Centre for Scottish & Celtic Studies

CSCS Seedcorn funding covered the cost of a research trip to Lewis in October. The purpose of the trip was to carry out oral history interviews as part of Niall's PhD research exploring the impact of impact of ‘Improvement’, the Highland Clearances and their aftermath on human-cattle relationships in the Scottish Gàidhealtachd, c.1750-1960. Three interviews were carried out, two with individuals, and one with a group of people at Comunn Eachdraidh Nis. In terms of its intended outcomes, the trip was hugely successful and has laid the groundwork for further public engagement and knowledge exchange in Lewis and has helped to shape his thesis plan.

Practically, the interviews ran smoothly, enhancing their potential value for Niall and subsequent researchers - as outlined in his data management plan. During the interviews, the recorder and microphone(s) functioned well, creating a comfortable environment for him and the interviewee(s). Flexibility around his draft questionnaire allowed for interviewees to speak freely, often leading interviews in unexpected yet valuable directions. These factors enabled him to establish rapport with the interviewees and set a precedent for longer-term contact with these individuals. In the case of one interviewee, he was able to return later in the week fora follow-up interview where they expanded on their thoughts and recollections from the previous meeting. Furthermore, the interview he carried out with a small group of people at Comunn Eachdraidh Nis has set a precedent for further engagement with this group, who meet weekly. The staff at the Comunn Eachdraidh have reported back to him on the group’s continuing engagement with his research topic following the interview. Consequently, he intends to identify people within the group for follow-up one-on-one interviews in 2023.

The resulting interview recordings have enabled Niall to develop the project’s public engagement and knowledge exchange agendas. Following the group interview, he plans to return to Comunn Eachdraidh Nis to do a workshop involving members of the local community showcasing interview findings alongside other material from their archive. This will also feed into plans to propose an abstract for a paper for the Galson Estate Trust’s Heritage Week, Dùthchas (September, 2023), appropriate given that Nis falls within the boundaries of the land owned by the trust. In addition, he plans to summarise preliminary findings from all three interviews in a short article for the Stornoway Gazette (Lewis-based newspaper); this will potentially bring forward further potential interviewees in Lewis. 

Finally, the trip has allowed further development of his thesis plan. Following reflection on the interviews, the plan is now for findings from these and subsequent interviews to form the basis of the closing one/two chapters of the thesis. As is often recognised as the value of oral history methodology, encouraging interviewees to reflect on relationships often deemed mundane and unremarkable can reveal fresh insights unobtainable from other source types. In terms of the thesis as a whole, these findings reveal both the lasting relevance of findings arising from the Napier testimonies (1883) – which will form the foundation for at least the first three thesis chapters – and highlight issues which he had not anticipated. He hopes to be able to expand on these in subsequent interviews in Lewis and Skye.

This research trip therefore facilitated the advancement of crucial aspects of the project as a whole, as well as the thesis itself.

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First published: 16 January 2023