Few will have heard of the late Duncan Macpherson MPS outside
of his adopted home village of Kyle of Lochalsh. It is questionable
whether the Isle of Skye would be as popular today if it were not for
his 50 years of promoting Skye and Lochalsh through his books and
photography.
The Chemist
Duncan Macpherson at work in his pharmacy in Kyle of Lochalsh.
Duncan Macpherson at work in his pharmacy in Kyle of Lochalsh.
Born in the Aberdeenshire hamlet of Glenquithel on the 24th of May
1882, Duncan was the youngest of five children. He grew up on a farm near the
village of Pennan (of "Local Hero" movie fame)
and was educated at
Robert Gordon's College in Aberdeen and at
Edinburgh University from where he graduated as a pharmacist.
He initially moved south to England working in pharmacies in Warwick,
Bath and Wisbech before returned north to the the Victorian spa resort town of Strathpeffer. After a period of ill health he arrived in Kyle of Lochalsh one spring
afternoon during 1912 "in search of a livelihood, and even more vitally
important, seeking after elusive health." As his father Neil originally
hailed from Glenelg 6km (4 miles) to the south east of Kyle it is
perhaps not too surprising that he felt drawn by the lure of the West.
Duncan opened the Kyle Pharmacy on land at the corner of Station
Road and Ferry Road, a location that locally became known as "Chemist's
Corner". He paid the Highland
Railway Company the princely rent of £3 per year. A few years later the
Highland Railway was amalgamated in to the London, Midland and Scottish
(LMS) Railway and the kindly factor in Inverness was replaced by a "modern
Pharaoh" in Glasgow who demanded a rent of £500 per year - a mere
16,000% increase! In one of his books he recalls how he dispatched a
representative from Glasgow "in a sentence of three words." His rent
remained unchanged.
"Glenquithel", the house that Duncan built. His wife, son and
daughter appear in this 1926 Kyle Pharmacy postcard. The house
stands to this day.
"Glenquithel", the house that Duncan built. His wife, son and
daughter appear in this 1926 Kyle Pharmacy postcard. The house
stands to this day.
Known affectionately as "the Chemist", he built
a house off Church Road, Kyle of Lochalsh that he named "Glenquithel"
after his birthplace. He married local
girl Margaret MacIver in April 1916 and they had a son Neil, daughter Mary plus Sally, a cairn terrier.
Kyle Pharmacy thrived at the heart of a steadily growing
village, dispensing pharmaceuticals for humans and animals,
poisons for pest control, supplies to the local hospitals in
Broadford, Portree and Uig, film and chemicals to photographers plus the
inevitable sunglasses, shampoos and toothpaste. His shop was
conveniently unavoidable for visitors to Kyle of Lochalsh whether they
arrived by
steamer, rail and road or private yacht. Indeed regular visitors to his
pharmacy included the landed
gentry and well-heeled members of the hunting, shooting and
fishing brigade travelling to and from their highland estates.
Reflecting Duncan's sense of humour, for a period during the 1910's the Kyle Pharmacy letterheads carried the crest and
grandiose proclamation "by appointment chemist to H. H. The Maharajah Gaekwar of Baroda."
Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III owned an estate
at Achnashellach near Kyle.
A 1914 statement of account addressed to the MacKinnon Memorial Hospital at Broadford, Isle of Skye. The stamp
indicates that Government "stamp duty" has been paid. Items include six bottles
of "Valentines Meat Juice." To quote from their 1933 advertisement "In disturbances of the
digestive system, in influenza and other wasting febrile diseases, before and after
operations, Valentine's Meat-Juice has been
relied upon to stimulate the flagging vital forces."
A 1914 statement of account addressed to the MacKinnon Memorial Hospital
at Broadford. Items include six bottles of "Valentines Meat Juice"
Click on the image to find out more.
Other notable visitors to Chemist's Corner included authors
Sir Compton Mackenzie,
Major Gavin Maxwell and
Eric Linklater
plus current and future royalty including
Mrs. Wallis Simpson,
later Duchess of Windsor.
For the best part of fifty years the pharmacy acted as the unofficial tourist information office
with Duncan producing a prolific number of guides, booklets and
postcards promoting Kyle and Skye. He was a prominent and active member of
the local council and did much to promote the development of Kyle and
the surrounding area.
His son Neil joined the army and died on 21st May 1944 aged 24
from injuries sustained in an accident at 16th Army Ordnance
Depot in Penshurst, Kent. His mother never recovered from his death and
became seriously ill. Daughter Mary relinquished her Oxford teaching post to
return home to look after her, taking up the position of principal teach
of English at nearby Plockton Secondary School. Margaret died in 1949. Mary
remained in Kyle near her father, marrying briefly in 1984, and continued
to live in "Glenquithel" until her death in March 2007 at the age
of 90.
Duncan Macpherson found the health that he sought and died in 1966 at
the age of 84.
A busy "Chemist's Corner" as it appeared on a Kyle Pharmacy postcard.
The pharmacy was demolished in 1970 and replaced by
the present day Kyle Pharmacy built on the site of the building
to the left. The two storey building still stands selling
knitted woollen goods.
