When John Knight purchased the Royal Forest of Exmoor in 1818 he was keen on the idea of importing Scottish cattle to run on the wild uplands of Exmoor. His thinking was that if the cattle can manage on the hills of Scotland they will manage on the hills of Exmoor. By the 1860s, John’s son Frederic Wynn Knight was importing Scottish sheep down to Exmoor along with their Scottish shepherds and in many cases their wives and families. Although the train infrastructure was well and truly on its way to being developed in the 1860s the journey down to Devon from the Scottish Borders would have been quite an expedition for both sheep and humans. More information about this Scottish migration can be found on this link: The Scottish Shepherds on Exmoor – hoaroak (hoaroakcottage.org)
One interesting result of The Friends research into the Scottish shepherds on Exmoor is to do with this idea of the trip from Scotland to North Devon being something of an ‘expedition’. Perhaps if one was travelling with a flock of sheep or even a flock of small children – when shepherds moved south with their wives and families – it would undoubtedly have seemed like an expedition. Head Shepherd Robert Tait Little, who came originally from Dumfries, gives us a hint of what was involved with such a train journey. You can read more about Robert and his wife Jane and their incredible story as part of the Scottish migrants on Exmoor on this link Robert Tait Little – hoaroak (hoaroakcottage.org) but for now we want to focus on one page from his extensive diaries he kept. It is from January 1879 and is preceded by several days recording very bad weather, snow and icy conditions. We understand from his descendants, that Robert’s mother had died and he needed to return to Dumfries for her funeral. His diary entry reads as follows:
January 29, left Exmoor for a visit
to Scotland & left Dumfries
to return to Exmoor Feb 3rd with
the 7pm train arrived at South
Molton ¼ before 10 Tuesday morning Feb 4th.
Left South Molton with the 4 PM train arrived at Dumfries at 6 AM Jan 30th.
Railway Fair (sic) South Molton to Dumfries £1.11.8
January 29th left Exmoor for Dumfries Feb 3rd came back to Exmoor.
Robert Little
Reader – you are challenged to make this ‘expedition’ from South Molton to Dumfries and back. Leave South Molton at 4pm on Jan 29th and arrive Dumfries at 6am the next morning. Leave Dumfries at 7pm and arrive South Molton before 10am the next morning. All for £1.11.8
Now that would be an expedition.
