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  1. #1
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    Arrow W.R. McIntosh Ianstown Yard

    Location; Ianstown. Ianstown is between Buckie and Portessie (maps to follow), Morayshire, Scotland.

    The founder was John McIntosh who left his agricultural work in nearby Keith to serve a boatbuilding apprenticeship with James Ross of Cullen, who is recorded as having built during this period (starting 1808) "Sloops" and "Open sail boats". After marrying in Cullen and fathering five children (the last Isabella Cullen), John moved to nearby Portessie, established his own yard and subsequently took his son William into his business. William then subsequently took two of his sons, John and William R. into the business.

    After Williams death in 1893, the younger son William R. opened his own yard in adjacent Ianstown which was likely more suited to the launching of larger boats. John although a competent boatbuilder in the family tradition, carried on the Portessie yard, but was apparently not as competent a businessman as his brother, and after meeting financial difficulties (possibly due to increasing commitments as a Methodist lay preacher or the much greater investment involved in the building of the A 149 WHITE ROSE) was forced to auction in 1900. The Portessie yard then was acquired by William R. who kept John as an employee until his death in 1912.

    During this period some boats were still credited to J & W McIntosh even though the official builder would have been W.R. McIntosh. The Portessie yard was closed after John's death, all ongoing work being transferred to the Ianstown yard, which continued in business until being acquired by Jones Buckie Slip & Shipyard in 1918. William R.'s son William, became foreman shipwright at the Jones yard, a position he held until his retirement during WW2. William R. continued boat maintenance and/or building work on adjacent land next to Whale Bay - (The Roarins?).

    The last Steam Drifter built by the McIntosh's was the BCK 209 Jeannie McIntosh launched in February 1915. She survived service with the Admiralty in WW1 & was one of the 'little ships' involved in the evacuation of the remnants of the British Expeditionary Force from Dunkirk in 1940, when France fell to the Germans. She apparently suffered structural damage at Dunkirk, but was repaired & assigned to a patrol escort group based at Ipswich (HMS Bunting). Armed with machine guns she was probably engaged in escorting small ship convoys, to and from Ipswich and Harwich, to join the main East Coast convoy route about 11 miles off Harwich. When the Rough Fort was placed in position in February 1942 she was then allocated as a tender and subsequently the Sunk Head Fort - finally being scrapped in 1947. Her remains can still be seen (2005) at low tide at Harwich.
    So originally this ship yard was named W.R. McIntosh Ianstown yard, McIntosh and Sons owned Ianstown (Ianstown is the small town between Portessie and Buckie) and when bought over by John Jones the Shipyard was renamed Jones Shipyard.

    Maps of W.R. McIntosh Ianstown Yard; In the first two pictures the yard is on the right hand side. In the third picture it's just on the front of the beach (the smaller harbour.. It's tiny compared to Buckie's Cluny Harbour in front of it).







    Some Olde pictures.







    Another old postcard of Buckie in the 1890's shows the McIntosh yard at Ianstown top left, above the masts in the harbour and a digital zoom on the boatyard area.


    (Used to live around the corner from this)



    I'll post more olde pictures if I come across any.
    Now.. Time for my exploration pictures, I first found out about this place in 2001/2002 when I moved to Morayshire as a kid with my Mother and Brother. The local kids wanted to show us their 'treasures', and its a treasure I'll keep visiting until it falls down to the ground. Been visiting here for 7/8 years and it never gets old and you find something new every time.
    If anyone is ever in Buckie we can venture some places I haven't been too? I'm scared of being in dark buildings by myself and always need a companion or 2 as I wuss out.

    Also, some interesting recent history (and this would explain all the Police Tape) a body was found down there and this is why the main gates at the beginning of the Shipyard where open (I found this out after walking all the way around the other side at the Jetty).

    Also for safety reasons if you do plan on going here; Do not walk to the end of the Jetty, if you do so then it really is at your risk... It's starting to sink a little on one side (the right hand side) and is slanted... The wood is original to the whole place... So.. Yeah it's quite old and unsteady.











































    I have so many more pictures to upload so thank you for your patience, I have portable dial-up (Vodafone 'broadband' is a LIE!) and some images are still loading.. Might have another good 30 images from this site. Hope you guys like it.

    References;
    http://glennmci.brinkster.net/mcibb/mcibb.html
    Last edited by Esposa; 03-02-2010 at 01:31 AM. Reason: Added green arrow to title

  2. #2
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    Default Re: W.R. McIntosh Ianstown Yard

    Also noticed my camera doesn't do well with background natural light...
    Hmmm...
    .. Also I should apologise.... My flash is horrid.





















    Into the second room, just behind the first room.



















    And up the stairs...







    Back outside we go to see what is lying around and waiting to be explored....
















    More to follow (yes, more, you really do have to see more.. And I think I only covered a third of the area.....)

  3. #3
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    Default Re: W.R. McIntosh Ianstown Yard

    There's probably more history and photos to it..
    And as I have had 2 hours sleep and had a photoshoot today (I was working on this last night... I should quit whilst I'm ahead) I have to cancel my trip to Buckie tomorrow..
    I will try and go on Friday or Monday and go to the library to get some more information and pictures and the heritage centre (which is next to the library) and see what they have and explain that I'm doing a report on W.R McIntosh's Yard in Ianstown and I'll probably have my work cut out. I'll note stuff down and macro old newspapers if there's anything worth showing.
    I'm quite Nostalgic about this shipyard I guess.. It's one of my favourite places and as a kid of around 11/12 and your parents having a bitter divorce it was nice to go somewhere and be free. So I guess I have a certain sentimental value to the ship yard and many, many happy memories (and cuts and bruises)

    Should have mentioned; this place looks tiny on a map. Agreed?
    It would be tiny if you never went into every building. I went into 4.. There's still a load of sheds and other places to go into... Could take a while to explore.





















    I found some lettering.. What do we do when we find lettering?


    (I never knew this place was an old crime scene.. And I left this there, amazing fail!)


    (It's as easy as...)
































  4. #4
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    Default Re: W.R. McIntosh Ianstown Yard

    And the couple at the end, the Police Tape I noticed wrapped around things, probably been torn off and got tangled in the wind around twigs...







    And because this is the best contradiction in the world.





    My Flickr set on Ianstown yardie
    Last edited by ZombieSazza; 03-02-2010 at 02:56 AM.

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