A busy "Chemist's Corner". The pharmacy was demolished in 1970 and replaced by
the present day Kyle Pharmacy built on the site of the building
to the left. The two storey building still stands selling
knitted woollen goods.
In 1970, after 58 years of proud service to the community, Macpherson's Kyle Pharmacy building at
"Chemist's Corner" was demolished to accommodate road
improvements connected with the introduction of larger ferries
across to Skye. Today the modern-day Kyle
Pharmacy stands across the road from the original site and continues to
provide an
essential service to a community that has fought hard to reverse the
slow decline suffered by the village since the 1995 opening of the Skye
Bridge.
The Writer
The 1947 edition of "Macpherson's Vest Pocket Guide to Kyle of Lochalsh and the Isle of Skye."
The 1947 edition of "Macpherson's Vest Pocket Guide to Kyle of Lochalsh and the Isle of Skye."
The Chemist found time away from his shop and family to compile and
publish local information cards for tourists listing bus, steamer and train
times and local events. In 1923 he produced a guide to the "Isles
and Peaks of the West".
During his lifetime Duncan authored three three books, each providing a
humorous insight in to relaxed way of life and characters found in Skye and Lochalsh
during the first half of the 20th Century.
He completed his typed, illustrated and bound manuscript for his
first book, "Gateway to Skye" in 1939 however it was only
after he received encouragement from prolific author
Phyllis
Bottome and the ending of World War II that the book was finally
released in 1946. It was subsequently reprinted in 1946, 1947
and 1948. This book established a successful formula based on of
recording scenes of everyday life, landscapes and the comings and goings
of people, a formula that he followed in his two subsequent books; "Lure
of the West" in 1950 and the autobiographical "Where I Belong" in 1964, two years before his
death.
Whilst his books continue to be enjoyed he is perhaps better known
for his his immensely popular, annual
booklet "A Vest Pocket Guide to Skye and Lochalsh" published
annually for 34 years from 1927 until 1960. This was an early
tourist guide that included timetables, accommodation, events, sites of interest,
stories and anecdotes, all written in his humorous style. In
the 22nd (1954) edition of his Vest Pocket Guide he describes Skye as
follows;
"With best wishes, Duncan Macpherson. Kyle of Lochalsh 5th July 1946."
"With best wishes, Duncan Macpherson. Kyle of
Lochalsh 5th July 1946."
"Skye attracts thousands of visitors annually. There are 300 miles of
motoring roads, besides numerous pony-tracks and hill-paths which can be
negotiated by cyclists. There are bypaths for those who would explore on
foot, and mountains which test the skill of the climber."
"Skye has been described as a land of mist and of rain. Yes, but a
land of sunshine and cloud. And mighty silences. A Paradise for the
artist, it is a haven for the nerve-racked. For here is peace."
Concluding; "But the glory of Skye is in her sunsets. Stand on the
mainland, at the Gateway to the Isle, where I have dwelt for many years,
and watch the sun go down like a ball of fire behind the Cuillins. See
the whole heavens aflame, and the glory reflected in the waters
beneath."
"Go where you will. Visit the cities and palaces of the South, or the
wonders of the East, Skye will lure you back."
An announcement of the final edition of the Pocket Guide appeared
in "The Sunday Times" national newspaper resulted in Macpherson
being deluged by enthusiastic correspondence from around the world.
The Photographer
"The Cuillins at sunrise, from Kyle of Lochalsh", one of
many picture post cards published by Duncan Macpherson and Kyle Pharmacy.
This post card has an ethereal quality to it normally associated with infra-red film.
"The Cuillins at sunrise, from Kyle of Lochalsh",
one of many picture post cards published by Duncan Macpherson and
Kyle Pharmacy.
As a teenager Duncan Macpherson was fascinated by photography. He
became a prolific and gifted photographer creating a detailed
photographic record of the Highland way of life before the sweeping
cultural changes brought about by two World Wars. On his journeys in and
around the Skye and Lochalsh area, often accompanied by his family, he
would carry his heavy field camera or clockwork driven panoramic
camera, capturing unique and enduring images of people and places. Some
of his photographs illustrate his three books, others were sent all over
the world as part of "Kyle Pharmacy" picture post card series that ran
to over 400 different cards. Postcards from the series appear regularly
on
eBay in the United Kingdom.
In common with chemists of old, Kyle Pharmacy supplied local
photographers with the noxious and toxic chemicals used for developing
and printing photographic emulsions in addition to the photography,
developing and printing service that Duncan Macpherson provided
to locals and tourists.
More information
A collection of over 1,200 of Duncan Macpherson's negatives, prints, plus Kyle Pharmacy
letters, documents and ephemera was donated by his daughter Mary Hudson
to the safe hands of The
Highland Council Libraries Service. Many photographs and documents can be viewed on their excellent
Am Baile website.
At the end of October 2010, Mary Carmichael, formerly Museums and Heritage Officer for Skye and
Lochalsh, is due to release her book "Where I belong - Fifty
Years in Focus in the Highlands and Islands: Duncan Macpherson -
Photographer and Pharmacist". The title really says it all. It can be be pre-ordered from amazon.co.uk
here.