Colfine, Skipness

[southernlass]

Just wanting to clarify where Colfine, Skipness is as references in the various censuses list people at South Colfine and North Colfine. Was it a cluster of houses for farm labourers or was it an actual farm. Appreciate it may be where there is a holiday home now but can someone help me with the local history of it? Thanks.

[Kintyre Forum News]

Realising now you make reference to the holiday home but I was going to post this link

http://www.visitkintyre.info/accommodat ... /index.htm

[Shona]

It was probably a 'ferm toon'. A collection of buildings which comprised the main farm and smaller single-storey buildings which housed the farm labourers and their families. Sometimes there were communal bothies which housed the unmarried male ag labs and female ag labs (in separate bothies, not together!). Quite often, the labourers were all part of a large extended family.

[southernlass]

Thanks for that info . It does not look like there is much left of the buildings in that area - like my McCallums and McQuilkans - hard to find. Wendy

[Shona]

Looking at the 1851 census, there are several families living at North Colfine and South Colfine. In addition to the usual ag labs, herdmen, etc, there was also a mason a South Colfine. There was a lot of migration around this time. I think some of the McQuilkans from the Skipness area ended up in New Zealand.

There are quite a lot of abandoned townships/'ferm toons' around Kintyre. While the ruinous walls can be seen in some cases, others have long gone. Stones could be used for rebuilding, to repair walls, construct sheep fanks.

I've visited many of the places where my ancestors lived which are now abandoned or shrunk in size.

If you are having probs tracking the McQuilkans, if you post more details, I'll have a go at trying to find the answers.

Some of the McQuilkans came to Kintyre from Antrim - I think they may have been a fishing family originally.

Btw - the name McQuilkan becomes Wilkinson/Wilkison.

[Shona]

I've been looking at the old maps of the area.

http://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/

On the Roy maps of the mid-18th century, there are two clusters of houses at Cailfin. There are four buildings shown in each cluster. However, by the time of the first edition OS maps, it seems as if just one large farm building carries the name of Coalfin. In 1885, the large farm building looks much smaller.

[jdcarra]

I've been looking at the old maps of the area.

http://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/

On the Roy maps of the mid-18th century, there are two clusters of houses at Cailfin. There are four buildings shown in each cluster. However, by the time of the first edition OS maps, it seems as if just one large farm building carries the name of Coalfin. In 1885, the large farm building looks much smaller.

Photo's taken 2007 http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/449675