The Glenbuchat Image Library
No: 892 Contributor: No Contributor Year: 2013
4 Glen Social ActivitiesHall Activities
The above are samples of entries in the Aberdeen Journal between 1885 and 1938.
These are reproduced by kind permission of the British Newspaper Archive
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They represent the Social activities in the Glen in that period. Initially they were held in local barns or at the local School until after 1899, when the Glenbuchat Hall was built.
Recently Glenbuchat may seem in modern times to be a remote and lonely place. In the past probably every Scottish rural community was relatively remote and the local residents were required to provide their own entertainment.
The cuttings above demonstrate a wealth of activities. There are the usual parties and dances with the glen residents providing the singers and musicians. There were other entertainments such as Whist nights and the plywood signs with the card suits painted on them, and which were used to remind everyone what suit was ‘trumps’, can still be seen in the bothy at the hall.
What is more surprising is the number of ‘educational’ activities designed to improve the knowledge of the people of the glen. These might be meetings or ‘conversatziones’ for young men, tradesmen or the women. These meetings might include political discussion on the South African War or the new laws affecting farmers, talks on agricultural improvement or discussion of the Women’s Union. There was a Drama group with the Glenbuchat Players presenting different plays. What is interesting to note that all the residents were represented? The Minister, the Schoolmaster, sometimes the Doctor and the Laird, farmers and farm hands. Such social mixing and entertainment must have enhanced the social cohesion and education in the glen
The Aberdeen Journal had a regular column for ‘District News.’ A local correspondent attended the meetings and then reported the details back to the paper, presumably by post. There is reference in ‘Wandering in the Highlands’ 1881 of the writer meeting a Mr Wattie, newspaper correspondent. This is possibly John Wattie 1804 – 1890 of the Milton
‘Moving on again, we came down to Milton, where we had the pleasure of an introduction to Mr Wattie, who is not only a newspaper correspondent, but also a poet.’
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Picture added on 05 February 2013 at 19:41
This picture is in the following groups
hall
hall
(The hall opening ball ? )Where the performers expressed their "Complete satisfaction with the acoustic properties of the hall".This has also been said by musicians playing at the hall in recent years .Wonder if the architects had this in mind when designing hall or if its just luck ?