Coin, Kirk, Class and Kin: Emigration, Social Change and Identity in Southern Scotland

294 Pages·2011·3.033 MB·English

by  Melodee Beals

M
.

H
B R I T I S H I D E N T I T I E S S I N C E 1 7 0 7 .

B
e
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There are many detailed accounts of nineteenth-century emig rants, C
o
of their journeys and settlements abroad—but what of those they i
n
left behind? ,
K
i
r
k
This book delves into the heart of Georgian Britain to explore the ,
C
role that the men and women of the Scottish Borders played in the l
a
s
mass emigration of the early nineteenth century. Although most s

a
never departed themselves, their perceptions of wealth, poverty, n
d
morality and community shaped the fl ow of emigrants from the K
rural south to the wide and expanding British Empire, as well as in
:

its North American rival, the United States. Scouring the records E
m
of grand estates, humble Kirks, fl amboyant newspapers and family
i
g
correspondences, the author returns the Scottish Borders to the centre r
a
t
of Scotland’s agricultural, industrial and demographic revolutions. io
n
Standing on the sharp edge of rural transformation, the Borders ,

S
played both archetype and exception, pioneering the way from a o
c
regional past to an imperial future. ia
l

C
h
a
n
g
e

a
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d

I
d
e Coin, Kirk, Class and Kin
Melodee Beals is an Academic Coordinator for History at the Higher n
t
i
Education Academy. She received her PhD in Scottish history from ty

i
the University of Glasgow in 2009. n
Emigration, Social Change and Identity in Southern Scotland
S
o
u
t
h
e
r
n

S
c BID
o
t
l
a
n M. H. Beals
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3
Peter Lang
www.peterlang.com
M
.

H
B R I T I S H I D E N T I T I E S S I N C E 1 7 0 7 .

B
e
a
l
s

•

There are many detailed accounts of nineteenth-century emig rants, C
o
of their journeys and settlements abroad—but what of those they i
n
left behind? ,
K
i
r
k
This book delves into the heart of Georgian Britain to explore the ,
C
role that the men and women of the Scottish Borders played in the l
a
s
mass emigration of the early nineteenth century. Although most s

a
never departed themselves, their perceptions of wealth, poverty, n
d
morality and community shaped the fl ow of emigrants from the K
rural south to the wide and expanding British Empire, as well as in
:

its North American rival, the United States. Scouring the records E
m
of grand estates, humble Kirks, fl amboyant newspapers and family
i
g
correspondences, the author returns the Scottish Borders to the centre r
a
t
of Scotland’s agricultural, industrial and demographic revolutions. io
n
Standing on the sharp edge of rural transformation, the Borders ,

S
played both archetype and exception, pioneering the way from a o
c
regional past to an imperial future. ia
l

C
h
a
n
g
e

a
n
d

I
d
e Coin, Kirk, Class and Kin
Melodee Beals is an Academic Coordinator for History at the Higher n
t
i
Education Academy. She received her PhD in Scottish history from ty

i
the University of Glasgow in 2009. n
Emigration, Social Change and Identity in Southern Scotland
S
o
u
t
h
e
r
n

S
c BID
o
t
l
a
n M. H. Beals
d
3
Peter Lang
www.peterlang.com
Coin, Kirk, Class and Kin
B R I T I S H I D E N T I T I E S S I N C E 1 7 0 7
Vol. 3
Series Editors:
Professor Paul Ward
School of Music, Humanities and Media,
University of Huddersfield
Dr Richard Finlay
Department of History, University of Strathclyde
PETER LANG
Oxford • Bern • Berlin • Bruxelles • Frankfurt am Main • New York • Wien
M. H. Beals
Coin, Kirk, Class and Kin
Emigration, Social Change and Identity in Southern Scotland
PETER LANG
Oxford • Bern • Berlin • Bruxelles • Frankfurt am Main • New York • Wien
Bibliographic information published by Die Deutsche Nationalbibliothek
Die Deutsche Nationalbibliothek lists this publication in the Deutsche Nationalbibliografie;
detailed bibliographic data is available on the Internet at http://dnb.d-nb.de.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
Beals, M. H. (Melodee H.)
Coin, kirk, class and kin : emigration, social change and identity in
southern Scotland / M.H. Beals.
p. cm. -- (British identities since 1707 ; 3)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-3-0343-0252-4 (alk. paper)
1. Scotland--Social conditions. 2. Scotland--Emigration and
immigration. 3. Social change--Scotland. 4. National characteristics,
Scottish. 5. Scottish Borders (Scotland) I. Title.
HN398.S3B43 2011
304.809413’7--dc22
2011001797
ISSN 1664-0284
isbn 978-3-0343-0252-4
© Peter Lang AG, International Academic Publishers, Bern 2011
Hochfeldstrasse 32, CH-3012 Bern, Switzerland
[email protected], www.peterlang.com, www.peterlang.net
All rights reserved.
All parts of this publication are protected by copyright.
Any utilisation outside the strict limits of the copyright law, without the
permission of the publisher, is forbidden and liable to prosecution.
This applies in particular to reproductions, translations, microfilming,
and storage and processing in electronic retrieval systems.
Printed in Germany
For John

Contents
Acknowledgements ix
Preface xi
Introduction: Finding a Place for Sending Communities 1
The Myth of Clearance 17
Population Theories and the Greater Landowners 22
Agricultural Improvement and the Shifting Social Hierarchy 27
The Social Cost of Demographic Change 39
Industrial Development and Paternalism Redefined 43
Poverty and the Promise of Emigration 55
Population Pressures and the Old Scottish Poor Law 57
Class Tensions and Migratory Paths 63
Pragmatism, Paternalism and Patronage 69
The Established Church v. Emigration 77
The Fifth Horseman 80
Patterns of Decline and Deprivation in the 1790s 88
The Kirk and Rural Change 95
The Spirits of Improvement and Emigration 96
The Sins of the City and the Perils of Overpopulation 114
viii
Commercial Ventures 129
Commodious Conveyances 131
Promises of Patronage and Paradise 150
Rumours and Reportage 159
The Provincial Press in Southern Scotland 162
North America and Commercial Compromise 168
Antipodean Adventure and Tragedy 178
Popular and Editorial Opinion 185
The Family Economy 197
The Story of Border Emigration 200
Economic Perceptions of Perspective Emigrants 203
Perceptions of those left behind 216
Chains of Emigration 225
Emigration Networks 226
The Severance and Survival of Emotional Ties 233
Solace and Sentimentalism 239
Perceptions of Emigration 251
Bibliography 257
Manuscripts 257
Newspapers 258
Printed Primary Material 258
Secondary Works 260
Index 269