Tobar an Dualchais - Kist O Riches

Title - Biographical details of Jock Higgins and information about b...
Contributors - Mrs Bella Higgins; Jock Higgins
Reporters - Hamish Henderson
Item Person - Reid, Donald

Summary - Biographical details of Jock Higgins and information about burkers.

Jock was born in Elgin, and lived mostly in Aberdeen until moving to Blairgowrie eleven years before. He was 58 [at time of recording].

Jock heard stories of burkers when he was young. He describes the 'patch' as a pad with chloroform on it. There was a burker story supposed to be about Donald Reid, a strongman. The remains of the burkers' coach used to lie at the blacksmith's at Tulliemet, near Ballinluig. When Bella was a child living at Smiddycroft, Tulliemet, she played on the old burkers' coach. When the burkers were operating Bella used to hear their machine passing every night between twelve and one o'clock. The coach was caught in Perth at the dark arches by a chain of iron rings and taken to the blacksmith's at Tulliemet.

Track Duration (h:m:s) - 00:03:39
Date Recorded - 1953.10
Language - Scots
Genre - Information
Collection - School of Scottish Studies

Track ID - 2820
Original Tape ID - SA1953.237
Original Track ID - SA1953.237.B7



Item Location:
  County - Perthshire
  Parish - Logierait
  Village - Tulliemet

Item Notes -

Permanent Link - http://www.tobarandualchais.co.uk/fullrecord/2820/1