New Stroma cemetery book published
A new publication about the history of Stroma's graveyard will provide valuable material for researchers and serve as a tribute to the islanders interred there.
This is the view of Caithness Family History Society (CFHS) journal editor, Jayden Alexander, who helped create the Stroma Cemetery publication after a visit to the uninhabited island in the Pentland Firth.
Jayden said: "During the summer of 2019, I along with Janet Mowat (CFHS chairperson), Nancy Swanson (CFHS secretary) and Eswyl Fell took a day trip to the beautiful island of Stroma. We set sail from Gills harbour with thanks to Willie and Jamie Simpson in the company of our late friend, George Campbell and his son and daughter.
"Our fascinating trip led to us looking in the old homes, discovering wildlife and of course delving into the history of the island’s cemetery. Out of interest we photographed each headstone and this led to Caithness Family History Society compiling these photos into a booklet and typing up the inscriptions."
Although Stroma cemetery consists of only a handful of headstones, there are a large number of residents interred there and many died at a young age.
"George, who was a brother-in-law of the late Dennis Manson, had told me prior to leaving on another occasion to look for 'the house with black and white tiles at the fireplace on the eastern side of the island'. During this trip we found it, and this was the Manson family home where Dennis’ father Donald and his family had lived."
Jayden said that Dennis was a lover and collector of family photographs and had many images of Stroma families. After Dennis passed away in March 2020, the CFHS team was privileged to get a look at his collection, some of which appear in the booklet under the heading “old family treasures”. This collection is now in held in trust for preservation at Nucleus: The Nuclear and Caithness Archives as the Dennis Manson Collection.
CFHS promotes an interest in genealogy and preserving family history. It provides and makes different materials and resources available to the public to help those researching Caithness families.
"This new record, which incorporates the internments of the burial ground and photos of the actual headstones, will provide not only material for those researching but it will serve as a tribute to Stroma families and preserve this part of Stroma’s large and fascinating history for future generations," said Jayden.
The Society hopes that some of the more obscure faces in the “old family treasures” chapter may be recognised and possibly identified. Stroma Cemetery is now available for £5 to CFHS members and £6 for non-members. Further information is available by emailing publications officer, Anna Rogalski, at publications@caithnessfhs.org.uk
You can find CFHS on Facebook @caithnessfamilyhistorysociety and join its discussion page at CFHS Discussion Group, or visit its new website at caithnessfhs.org.uk
New members are always most welcome.