Tobar an Dualchais/Kist o Riches is a collaborative project which has been set up to preserve, digitise, catalogue and make available online several thousand hours of Gaelic and Scots recordings. This website contains a wealth of material such as folklore, songs, music, history, poetry, traditions, stories customs ,belief and oral history. The material has been collected from all over Scotland and beyond from the 1930’s onward’s. The sound recordings on thes web site come from three major collections: the School of Scottish Studies Archives (University of Edinburgh), BBC Scotland and the National Trust for Scotland’s Canna Collection.
The site contains recordings from the Stratherrick and Foyers area, which were made in the fifties and sixties . At present there are three contributors on the site David Maclaren and Duncan Macdonell with recordings made in 1953 both men were staying in Foyers at this time . Also David Rose in 1963 who was in staying in Gorthleck at this time. There are several other known recordings of local people made around 1963 and once permission has been granted by the contributors family they will also appear on the website . You will be able to hear the local accent of the area and also local Gaelic pronunciation of words .
David Maclaren who was born in 1870 at Garthbeg and died in 1955 in Foyers was one of a family of ten . Latterly he worked in the British Aluminium factory at Foyers, and probably he worked as a shepherd following his family’s tradition in his younger days . His father people came from Malagie on the Garrogie estate .
A list of the recordings David gave the URL’s are as follows
http://www.tobarandualchais.co.uk/en/fullrecord/178/1
http://www.tobarandualchais.co.uk/en/fullrecord/181/2
http://www.tobarandualchais.co.uk/en/fullrecord/183/3
http://www.tobarandualchais.co.uk/en/fullrecord/185/4
Duncan Macdonell was born in 1881 at Inshenlannie farm, Killiechoilum, Whitebridge and died in 1954 in Foyers .
A list of the recordings Duncan gave the URL’s are as follows
http://www.tobarandualchais.co.uk/en/fullrecord/196/4
http://www.tobarandualchais.co.uk/en/fullrecord/204/5
http://www.tobarandualchais.co.uk/en/fullrecord/218/6
http://www.tobarandualchais.co.uk/en/fullrecord/219/7
http://www.tobarandualchais.co.uk/en/fullrecord/229/8
David Rose was born in 1891 at Wood Cottage, Errogie, where his father was the game keeper on the Farraline estate. David followed his father to become the gamekeeper on the Farraline estate. On retirement he took over the croft at Branview, Loch Branside, Gorthleck, which the family renamed Suilven. David died in 1968 at Suilven
A list of the recordings David gave the URL is as follows
https://www.tobarandualchais.co.uk/track/82026?l=en
To hear some of the Gaelic pronunciation of of some of Stratherrick place names the URL is given below , then go to ” play part 3 ” which is a 48 minute tape . The last 10 minutes gives Stratherrick place names. http://www.tobarandualchais.co.uk/en/fullrecord/82770/1