Grocers

[Christina Baldwin]

Hi. I was most interested in the prices of goods and groceries posted. Thanks. Is there more data in the diary of the grocer of Srath Halladale. My gggrandmother Christina McLeod is in the 1871 census as a grocer in Rangag. She & her husband John had been shepherds in Rumsdale for many years but moved to Rangag about 1863 and opened a small grocery business. I wouldnt really have a clue how that operated so am trying to work that out. I see from the AmBaille site that many grocers were advertising Licenced businesses so I presume they were selling alcohol of various sorts as well as other goods. I cant find a record of the Rangag grocery being licenced so I presume they will have sold all the same sorts of goods as in the Strath Halladale grocer. What else? Candles? How did they get their 'wholesale goods'? Would this have involved trips to millers etc. Would things like biscuits etc have come in from Thurso or Wick or further away eg Edinburgh? I suppose they had to have various weights & measures - were they regulated?

One last question. When I was in Thurso last year I found the old croft in Rangag were the grocery shop had been. It was for sale and permission for it to be demolished had been granted, sadly. I was tempted to buy it myself but from New Zealand it was a bit of a mission. Does anyone know if that croft & land sold & if it was demolished yet?. Just curious.
Thanks Christina

[trinkie]

I've found an article in a 1923 John O Groat Journal, describing The Old Village Shop. It begins ''Remembering the warmth of the village shop on a winter's evening when a heaped fire of peat and wood glowed upon the well kent faces...."
I cant give any more here because of copyright. However if you would like to send me a private message with your address I'd happily send the item to you.

Trinkie

[Casey]

Christina, I've sent you a PM.

The grocer definitely visited millers etc. I recall tales in another of my F-I-L's books of millers selling sacks of grain by weight with heavy chains at the bottom of the sack and receiving just as good in return.