A veritable treasure trove of history and heritage

Neither Here Nor There

Written by CG Docherty

Published by Levenford Publishing

Price: £12.99

WHEN studying local history and creating family trees has never been so popular, it is often said ‘you have to know where you came from in order to know where you are going.’

Some questions people ask regularly here in Scotland: “Who do you think you are?” Are you somebody? “Who were your parents?” “Where did they work?”

What is really surprising is that so many people haven’t a clue when it comes to their personal history and heritage. Well a new book by Charlie Docherty may have some of the answers.

As a Dumbarton man, I found it fascinating from the moment I opened and started reading Neither Here Nor There, that the names of familiar streets, landmarks, places of work, and even names of people came tumbling out.

If you have a fondness for Dumbarton and the Vale of Leven then this book is for you. It should be in every local home and every local school.

However, the book is not entirely focused on Dumbarton and the ‘Vale.’ The experience of immigrants is viewed within the Scottish context, as people from Ireland and all over Scotland flocked to cities and towns across the Central Belt.

Chapter nine of Charlie’s excellent book deals with immigration from Ireland on the one hand, and the Scottish Highlands and Islands on the other.

He tells us that Dumbarton’s industrial success made it very attractive to migrants at a time when the Irish were leaving home in ever increasing numbers.

In contrast, the Vale’s longer established industries did draw both Scottish and Irish immigrants, but not to the same extent because there were fewer jobs for men.

Nevertheless, this did not apply to Irishwomen who were actively encouraged to come and work in the bleach, print and dye works.

Immigrants coming directly from Ireland and arriving on Clydeside, often found work nearby in the docks and shipyards, although some ventured to the mining towns in Central Scotland.

Many Irishwomen made their way to Dundee, as well as to the Vale of Leven to work in the textile industries.

As was common, intervening opportunities for work could put a halt to any anticipated onward journey. Not all arrived with a plan in mind. They went where circumstances took them.

We may have a housing crisis now, but there is no comparison to what workers and their families endured in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries, when severe overcrowding and squalor led to serious outbreaks of disease.

There was no ‘sofa surfing’ then, but ‘the phenomenon’ of lodging or boarding with friends or relatives was commonplace and there is a whole fascinating chapter devoted to this.

Neither Here Nor There by CG Docherty is published by Levenford Publishing and costs £12.99. It is available in the Scottish Maritime Museum and The Pit Stop, Dumbarton; Jimmy’s Card and Gift Shop, and Caffeinated Escapism Bookstore, Alexandria; Daydreams Book Shop, Milngavie, Calton Books, Glasgow, in other good bookshops and online