Today - the second Sunday in May - marks the anniversary of the parting of Robert Burns and Highland Mary at Failford in 1786.
Since then, the story of the poet and his Highland Lassie has long captured the imagination of his admirers. Numerous statues of the lovers, both as individuals and as a couple can be found all over the world. Perhaps one of the best known statues of Highland Mary (Mary Campbell) can be found at Castle Hill in Dunoon.
 |
| Statue at Beacon Hill Park, Victoria, BC |
In 1896 the Greenock Telegraph published a long, illustrated article to celebrate the unveiling of the statue by Lady Kelvin. I have produced a transcription of that article with explanations of the various terms, poems and people mentioned in the article which you can read or download here.
It is a lengthy work, but those interested in local history may enjoy the pages which describe the events surrounding the laying of the foundation stone of the memorial to Highland Mary in Greenock's Old West Kirkyard in 1842. At that time the church was at the north end of Nicolson Street. The article also mentions local people and places which I have also highlighted - pages 26-36.
Hoepfully the work will be of interest - leave a comment and let me know.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Your comments are very welcome.