(Intro: tragically, a lot of what has been done in the name of Ulster-Scots over the past 15 years or so has been ill-informed, trivial, politicised, invented, speculative, money-chasing, egocentric nonsense - which has done untold damage to our deep authentic heritage. I quickly realised I couldn't change the world, but could at least devote what little time I had to help some quality projects to emerge. This is still my aim).
Over the past few years, I’ve taken on the task of bringing important Ulster-Scots stories back to public attention. My background in design and communication, and a commitment to telling authentic, credible stories more or less sums up what I try to do in these projects. Expert historians have been generous with their time and expertise and willingly worked with me in an effort to demonstrate the real depth of Ulster-Scots heritage.
2006: Hamilton & Montgomery 1606 - "The Dawn of the Ulster-Scots".
My first full year as Chairman of the Ulster-Scots Agency (June 05 - June 09) was the 400th anniversary of what I still regard as the seminal moment in Ulster-Scots history – when James Hamilton and Hugh Montgomery, both from Ayrshire, struck a deal with Con O’Neill for two thirds of his estates in Co Down. It wasn’t the first contact between Scotland and Ulster – the links had been going on for centuries, way before the Scottish Reformation of 1560 and the Plantation of Ulster of 1610 – but it was the first permanent lowland Scottish settlement of Ulster, a natural migration of lowland Scottish families. The year included a 50 minute documentary broadcast on BBC Northern Ireland, entitled “Dawn of the Ulster Scots”, presented by Flora Montgomery. A special edition tabloid is available which tells the whole story, as well as a foldout heritage trail. I took care of all of the research, writing, photography and design. With thanks to Dr John McCavitt for his guidance throughout the project, and to the Montgomery and Rowan-Hamilton families for their support.
+ Visit the project website.
+ Order copies of the publications
2007: The Bruces in Ulster
As proof of the pre-Plantation, pre-Reformation links mentioned above, this project went back 700 years to 1306/1307 when King Robert the Bruce spent a winter on Rathlin Island, after which he returned to Scotland to fight a seven year campaign which ended with Scottish independence. His brother Edward then came to Ulster and was declared High King of Ireland for a few years, before being killed in a battle at Dundalk. A special edition tabloid is available which tells the whole story, as well as a foldout heritage trail. I took care of all of the research, writing, photography and design. With thanks to Doug Archibald of The Robert the Bruce Commemoration Trust for his help and quality proofing, and to the Ulster History Circle who installed a commemorative plaque on Rathlin in Summer 2007. The plaque was unveiled by a group of VIPs, including the Earl of Elgin, a lineal descendant of Robert the Bruce.
+ Visit the project website.
+ Order copies of the publications
2007: UlsterVirginia.com
This website project was produced in the run-up to Northern Ireland's participation at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington DC in July 2007. A host of expert contributors provided fresh research and articles; the Virginia Tourism Corporation also assisted. The project was launched, using a series of billboard posters in greater Belfast, by the US Consul Dean Pittman. I took care of all of the photography and design and co-ordinated the research and writing.
+ Visit the project website
2008: The Covenanters in Ulster
This 1600s in Ulster are a deeply misunderstood period, usually reduced to the Plantation and the Battle of the Boyne. The story of the Covenanters is one whch goes deep into the psyche of Scots and Ulster-Scots, of Presbyterians who were brutally persecuted for standing up for their faith and for opposing the tyrant Kings. A special edition tabloid is available which tells the whole story, as well as a foldout heritage trail. I took care of all of the photography and design and co-ordinated the research and writing. We also ran a week-long series in the News Letter. With thanks to all of those who helped and supported, in particular Dr William Roulston.
+ Visit the project blog.
+ Order copies of the publications
2008: "Sacred Scotch Solos"
This personal online project is an historical archive of over 80 sacred songs which have been given to me over the years by folk both in Ulster and Scotland. Most are from Scottish printed sources about 100 years old, providing evidence that in previous generations people were comfortable using Scots creatively in worship and outreach. All of the pieces use varying densities of Scots, from a light sprinkling of vocabulary through to much deeper usages. Since the site went live, the Church of Scotland's "Scots Language in Worship Group" have used some of the pieces in their own repertoire. Scots and Ulster Scots are both used by contemporary songwriters as well. The site includes text of the lyrics, and downloadable scans of the original musical notation.
+ Visit the project website
2009: Alexander Peden, Prophet and Covenanter in Scotland and Ulster
Having completed my term at the Ulster-Scots Agency, this book was a natural extension of the “Covenanters in Ulster” project, telling the story of the most enigmatic and famous of the Ulster Covenanters. Peden was born in Ayrshire, but during the “Killing Times” sought refuge at Glenwherry in County Antrim. This 112 page book is centred around a reprint of a 1755 Belfast pamphlet about Peden and includes a collection of essays and historical poems. BBC Radio Scotland produced a half hour programme about Peden, presented by Richard Holloway, around the same time as the book's completion. I took care of all of the photography and design and co-ordinated the research and writing. I also contributed one of the articles, entitled "Publishing Peden - A Chronology of Chapbooks 1712 - 1872". With thanks to all of those who helped and supported, in particular, Dr William Roulston, Jack Greenald and Dane Love of the Scottish Covenanter Memorials Association. Thanks also to The Ullans Press for issuing the book under their imprint.
