Aerial photo of Portmahomack 31st August 1945 and stories

By Douglas Gordon

Aerial photo of Portmahomack 31st August 1945 and stories

By Douglas Gordon

 I got the original photo from Tarbat Discovery Centre (TDC) taken by a recognisance spitfire 31st August 1945, I have cropped this photo several times and with John Barnetson’s (our retired Grieve Scots word for foreman) help have now got most things of interest named on photos.

Winston Churchill gave orders to RAF to photograph all the coastal defences at the end of the war in 1945.Here is the original photo

You can see Portmahomack at the top and Rockfield at bottom.

I have cropped the photo several times to show what parts of the photo look like close up.

Portmahomack you will see there was no caravan site then

You will see a round lookout post on sand dunes, it had a roof and slit windows for observation, and the high bit of sand dunes is known as The Broad Scotch and Jocky Munro said his father had an old OS map and it had it on it. And up opposite Parish Church of Scotland now the Tarbat Discovery Centre there are 2 slit trenches now under houses and John said they played on them.

 They had a bonfire on VJ day on top of round lookout post on The Broad Scotch. There was a road going up to it. For VE day they had a bonfire next to fountain and nearly burnt the overhead telephone wires.

I thought the arrow above Rockfield is a white arrow it points due east and was lit up at night for bombers to get their bearings of after taking off from RAF Tain.

But I have been told by Peter Kirk it was for a target out in Moray Firth 1000 yards and there was another naval quadrant lookout on Bindal Farm looking on 1000 yards to this concrete target anchored out in the Moray Firth off Rockfield. Stan Mitchell from Rockfield remembers the night bombing on target a lot of noise.

The arrow lights were lifted out of the sockets and stored in generator shed to allow farming to carry on and farm horses and carts could drive over it as it was in middle of a field and is still there today.

You will notice the herring kilns where they salted and smoked the herring, also police house and John said when his mother bought it you went in the front door and the police office was on right hand side of building with 2 cells which he had to knock down to make into a room.

 There is a bake house there and John said there was about 5 bakeries in the village at one time.

Catriona Ferguson reminded me about her mother's house was on the site of Tarbatness Hotel which I had forgotten about and Hamish Mackay said that these 2 council house and 2 where Angie Ferguson lived were built in 1936 approx.

Eric Mackenzie said that Hugh David skinner told him that he had to pay more money for his council house than what Angie Ferguson did as his was built of stone (maybe from Tarbatness hotel) and Angie's of breeze blocks.

You will notice a mill dam at Lower Seafield and Mill, the Mill house is still there, but as water was scarce in this area it would only be able to be used when they had enough water.

 That is why Rockfield Mill was petrol driven, but John said it was not good flour as it sometimes tasted of fumes from petrol engine no Hygiene regulations in those days!!!!!

School garden was used by the school to teach the children one day a week how to grow vegetables etc, there was also apple tree red currant bushes and how to work a garden.

It was knocked down when Duncan Johnstone built his new house and steading about 1946- 1950.

He had a wooden steading on top of hill until his own new steading was built, this was knocked down about 1950.

The corrugated Iron round the garden was bought by my father Willie Gordon of Bindal and put up as a shelter from east wind and also to divide his garden and steading and it still stands there today.

So how old is the corrugated iron John said it could be 100 years old!!!! Don't make stuff like that now.

Duncan Johnstone was born in Lower Seafield and he married Hugh Munro of Seafield's daughter and started farming Highfield and latterly farmed with his brother David Munro, who stayed in his father's house.

Jocky Munro's parents Alex and Barbara Munro came to farm Fairfield from Caithness just before WW 2.  Alex Munro was a special constable.

The clay hole and Quarry was used to repair Rockfield Road and was filled in by bulldozer about 1950, and Jocky Munro said a man standing in it could not see out and John agreed.

Golf course area showing school and white church manse