wynd   Among the many new and fine buildings in the town, the churches are a leading feature with their handsome outlines and lofty spires. Within the past few years The Established, Free, UP and Episcopalian Churches have erected noble edifices costing over £20 000 the hotels are also splendid buildings, and the banks are well represented in the architecture of the town All kinds of property have rapidly improved during the last 30 years and , with one exception in Hill Wynd , all the thatched houses have disappeared In the mode of living there is a very great difference from what it used   be . It is not so long since a room and closet were considered sufficient for a family , and ventilation was never taken into consideration . According to the size of the family there would be from one to five beds in the two apartments We

Trades and Industries That Have long Gone Crieff Past And Present (1885)      There is an old Scots word " couthie " which conveys a meaning oft lacking in the" Queen's  English ". Perhaps gentle - agreeable or kindly is an apt translation . The following extract is from one of my favourite collections " Crieff : Its Traditions and Characters " written in 1881 by a certain D McAra . MacAra is somewhat   overshadowed   by the rather   patrician historian Porteous whose 1908 epic “ A History of Crieff ” is still regarded   as the ultimate account of things in and around the town . MacAra – a couthie individual by all accounts, captures   much of the lost sentiment of yester year when the pace   of things   in that pre technology age was that little   bit slower ! The appended tale of trades of the past   depicts a world of rural artisans working at things   which in this   modern   age are   all but forgotten ! Many kinds of trade

  Staute of William McGregor outside Villa Park    Grigor McGrigor was a tailor born in Balquhidder in about 1796 . He married   Jean McNicol in Muthill Parish in 1825 and settled down to raise a family in the village of Braco . Eleven children were born to the couple including William in 1846 . The family live in Front Street near the Braco Hotel ( now known as the Frog and Thistle ) . Young William according to legend witnessed his first football match with his three older brothers near to where the Ardoch Roman Camp is situated . He seemed a bright lad being described in the 1861 Census for the village as a “ pupil teacher “. Shortly after this he headed to Perth where he was apprenticed as a draper. Seeking opportunities that were not readily available in the Fair City , young William headed south to Birmingham where he established his own drapers business in the town and rapidly prospered. McGregor became associated with Aston Villa Football Club and eventuall