FROM THE ARCHIVES: Rosskeen and Invergordon
Today we are looking at the Parish of Rosskeen in the County of Ross and Cromarty.
The name Rosskeen comes from the Gaelic ros-cuibhne or ros which most likely refers to the headland or promontory where Invergordon stands.
With the deep waters of the Cromarty Firth providing a sheltered anchorage it is no surprise that the Parish of Rosskeen was home to a number of military bases.
Invergordon became an important anchorage for the Home Fleet at the beginning of the 20th century and served as a base for refuelling and dockyard repairs in the First and Second World Wars.
The naval base was the scene of the famous “Invergordon Mutiny” when, on September 15-16, 1931, 1000 sailors went on strike over drastic pay cuts due to the effects of the Great Depression. Today one is more likely to see cruise liners and oil rigs.
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A little further west from Invergordon and one or two small jetties appear.
One of these belonged to Belleport House, Bridgend of Alness, one time home of the Hall Family.
James Hall, his wife Isabella Laurence and their nine children moved to Rosskeen from Limekilns, Fife sometime between 1836 and 1841 whereby James Hall built Belleport House and the pier and set up business as a ship owner, merchant and trader.
He exported grain, livestock and timber and imported coal, lime and fertiliser. Belleport house was perfectly situated for this.
After James’s death in 1864, youngest son George Ross Hall continued the business until his death in 1888.
After lying empty for some time, the house was sold to the owners of Dalmore Distillery until the 1950s when it was once again bought by a private buyer.
The Highland Archive Centre holds a collection of correspondence relating to the Hall Family.
The letters are mainly between family members, particularly from James’s half brother Thomas, who was based in Newcastle, and concern business and cargos, showing what was being transported.
There are also several letters from James’s youngest son George, while he was at school in Aberdeen.
In one letter to his father dated December 31, 1856 George expresses his annoyance at several spelling mistakes in the Invergordon Times:
“There are some people in Invergordon, that should come to Aberdeen, and learn the way to spell. In the last ‘Invergordon Times’, I observed that the people are very fond in putting a scew steamer instead of a screw steamer. There are several other mistakes which I don’t think it worthy to mention but all I have to say is that they should learn to spell better.”
In the valuation roll for the County of Ross for 1877 we can see the pier and land at Belleport as belonging to George R. Hall, the last of the Halls to occupy the house.
