J.M. Barrie And Dumfries

Trustees of the newly-formed Peter Pan Moat Brae Trust in Dumfries were delighted to read in the May issue, the various articles devoted to the 150th birthday of J.M. Barrie. Lorraine Wilson in her delightful article “The Lost Boy” mentions the celebrations that took place at his birthplace in Kirriemuir. The article also tells of his early years in Kirriemuir and his subsequent career and success in London. However, a highly significant period in Barrie’s life is not mentioned. When he was 13 he went to stay with an elder brother in Dumfries and became a pupil at Dumfries Academy. There he developed a close friendship with the two Gordon brothers who lived in the adjacent Moat Brae House. Their extensive garden, bounded by the River Nith and with wide views to the Galloway Hills, was an exciting playground for the boys and the real inspiration for Peter Pan. Sir James made this clear in his acceptance speech at the award of the Freedom of Dumfries in 1924: “When the shades of night began to fall, certain young mathematicians shed their triangles, crept up walls and down trees, and became pirates in a sort of odyssey that was afterwards to become the play Peter Pan. For our escapades in a certain Dumfries Garden, which is an enchanted land to me, were certainly the genesis of the nefarious work”. Readers of the magazine will be pleased to know that after years of neglect the fine, late Georgian house of Moat Brae and its garden are to be restored. The vision of the Trust is to restore the “enchanted land” of Moat Brae House and garden as permanent assets for Dumfries and the wider community, to honour the garden as the inspiration for J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan and celebrate the quality and importance of their cultural heritage and architecture as an international visitor attraction. We have now finished an Options Appraisal and Feasibility Study to determine the best possible and long-term uses for the building and the garden. The preferred option is one of mixed use, which will incorporate holiday accommodation for sick children, serviced office accommodation, event and activity space, a shop and a café/restaurant, as well as a Peter Pan Exhibition and Adventure Garden. Now the fun begins as we refine the ideas and start the fund-raising campaign. We will be grateful for any support that readers can give us.

Roger S. Windsor MBE, Email: peterpangarden@aol.com

 

Praise For Kenmore

It was with great pleasure I read all of your articles in the July issue extolling the scenic beauty of Perthshire. In particular, may I say how much my wife and I enjoyed Polly Pullar’s article on Kenmore, which brought back many happy memories of caravan holidays there with our two daughters when we hired a caravan from the site owner, Duncan Menzies. This was away back in 1965, long before the added refinements of today, but was ideal for the children who used to play on an old swing, comprising a rope and car tyre, also an old abandoned car, which all the kids loved to play in. Lots of beautiful countryside all around to explore, and in the evening, a trip to the then Breadalbane Hotel, now the Kenmore Hotel. On Sunday mornings, we went to the service in the lovely old kirk where the minister at that time was, aptly, Rev. Ronald MacVicar! On a more recent visit to Kenmore, we went back to the kirk and saw a beautiful glass panel etched with fighter planes with the words from Psalm 139, “If I take the wings of the morning”. A tribute to Rev. MacVicar, who, I believe, was a fighter pilot in World War Two. In our opinion, Kenmore is one of the most beautiful villages in Scotland.

William Budge, Leven

Trossachs Trees

I thoroughly enjoyed Hamish Brown's article in the May issue on the Trossachs but I cannot agree with him that the conifer blanket that is the Queen Elizabeth Forest Park is a disaster that did not happen. This sitka desert has killed off interest in hundreds of acres of priceless scenery as well as the native flora and fauna. I hope that in future the Forestry Commission is true to its word and will consider native species when replanting and the fact that the economic benefits of recreational tourism are seriously compromised by poor access and spoiled views.

Robert Wallace, Glasgow

 

Balado Airfield Memories

Your article mentioning Balado in the July issue brought back memories. During the war my family was evacuated from Edinburgh to a farm, Ballingall, about a mile from Balado. As kids we used to bike or walk the short distance to watch the aeroplanes take off and land there. Subsequently, I realised there were Spitfires and Hurricanes, as well as the occasional Lysander, a strange-looking little plane looking out of place amongst the sleek fighters with which it shared the same space. On one memorable occasion, a giant Stirling bomber landed, probably in some sort of trouble. It stayed for a day or so and when it took off, we were watching. When it flew overhead, there were bits of hedge sticking out from where the undercarriage doors closed. I don't think Balado was ever meant to accommodate large four-engine bombers. An uncle of mine was the then owner of Thomanean House and I understand it was requisitioned by the Government for use as the Officers’ Mess. At the Primary School in Milnathort, I recall seeing on a clear, cloudless sky swirling contrails of fighter aircraft high overhead.

Eddie Bosomworth, New Zealand

RCAHMS

I was interested in Mark Neilson’s article (July 2010) about the Royal Commission on the Ancient & Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS), and how the Commission’s work has changed over the years. One thing that he and John Borland failed to mention was the decision by the Commission to stop producing the Inventories of the counties. It was the original raison d’être of the RCAHMS, and was a decision that I very much regretted, having myself worked in close collaboration with the Commission’s staff for some 40 years. Not only did they close the architecture department as a result, but they also ceased all the field work that went with it. All we have in its place are the excellent, but much briefer columns in the Buildings of Scotland series. Sadly, the Commission has now concentrated more on being a repository of records, something they do very well, but once only a sideline. Incidentally, it was I who excavated and recorded in 1977-9 the two towers at Cramalt, whose remains now lie 90 feet under the Megget Reservoir.

Alastair Maxwell-Irving FSA, FSAScot, Stirling