Extracts from
INTERNATIONAL NEWSLETTER
No. 16; June 2001
The
Clan MacMillan Centre
in Scotland in association with the
Glengarry & Ottawa Valley Branch in Canada
invite all Macmillans to join them
in Lochaber for
THE GREAT RETURN 2002
To mark the
bicentenary of the great emigration from Loch Arkaigside
(pictured above) to Ontario in July 1802 an International Gathering of
Clan MacMillan will be held at Fort William in Lochaber, and at Greenock
in
Strathclyde, near the home of the present clan chief, 29 June - 9 July
2002
The Lochaber part
of the gathering will feature an Independence Day party on July 4th
at the site where "Braveheart" was filmed in Glen Nevis
(pictured above) and the
Strathclyde part will include some events at the chief's home Finlaystone
For the full programme and details of how to book, click here: Great Return 2002
CLAN CENTRE CONSTITUTION &
SOCIETIES' GUIDELINES
Following the discussion by the Clan Conclave in June 2000 of "mission
statements" for the clan and the chief, and of "guidelines"
for the setting-up and running of clan societies and branches, the
Trustees have adopted a "constitution" for the Clan Centre, and
terms of employment for the staff. The "Clan Centre Constitution"
will be published on the website, along with the "Guidelines for Clan
Societies & Branches".
MACMILLAN GARDEN &
MEMORIAL WALL
The MacMillan Garden at Finlaystone is maturing nicely now, and looked
particularly beautiful this spring with the weeping cherry tree in
blossom. The picture above shows the view of the Memorial wall, and the
garden in front of it, from the drive in front of Finlaystone House - with
the building housing the Clan Centre to the left of the wall - and the
picture below shows the "Chief's Sofa" by the cherry tree.
THE CHIEF'S TRIP TO BETHLEHEM AND VIRGINIA
Mike Fitch, George and Father Mac
Encouraged by Father Mac, Michael Fitch (President of the Lehigh Valley Scottish Association) invited Graeme, Jane and me to attend a miniature Scottish festival in Bethlehem over a May week-end. The idea arose from the fact that Andrew and Kitty and their Infinity Dance Company were to be conducting performances of their ballet `Gilchrist's Dream'. This was augmented by the addition of lectures by Father Mac and Graeme, and by a ball/banquet/ceilidh, featuring some excellent young pipers and a group of ebullient Irishmen playing various instruments.
The week-end also seemed a good opportunity to conduct some Clan business. John B. and Blanche drove down from Burlington, Ontario to receive Jean Bennion as a Companion of the Tonsured Servant; and Andrew formally handed over the presidency of the North-East Branch to Liz Miller (who, in addition to looking after the three of us, had taken the lion's share of the preparations for most of the main events, especially where food was concerned). Liz is extremely busy with her work and her studies, and will, therefore, have to rely on plenty of help from members of the Branch. She's the kind of person that's a pleasure to help; I'm sure volunteers will be lining up to offer their services. Andrew is now free to succeed The Rev. Chris. McMullen as President of the North American Society. He leaves Kitty as Liz's Secretary to maintain his link with the branch.
The fact that more rain fell on Bethlehem in three days than had done on Scotland for the previous month did nothing to spoil the fun. The Rev. David (Father Mac's son) very kindly drove up from Washington to take the three of us (plus all our luggage) to spend a night there on our way to Virginia. He took the chance to put on a clan party in his apartment; and we all had a very good evening.
The McMullen lunch in the South River Methodist
Church Hall
After a day spent touring Washington, Jane and I took the train to Culpepper to stay with Ed and Emily Williams: Graeme followed next evening. Emily had mustered about eighty of her cousins for the biennial reunion of the descendants of John McMullen, centred on the little hamlet of McMullen, which was once heavily populated by his family. When Emily had heard we would be in Bethlehem anyway, she kindly invited us to join them. Knowing Ed and Emily, we knew the week-end would be both enjoyable and inspiring; and so it proved. We were initiated gently, meeting Emily's immediate family first - and in the lovely surroundings of the Shenandoah valley.
Then came the serious business - the visiting of McMullen memorials in the neighbourhood, with the family banquet in an attractive hotel on Saturday evening, followed on Sunday by a service which merged into a feast in and around the little church where almost every window commemorated a McMullen. We spent the intervening night as pampered guests of Jim and Anne Reel in their substantial house, which had been built and, till fairly recently, been occupied by McMullens. One couldn't help coming away with a feeling of gratitude to all who have gone before us. Not for them the grandiose statuary of the neatly tended cemetery; they made do with an assortment of rough stones under a group of scrubby trees in the fields where their cows had pastured. Thanks to Ed and Emily, those stones are now the point around which their descendants can once more unite. Next morning Ed drove us miles to catch a train. Thanks to Amtrack and Continental Airlines, we were back in Glasgow, Scotland, without much discomfort in a remarkably short time. Meanwhile, Graeme was preparing to give two more lectures in Glasgow, Kentucky.
From the left: Ed, Jane, George, Emily & one of
her young cousins
Also in this
edition of the Newsletter:
Graeme's account of his trip to Kentucky:
Page 6 (PDF
file for which you'll need Adobe Acrobat Reader)
Summary of Clan Centre finances for year 2000, with list of donors:
Page 7 (PDF
file)
Focus on Finlaystone, featuring new hydro-electric scheme:
Page 8 (PDF
file)
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