Clan MacIntyre Memorial at Glen Noe

Dear MacIntyres and Scottish Wrights,

I'm Martin MacIntyre, son of the late L. D. MacIntyre and author of "Clan MacIntyre, A Journey to the Past". My team humbly seeks your assistance in completing a fitting memorial to our ancestors and descendants at Glen Noe, Scotland

Background; In 1976, our family embarked on a U.S. Bicentennial trip with the noble aim of reclaiming Glen Noe as Clan MacIntyre’s ancestral home. We built a cairn (stone memorial) and documented it in a 7-minute film at this Youtube link: https://youtu.be/GQnwbxFmPDw .

See the exact location of the MacIntyre cairns at this Google Earth link: https://tinyurl.com/ycyhkkwb . It is the black area in a brownish circle.

Since 1976, numerous visitors have added stones to the cairn from the plentiful supply on Loch Etive's shore.

The First World Gathering in 2008

In 2019, the cairn that you see in the picture above was demolished by a violent storm surge coinciding with a "king" high tide. It scattered the stones back onto the beach, as far as 10 meters! Some of the stones were replaced by visitors per the tradition.

In 2003, I had a California red stone plaque engraved with the MacIntyre crest badge. In April 2023, assisted by my family and two local MacIntyre friends, I placed the plaque on the cairn.

This visit made me realized there was no place to rest and reflect on the rich MacIntyre history. I asked the local MacIntyres if they could engage a stonemason to build a stone bench that could withstand the storms and secure the plaque.

Last September, just before the rainy season, a new storm-resistant stone bench and a new cairn were completed. Unfortunately, as you can see in the cover photo, the entire top of the original "old" cairn was removed, with the boulders once again dispersed along the shoreline. The $11,400 bill that I paid, far exceeded my $2,500 budget and there were still two items left to make the memorial site complete.

The funds being raised here will pay to have the boulders returned to the original hand-stacked cairn and high-quality historical signage explaining the significance of the site and the cairns. Below is draft text for the signs that will be located on top of the bench back.

This is Glen Noe, the ancestral home of Clan MacIntyre since the 1100s. The clan progenitorer was Muriach t-Saoir McNeil Vc Arill (Muriach the Shipwright, son.of Neil, son of Arill)

In 1976, a stone cairn was started by the L. D. MacIntyre family. It grew in size as visitors added stones and someone add a grey handmade plaque, ”In Memory of the Chiefs of Clan MacIntyre.”

The 1st World Gathering was held here in 2008. After the Second World Gathering, in 2018, a black commemoration plaque was added.

In 2019, the cairn was literally flattened by a major wind storm that coincided with a high "king" tide. Some stones were replaced by visitors.

In 2023, a new storm-resistant stone bench and a formal cairn were built. The plaques were embedded in the bench.

In 2024, the original cairn was fully restored and this historical signage was added.

Clan MacIntyre was founded In c. 1140, by Muriach t-Saoir McNeil Vc Arill (Muriach the Shipwright, son.of Neil, son of Arill).

The following names are the descendants of Muriach known to have lived at Glen Noe with their approximate birth years.

Duncan c.1355

McDuncan c.1380

Duncan Og c.1405

Donald Fiach c.1406

Gillipatrik McDonill c.1427

Malcolm c.1450

Gillipatrick c.1472

Malcolm Roy c.1498

Donald c.1525

Ean Dow c.1550

Duncan c.1575

Donald c.1596

Duncan (I) c.1640

Donald (II) c.1670

James (III) c.1730

Donald (IV) c.1762

James (V) 1785. He left Glen Noe in 1816 and Scotland in 1822. MacIntyres, related to the Chief, continued to farm Glen Noe until 1876.

While I do not have an exact figure yet, I estimate the cost of designing, fabricating, and installing the signs, as well as moving the stones back, to be $3,500. Any surplus donations will be allocated towards offsetting the $11,400 I paid for the bench and the new cairn.

As a token of appreciation, individuals who contribute $250/£200 or more will receive a complimentary copy of my "History of Clan MacIntyre," valued at $65/£50.

Yours faithfully,

Martin MacIntyre

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