A Cow Called ‘Pretty Foot’

Once in a while a document comes to light which really opens a window on life in rural Fife long ago. One such can be found in the Commissariot of St Andrews records held in Edinburgh and availble for purchase at ScotlandsPeople (Wills and Testaments, CC20/6/40, James Fermer or Farmer 1763).

James Fermer (James Farmer) died, without leaving a will, in early July 1763. His complete testament does not survive; we only have the warrant containing the inventory which lists and values his moveable possessions at the time of his death. Genealogically speaking, the document tells us very little: we have name, address and occupation – James Farmer, vintner at St Davids; and we know that his wife, Agnes Reid, survived him; but we don’t even have an exact date of death, we only know that an edict was issued by the Commissary Court on 13 July 1763.
However, the list of his possession runs to three pages and provides an absolutely fascinating record of the contents of his house at the time of his death. The full transcript is here.

James was described as a vintner at St Davids but perhaps innkeeper is a better description since, as well as the bottles, jugs & drainer used by the vintner, there is also all the other equipment needed in the running of an inn – 7 tables, 39 chairs, 12 beds, blankets, plates (wooden, stone & china), delft ware, crystal glass ware, cups, saucers & glasses. But there is evidence of him wearing even more hats: various parts of the mill – so he was the miller too; farm equipment (carts, hand tools, harrow, plough) & crops (oats, barley, wheat, grass & the contents of the kale yard) – so he was a small farmer; there was equipment for cheese making and three spinning wheels – 2 for wool, 1 for flax; the numerous harnesses, bridles, saddles, etc show how large a part the horses played in his business; and he owned a one-eighth share of the St David boat.

The inn was a large building – at least 7 rooms and possibly 8 over 2 storeys as well as cellar, coal house & kale yard. There must have been stabling for the horses & cattle although this isn’t specifically mentioned.

The livestock were important to the family. Agnes, his widow, took the valuer round the property and began with what may well have been their favourite possession: “first – a cow called Pretty Foot”, then two heifers, Nancy & Janet, then four horses – more valuable than the cattle but not named.

The inventory raises as many questions as it gives insights.

  • Why go to the expense of drawing up the inventory? James’ possessions were worth £79-6-2 (£79.31) but the legal fees were £30-15-4 (£30.77). The answer may have something to do with the eighth share of the boat.
  • The St David boat – small ferry or something larger? Its total value was £32. Who were the other shareholders?
  • Of all the legal documents created, only the inventory survives – there is no list of debts owed or debts due.
  • There are 78 birch cabers – poles, beams or parts of a kiln? They may even be part of a cargo.
  • James left no will. Who will benefit from all of this?

‘But what has all this got to do with Newport?’ I hear you ask. Well, in the inventory St Davids is described as being at ‘Dundee Water Side within the parish of Forgan alias St Phillans’. In fact, St David’s was at that time the name of the inn which was the predecessor of the Newport Hotel and it was situated in present-day terms on the site of Trinity Church at the foot of the High Street. And if proof is needed, at the Records of Scotland in Edinburgh, plan RHP30440 shows the building on the site described as ‘the old public house of St Davids’.

Very little is written about Newport before the new ferry pier was built in 1822. This one document shows that there was quite a lot going on.

Ships That Pass In The Night

The Times was a small smack, typical of the multitude of coasting vessels that plied around the British Isles and across to the near continent in the 19th century. In 1871, her crew consisted of 3 men: the master Robert Milne – a 33 year-old Dundonian, the mate William Taylor aged 46 from Crail, and a 17 year-old ordinary seaman George Smith from Stonehaven. We know this because she was recorded in the census on 2nd April at Woodhaven. She was a frequent visitor to the Tay, on this occasion she had brought a load of manure from London to Perth, arriving on 22nd March. Having discharged the cargo, she left Perth empty on 29th March for Woodhaven. After this the records currently available go quiet but she reappears again towards the end of April having left Sunderland (or South Shields depending on the source used) for Inverness, cargo unknown but possibly coal. On 30th April she puts in to Aberdeen because of bad weather but leaves for Inverness the next day. After another gap in the records, she reappears passing north through the Caledonian Canal on 23rd May with a load of slates from Easdale bound for Dundee. She leaves the Canal on 24th May and arrives in King William Dock, Dundee on the 27th. One further visit to the Tay is recorded that year: on 5 September she arrives with 85 tons of coal from Sunderland for the Tay Bridge Contractors.

One clue to the Times’s cargo is given by another coasting vessel, Racer, tonnage 61, a Cornish vessel, master William H Hodge together with a mate, an AB seaman, an ord. seaman & a cook. She appears in London on 7th March 1871 having come from Nice. On 16th March she too leaves London bound for Perth with a load of manure. She arrives in Perth on April 1st and on 8th also sails empty to Woodhaven. However we know from the Customs House records, reported in the press, that she departed from the Tay on 14th April for London with 100 tons of potatoes and has arrived there by the 1st May.

It is highly unlikely that Times would have sailed from Perth to Woodhaven without having a specific cargo in mind – surely Dundee would be a better source of possible cargoes. So my money is on another load of potatoes. Whether she took them to Sunderland direct or via another port is, from the presently available sources, impossible to say.

Just one thought – manure – from London to Perth – at least 2 ship loads.

Sources:
Shipping & Mercantile Gazette: 8, 15, 17 March 1871; 2, 25, 26 May 1871;
Dundee Courier: 15 April 1871; 29 May 1871; 5 September 1871;
Perthshire Advertiser: 13 April 1871;
Aberdeen Press and Journal: 3 May 1871;
Shields Daily Gazette: 3 May 1871;
Newspapers can be found on the British Newspaper Archive or Find My Past sites.
Census Scotland, 1871, 431-1-14 and 903/S-17-1, at ScotlandsPeople.