Interviews of Willie Henry, , 20th century

Identifier	EERC/DG/DG50/4
Interviewer	Alcock, Hilary, McDowall, Flora
Dates	interview: 2018-05-03 creation: 1900
Extent	1 digital audio file(s), 1 digital photograph(s)
Notable persons / organisations	Hornel, Edward Atkinson, 1864-1933 (Scottish painter), King, Jessie M. (Jessie Marion), 1875-1949, Taylor, Ernest Archibald (EA Taylor), 1874-1951 (Scottish artist), McDowall, Flora
Subject	Art Social Systems Community Life Working life Kirkcudbright Dalbeattie
Interview summary	This interview forms part of the Kirkcudbright Artists Remembered project. This project was active during the refurbishment of the Kirkcudbright Town hall into the Kirkcudbright Galleries centre and was undertaken as a partnership between the Kirkcudbright Harbour Cottage Trust and the EERC. Willie Henry (aged 68) talks about his life and particularly the artists he encountered in Kirkcudbright. Willie went to school in Kirkcudbright before leaving for Edinburgh to study law. He then spent a number of years working in Kirkcudbright and became a highly respected expert in agricultural law. Willie speaks about his early recollections of Lena Alexander, who sat in the pew in front of him at church every Sunday and speaks about many other artists who were part of the Kirkcudbright community. This included memories of Miles Johnston, Dorothy Nesbit, Tim Jeffs and Alastair Dallas. As a young lawyer, Willie moved back to Kirkcudbright and subsequently bought a cottage which was part of the Greengate which dated to the 1700s The main house and cottages that formed the Greengate had been owned by Jessie M King and E A Taylor and the individual cottages were known by the colour of the door. Willie lived in the Blue Door cottage and said that this had been a lovely, tranquil place to live. Artist, Anna Hotchkis was a neighbour and later, Merle Taylor, the only daughter of Jessie M King and E A Taylor came to live there too. Willie shares memories of Merle and recalls that she was rather dishevelled and stern but a great person to know. The cottages were a popular destination for visitors to Kirkcudbright because of the artistic connections. Other artists are discussed and memories shared about E A Hornel and Phyllis Mary Bone. Towards the end of the interview Willie talks about his time as a trustee for the Kirkcudbright Harbour Gallery and the McMinn family. He also talked about the Paul Jones tea room, which Jessie M King had provided painted crockery for and the group discuss the perceptions that persist about how Jessie M King and E A Taylor coped financially.
Access	Open
Usage Statement	We give permission for the re-use of our collections material for non-commercial purposes under the Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial 4.0 International Licence.
Audio links and images
Transcript	View PDF

This interview forms part of the Kirkcudbright Artists Remembered project. This project was active during the refurbishment of the Kirkcudbright Town hall into the Kirkcudbright Galleries centre and was undertaken as a partnership between the Kirkcudbright Harbour Cottage Trust and the EERC.

Willie Henry (aged 68) talks about his life and particularly the artists he encountered in Kirkcudbright. Willie went to school in Kirkcudbright before leaving for Edinburgh to study law. He then spent a number of years working in Kirkcudbright and became a highly respected expert in agricultural law. Willie speaks about his early recollections of Lena Alexander, who sat in the pew in front of him at church every Sunday and speaks about many other artists who were part of the Kirkcudbright community. This included memories of Miles Johnston, Dorothy Nesbit, Tim Jeffs and Alastair Dallas.

As a young lawyer, Willie moved back to Kirkcudbright and subsequently bought a cottage which was part of the Greengate which dated to the 1700s The main house and cottages that formed the Greengate had been owned by Jessie M King and E A Taylor and the individual cottages were known by the colour of the door. Willie lived in the Blue Door cottage and said that this had been a lovely, tranquil place to live. Artist, Anna Hotchkis was a neighbour and later, Merle Taylor, the only daughter of Jessie M King and E A Taylor came to live there too. Willie shares memories of Merle and recalls that she was rather dishevelled and stern but a great person to know. The cottages were a popular destination for visitors to Kirkcudbright because of the artistic connections. Other artists are discussed and memories shared about E A Hornel and Phyllis Mary Bone.

Towards the end of the interview Willie talks about his time as a trustee for the Kirkcudbright Harbour Gallery and the McMinn family. He also talked about the Paul Jones tea room, which Jessie M King had provided painted crockery for and the group discuss the perceptions that persist about how Jessie M King and E A Taylor coped financially.

Interviews of Willie Henry

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