Pentland Road - 2

I came across the death records of two men from Ness, which were annotated as follows: "Supposed to have died in the month of February [1885], Island of Rona". The cause of death is marked as not known; the deaths were not reported until April 30th. The two men are named as Malcolm Mcdonald, crofter, married to Mary Mcleod, usual residence Lionel, Barvas. He was aged 67, the son of Murdo and Christina Mcdonald (nee Morrison). His son John reported the death. Murdo Mckay, crofter, married to Ann Morrison, usual residence Lionel, Barvas. He was aged 57, the son of Murdo and Catherine Mckay (nee Mciver). His daughter Christina reported the death; she was unable to write her name. The Aberdeen Weekly Journal of 2 May 1885 relates what happened. Information has been received at Stornoway to the effect that two elderly Ness men who had gone to Rona Island last July - namely Malcolm McDonald and Murdo Mackay - to look after the sheep on the island, were found last week by a ...

Rona (or Rònaidh in Gaelic) is a remote Scottish island in the North Atlantic. Rona is often referred to as North Rona in order to distinguish it from South Rona, which lies north of Raasay, off Skye. The island lies 71 km (44 miles) north north east of Butt of Lewis and 16 km (10 miles) east of Sula Sgeir at Grid reference HW812324. More isolated than St Kilda, it is the remotest island in the British Isles to have ever been permanently inhabited. Rona is said to have been the residence of Saint Ronan in the eighth century. The island continued to be inhabited for many hundreds of years. However the entire population died in 1680 after rats reached the island, and a ship raided their food stocks. It was resettled, but again depopulated by around 1695 in some sort of boating tragedy, after which it remained home to a shepherd and family until 1844 when it was deserted. Sir James Matheson, who bought Lewis in 1844, once offered the island to the Government for use as...