+ Order a copy of the book
2009: Frances Browne Multilingual Poetry Prize
A lighter moment amongst the solid history. I tend to leave the linguistic side of Ulster-Scots to the experts who understand its nuances far better than I do. I enjoy the colour of the words and expressions and have dabbled with a wee bit of poetry. A light hearted poem I wrote for fun, Address to a Nintendo DS, finished as runner-up in this annual competition run by the Finn Valley Voice newspaper in Donegal.
2010: The Forgotten English Colony of Sir Thomas Smith
What happened before the arrival of the Ulster-Scots? In north Down and the Ards, the story of what came before is the failed colony of Sir Thomas Smith. After almost a year of research the first outcome of this project is a 40 page full colour booklet, the printing of which was funded by Ards Borough Council, North Down Museum and the Ulster-Scots Community Network. I took care of all of the research, writing, photography and design. With thanks to a broad range of universities, galleries, museums and libraries across the UK and RoI, all of whom are acknowledged and referenced inside. The booklet has been covered in the News Letter and the Newtownards Chronicle, and there’s a possibility of some television coverage in the near future.
+ Order a copy of the booklet
2010: North Down and Ards Tourism project
I've just finished a major piece of work with the Ulster Historical Foundation to show the tourism potential of the Ulster-Scots heritage of North Down and Ards. Supported by the two local Councils and the Northern Ireland Tourist Board's Tourism Innovation Fund the end result was over 300 pages of information, history, genealogy, potential tourism products and a bank of fresh photography.
Digitisation Projects
It's essential that history is made accessible for today's reader and researcher. When still at the Ulster-Scots Agency, I also took the lead on producing digitised versions of:
• The Hamilton Manuscripts (compiled by TK Lowry, 283 pages, first published 1867)
• The Montgomery Manuscripts (compiled by Rev George Hill, 504 pages, first published 1869)
• The MacDonnells of Antrim (complied by Rev George Hill, 515 pages, first published 1873)
• The Plantation in Ulster (compiled by Rev George Hill, 636 pages, first published 1877). This has an accompanying CD of the Thomas Raven maps of the Plantation counties, courtesy of PRONI, with narrative by Professor Raymond Gillespie.
All of these were produced as facsimile text-searchable PDF files, available on CDRom.
2006: Hamilton & Montgomery 1606 - "The Dawn of the Ulster-Scots".
My first full year as Chairman of the Ulster-Scots Agency (June 05 - June 09) was the 400th anniversary of what I still regard as the seminal moment in Ulster-Scots history – when James Hamilton and Hugh Montgomery, both from Ayrshire, struck a deal with Con O’Neill for two thirds of his estates in Co Down. It wasn’t the first contact between Scotland and Ulster – the links had been going on for centuries, way before the Scottish Reformation of 1560 and the Plantation of Ulster of 1610 – but it was the first permanent lowland Scottish settlement of Ulster, a natural migration of lowland Scottish families. The year included a 50 minute documentary broadcast on BBC Northern Ireland, entitled “Dawn of the Ulster Scots”, presented by Flora Montgomery. A special edition tabloid is available which tells the whole story, as well as a foldout heritage trail. I took care of all of the research, writing, photography and design. With thanks to Dr John McCavitt for his guidance throughout the project, and to the Montgomery and Rowan-Hamilton families for their support.
+ Visit the project website.
+ Order copies of the publications
2007: The Bruces in UlsterAs proof of the pre-Plantation, pre-Reformation links mentioned above, this project went back 700 years to 1306/1307 when King Robert the Bruce spent a winter on Rathlin Island, after which he returned to Scotland to fight a seven year campaign which ended with Scottish independence. His brother Edward then came to Ulster and was declared High King of Ireland for a few years, before being killed in a battle at Dundalk. A special edition tabloid is available which tells the whole story, as well as a foldout heritage trail. I took care of all of the research, writing, photography and design. With thanks to Doug Archibald of The Robert the Bruce Commemoration Trust for his help and quality proofing, and to the Ulster History Circle who installed a commemorative plaque on Rathlin in Summer 2007. The plaque was unveiled by a group of VIPs, including the Earl of Elgin, a lineal descendant of Robert the Bruce.
+ Visit the project website.
+ Order copies of the publications
2007: UlsterVirginia.com
This website project was produced in the run-up to Northern Ireland's participation at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington DC in July 2007. A host of expert contributors provided fresh research and articles; the Virginia Tourism Corporation also assisted. The project was launched, using a series of billboard posters in greater Belfast, by the US Consul Dean Pittman. I took care of all of the photography and design and co-ordinated the research and writing.
