Author's biography

Donald Macdonald's previous book, Lewis - A History of the Island (1978), is now the standard work on the history of the Island of Lewis.

For both books, we salute him for his considerable contribution to the preservation of the history of our village.

The late Donald Macdonald was born in North Tolsta in 1904 and was educated at Tolsta Junior Secondary School and the Nicolson Institute, Stornoway.

He graduated M.A. from Glasgow University and went on to complete teacher training at Jordanhill College. He moved to Edinburgh where he dedicated his life to teaching.

During his career, which spanned over forty years, he taught in deaf, primary and secondary schools, and in Further Education, and, during the war years, in an R.A.F. Training Centre.

For 14 years prior to his retirement in 1970 he was Headmaster of Corstorphine Primary School. He was a Fellow of both the Educational Institute of Scotland and the Royal Scottish Geographical Society.