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Tag Archives: Scotland

St. Kilda’s Mail Boats & Bottled Messages

24 Thursday Nov 2022

Posted by Clint Buffington | Message in a Bottle Hunter in message in a bottle

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Clint Buffington, John Sands, Mail Boat, message in a bottle, RIchard Kearton, Scotland, St. Kilda

St. Kilda: The Remotest Scottish Islands & Home of “Mail Boats”

Once upon a time, the remote islands of St. Kilda relied entirely on a unique postal system: Letters destined for the outside world were set adrift in tiny “mail boats”– essentially glorified messages in bottles–that carried them either to the Scottish mainland, or sometimes Norway. Each missive included money for the finder to send the beached message onward to its intended recipient. This system began with an emergency involving a shipwreck near St. Kilda (more on this below) and went on for decades with remarkable success. The original era of the “mail boat” spanned the late 19th and early 20th centuries. However, tourists visiting the islands today still make and send both mail boats and messages in bottles successfully. Many of these letters drift east as intended, and reach the mainland just as they did over a century ago.

Here’s what these “mail boats” looked like back in the day:

St. Kilda Mail Boat

A St. Kilda Mail Boat. The little wooden “boat” is on the right, the inflated sheep skin on the left. Photo from “With Nature and a Camera,” by Richard Kearton, 1897.

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Canadian Sisters’ Message in a Bottle Beaches in Scotland’s Hebrides

24 Saturday Nov 2018

Posted by Clint Buffington | Message in a Bottle Hunter in message in a bottle

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Barra Beach Hotel, message in a bottle, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Scotland, Vardy

Canadian Sisters’ Message in a Bottle Travels from Nova Scotia to Scotland

Again and again, messages in bottles forge lovely connections between Canadians and Scots. One Scottish woman has even found two messages in bottles from the same Canadian sender! On Canada Day 2017 (which was Saturday, July 1st), Annalea Vardy, age 6, and her sister Isabel, 3, were aboard their grandparents’ sailboat, celebrating Canada’s 150th year of independence. That’s their sesquicentennial anniversary, for anyone who likes long words 🙂 Together with their grandparents, David and Donna, the girls sent a message in a bottle in honor of Canada’s independence. The sisters’ message in a bottle drifted away and the family continued their sailing adventure.

Vardy sisters' message in a bottle fragment.

Annalea and Isabel Vardy’s message in a bottle, signed and sent on Canada’s 150th birthday. Photo: The Daily Record.

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Scottish 1985 Message in a Bottle Found 23 Years Later

11 Sunday Feb 2018

Posted by Clint Buffington | Message in a Bottle Hunter in message in a bottle

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Friendship, message in a bottle, Scotland

1985 Message in a Bottle Found

*This 1985 message in a bottle was found back in 2008, but I just found out about it, and I think it’s super cool!*

When Donald Wylie was just 11 years old, he cast a message in a bottle into the sea hoping for a penpal, according to the University of St. Andrews. Well, it took longer than he hoped, but he also got more than he asked for. 23 years later, he gained real-life friends instead of a penpal. Wylie launched his 1985 message in a bottle in the Orkneys, and it washed ashore in 2008 at St. Andrews, northeast of Edinburgh. A Scottish message in a bottle, through and through! It’s not the oldest Scottish message in a bottle, but at 23 years, it’s downright impressive. Continue reading →

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Grieving Scottish & American Mothers Bond Over Loss Through Message in a Bottle

22 Wednesday Nov 2017

Posted by Clint Buffington | Message in a Bottle Hunter in message in a bottle

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Inspiration, message in a bottle, Scotland

A Heartbreaking Loss in Scotland

This might be the most heartbreaking and inspiring message in a bottle I have ever heard of. It involves the deeply painful loss of not one, but two children. The chances of this particular connection seem astronomically small to me, and yet–here we are. No one should have to go through what these two mothers experienced. Even so, these incredibly strong and resilient women are so inspiring, I feel compelled to share their story. Their story also shows just how powerful a simple message in a bottle can be.

The story begins with a happy little boy, Lucas, and his mother, Sascha, living in Glasgow, Scotland in November 2016, according to the Daily Mail. As you can see, Lucas was bright, healthy, and happy.

Lucas in Toy Truck

Lucas. Photo: Daily Mail.

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1982 Message in a Bottle Reconnects Scottish Sisters With Deceased Father

13 Wednesday Sep 2017

Posted by Clint Buffington | Message in a Bottle Hunter in Friendship, message in a bottle, News

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Dumfries, Family, Friendship, message in a bottle, Richardson and Starling, Scotland

1982 Message in a Bottle Found on Dry Land

Anyone who has ever renovated an old house knows it involves a bit of archaeology. Who installed this ceiling fan? Why are the walls insulated but not the ceiling? What lunatic placed a light switch inside the shower? Old houses are a grab-bag of choices made by previous owners, some perplexing, others delightful.

Clarke Elsby knows this well–he directs a team of technicians for Richardson & Starling contractors in Dumfries, Scotland.

Screen Shot 2017-09-13 at 10.26.06 AM.png

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90 Year Old Man Discovers 83 Year Old Message in a Bottle is From His Father

25 Tuesday Jul 2017

Posted by Clint Buffington | Message in a Bottle Hunter in history, message in a bottle, News

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Edinburgh, history, Living Memory Association, message in a bottle, News, Scotland, Time Capsule, Viewforth

83 Year Old Message in Bottle Discovered

Living in the world of messages in bottles, there’s a certain level of coincidence that comes with the job. That’s what makes it so cool 🙂 But occasionally something happens that knocks even my socks off! I mean, if the starting point is an 83 year old message in a bottle, you know the story is gonna be good…

Laurence Reid, an Edinburgh resident who recently turned 90, spent his working life as a joiner, constructing the wooden elements of buildings and the like. According to a story published by the Edinburgh Evening News, he recently decided to donate an old carpenter’s plane to the Living Memory Association, which is not exactly a museum, but an organization that nevertheless keeps the past alive.

While there, Laurence and LMA worker Miles Tubbs, struck up a conversation. I can’t imagine the conversation they had that led to this next moment–but somehow Miles got the idea to show Laurence an item the Living Memory Association had recently acquired–a message in a bottle.

Laurence Reid 83 Year Old Message in a Bottle

The message in a bottle at Living Memory Association. Photo: SWNS.com / Daily Mail

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