+ Visit the project website
2008: The Covenanters in Ulster
This 1600s in Ulster are a deeply misunderstood period, usually reduced to the Plantation and the Battle of the Boyne. The story of the Covenanters is one whch goes deep into the psyche of Scots and Ulster-Scots, of Presbyterians who were brutally persecuted for standing up for their faith and for opposing the tyrant Kings. A special edition tabloid is available which tells the whole story, as well as a foldout heritage trail. I took care of all of the photography and design and co-ordinated the research and writing. We also ran a week-long series in the News Letter. With thanks to all of those who helped and supported, in particular Dr William Roulston.
+ Visit the project blog.
+ Order copies of the publications
2008: "Sacred Scotch Solos"
This personal online project is an historical archive of over 80 sacred songs which have been given to me over the years by folk both in Ulster and Scotland. Most are from Scottish printed sources about 100 years old, providing evidence that in previous generations people were comfortable using Scots creatively in worship and outreach. All of the pieces use varying densities of Scots, from a light sprinkling of vocabulary through to much deeper usages. Since the site went live, the Church of Scotland's "Scots Language in Worship Group" have used some of the pieces in their own repertoire. Scots and Ulster Scots are both used by contemporary songwriters as well. The site includes text of the lyrics, and downloadable scans of the original musical notation.
+ Visit the project website
2009: Alexander Peden, Prophet and Covenanter in Scotland and Ulster
Having completed my term at the Ulster-Scots Agency, this book was a natural extension of the “Covenanters in Ulster” project, telling the story of the most enigmatic and famous of the Ulster Covenanters. Peden was born in Ayrshire, but during the “Killing Times” sought refuge at Glenwherry in County Antrim. This 112 page book is centred around a reprint of a 1755 Belfast pamphlet about Peden and includes a collection of essays and historical poems. BBC Radio Scotland produced a half hour programme about Peden, presented by Richard Holloway, around the same time as the book's completion. I took care of all of the photography and design and co-ordinated the research and writing. I also contributed one of the articles, entitled "Publishing Peden - A Chronology of Chapbooks 1712 - 1872". With thanks to all of those who helped and supported, in particular, Dr William Roulston, Jack Greenald and Dane Love of the Scottish Covenanter Memorials Association. Thanks also to The Ullans Press for issuing the book under their imprint.
+ Order a copy of the book
2009: Frances Browne Multilingual Poetry Prize
A lighter moment amongst the solid history. I tend to leave the linguistic side of Ulster-Scots to the experts who understand its nuances far better than I do. I enjoy the colour of the words and expressions and have dabbled with a wee bit of poetry. A light hearted poem I wrote for fun, Address to a Nintendo DS, finished as runner-up in this annual competition run by the Finn Valley Voice newspaper in Donegal.
2010: The Forgotten English Colony of Sir Thomas Smith
What happened before the arrival of the Ulster-Scots? In north Down and the Ards, the story of what came before is the failed colony of Sir Thomas Smith. After almost a year of research the first outcome of this project is a 40 page full colour booklet, the printing of which was funded by Ards Borough Council, North Down Museum and the Ulster-Scots Community Network. I took care of all of the research, writing, photography and design. With thanks to a broad range of universities, galleries, museums and libraries across the UK and RoI, all of whom are acknowledged and referenced inside. The booklet has been covered in the News Letter and the Newtownards Chronicle, and there’s a possibility of some television coverage in the near future.
+ Order a copy of the booklet
2010: North Down and Ards Tourism project
I've just finished a major piece of work with the Ulster Historical Foundation to show the tourism potential of the Ulster-Scots heritage of North Down and Ards. Supported by the two local Councils and the Northern Ireland Tourist Board's Tourism Innovation Fund the end result was over 300 pages of information, history, genealogy, potential tourism products and a bank of fresh photography.
Digitisation Projects
It's essential that history is made accessible for today's reader and researcher. When still at the Ulster-Scots Agency, I also took the lead on producing digitised versions of:
• The Hamilton Manuscripts (compiled by TK Lowry, 283 pages, first published 1867)
• The Montgomery Manuscripts (compiled by Rev George Hill, 504 pages, first published 1869)
• The MacDonnells of Antrim (complied by Rev George Hill, 515 pages, first published 1873)
• The Plantation in Ulster (compiled by Rev George Hill, 636 pages, first published 1877). This has an accompanying CD of the Thomas Raven maps of the Plantation counties, courtesy of PRONI, with narrative by Professor Raymond Gillespie.
All of these were produced as facsimile text-searchable PDF files, available on CDRom.
2011: Biography of Rev James Hamilton of Ballywalter.
Hamilton was one of the first generation Presbyterian ministers in Ulster, one of the four ministers who sailed on "Eagle Wing", and a driving force in the "50 Years Struggle" of the Covenanters. I hope to complete this project by Easter 2011 and to publish later that year. With sincere thanks to Ulrike Hogg at the National Library of Scotland for her ongoing assistance in locating rare archival material. Update - now looking like 2012!
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