Hidden histories to be uncovered from lost Wester Ross township; new project led by Ullapool Museum seeks to rediscover the history of Inverlael
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HIDDEN histories from a brutal period of Highland history are to be uncovered through a new project centred around a lost Wester Ross township.
A new two-year community archaeology project launched recently with the aim of rediscovering the history of Inverlael, which was lost to the notorious Highland Clearances.
The project, Lost Inverlael, Finding Balblair, will be led by Ullapool Museum, supported by a grant of £68,000 from Historic Environment Scotland alongside funds from Forestry and Land Scotland.
This year marks the 200th anniversary of the Inverlael Clearances, a township near Ullapool. In the winter of 1819/20, more than 50 families were brutally evicted by landowner, George Steuart Mackenzie of Coul, to make way for more profitable sheep farms.
The brutal eviction ruptured a centuries old community and although Inverlael’s painful history is now largely forgotten, its legacy is hidden in plain sight amongst the croft house stones strung across the hillside and glen amongst the modern plantation of Inverlael Forest.
Over the next two years, the team at Ullapool Museum will be supported by archaeologists to investigate the history of Inverlael through a series of community digs, archive research, genealogy workshops, activity days and tours.
Project co-ordinator Helen Avenell said: “The launch comes at a challenging time for us all, but we are thrilled to be able to begin work on what we know will be an important and meaningful project for our local community. Over the coming two years there will be lots of opportunities for people to come together to get involved.
“We are putting out an appeal to anyone who may have information on ancestors from Inverlael and Balblair. Scraps of the social history of Inverlael have been preserved through oral tradition handed down through generations.”
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