James McDiarmid: 1851 - 1930

James was a Great Great Uncle on my Scottish granny's side. I knew nothing at all about him until I started this research. However, my auntie Lib, born in 1924, remembers James and his older brother John as two elderly men in tweed plus-fours and hats, known within the family as Tweedledum and Tweedledee.

Born on 30 June 1851.

The death notice that appeared in the Perthshire Advertiser on Wednesday 2 April 1930 read "At Oakleigh, Comrie, on 31st March, James McDiarmid, retired farmer. Funeral from house to Comrie cemetery, on Thursday, at one o'clock. Friends omitted please accept this invitation. No flowers." A copy of his will can by found here.

In its edition of 26 April 1930 the Perthshire Advertiser carried the following obituary to James.

INTERESTING PERSONALITY. Mr James McDiarmid, who passed at Oakleigh, Comrie, was an interesting personality and a man possessing literary gifts of no mean ability and was an authority on the Gaelic language. A student of Scott, Dickens and Thackeray, and other noted authors, he was familiar with the work of all the best writers and could discourse on them with surprising familiarity. For many years he collected folk-lore tales and contributed papers on the Breadalbane folk-lore to the Gaelic Society of Inverness. His one and only hobby on the long winter nights was his favourite game of draughts, of which he was an expert, and writing Gaelic stories to periodicals. He was born at Claggan, in the parish of Kenmore, and was at school in Comrie for a couple of years. Afterwards the family went to Auchnafree, in Upper Glenalmond, where he received the most of his education from private teachers, who taught the children of the farmers, gamekeepers, and shepherds. Gaelic was his mother tongue, and to his father he owes much for his familiarity with the Gaelic language. When at Morenish he was a valued member of Killin Literary Society and Draught club. He began life as a shepherd at Auchnafree, and followed the pastoral life which he loved so well all his days until his retiral some years ago. Intelligent and fond of a crack and of the homely old type, he was esteemed by a wide circle of friends.

On 27 April 1930, following receipt of news of James's death, Mary Campbell, wife of John H Campbell, wrote from Metcalfe, Ontaro, Canada to Grace Murray, James's sister (and my great Grandmother) as follows:

"Dear Mrs Murray,

Received the "Paper" which you kindly sent to us. We were very sorry to hear of your dear brother's death. I am sure you will miss him. We had received so many nice letters from him that it made us feel as if we knew him personally. And my son Ross always speaks of how kind you all were to him when he was in Scotland.

Well dear Cousin since I wrote to your brother last, which is two years ago, two of your cousins here in Canada have passed away. My husband's brother James died 19 January 1928 aged 60 years, and his sister Anne Grace (Mrs Andrew Roberts) died in October 1928 aged 74. She was the eldest of the family. My husband was the oldest boy in the family: he was 61 years of age when he died on 26 April 1925. Although it is five years ago his memory is still dear to me. I suppose your son is still in Japan and are you very far from your daughter? I must tell you that Ross is now in China. He went to England two years ago to take a special course in the Naval Hospital. He was there 6 months and then was offered a place on a ship as Surgeon,to China and he has been there since. I hear from him every month. He says he intends going back to England this fall and then home to Canada where he will settle down. When he hears of Mr McDiarmid's death he will feel sorry he did not visit his cousins in Scotland before he went to China.

We are having a cold and backward spring here in Ontario, but we hope to have warm weather soon. My boys Robin and Alex James have did nothing on the land yet. I have just the one grandchild - she is 3 and a half years of age. She is great company for me.

Well Mrs Murray, I hope you are enjoying good health for it is a blessing we should feel so thankful for, and what a comfort it is to know "that there is no sorrow that God cannot heal".

We extend to you our sincere sympathy in your loss of your brother.

Yours sincerely, Mrs (John H) Mary Campbell

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