SCOTS GATHER FOR A DAY OF HIGHLAND GAMES, FUN
By Dallas Scholes, Staff Writer
Published: Sunday, June 16, 1991 12:00 a.m. MDT
The Jordan River State Parkway was filled Saturday with clan booths, Scottish memorabilia and thousands of Scottish Utahns displaying their pride and showing off their Scottish culture.
And hanging over everything was a constant whine of bagpipes and a spectacular flash of tartan.The collection of Utah kilts and claymores was an important part of the 17th annual Scottish Festival and Highland Games sponsored by the Utah Scottish Association. It is the first of three Highland games in Utah this summer.
Dennis McMaster has been involved with the Highland games in Utah for the past 17 years. He is also a member of the Salt Lake Scots, a bagpipe band that marches in parades and performs for weddings, funerals and several Highland games across the country.
"We haven't done a bar mitzvah yet, but we'll see when one comes along," McMaster said, wearing a red tartan kilt and a silver baseball cap. "A bagpipe is one of those things that you either like them or hate them. It takes a good bit of insanity to take one up and play it."McMaster said that gatherings like the one in Salt Lake County are an important incentive to maintain Scottish culture.
"If nothing else it gives us a chance to show off the skills we develop at home," he said.
One big draw of the festival was the chance to develop more ties with ancestral clans.
Mary Burton, Sandy, is a member of the Graham clan and feels that the history of each clan is exciting and important.
"You find that the people who come to these things, when they establish themselves in a clan, it's like one big family. You meet people from all over the country," Burton said.
Burton became interested in clans when a friend from Savannah, Ga., found out that they were in the same clan.
"She called me up and said we might be related. We love gatherings like this. This one is small. Highland games in Atlanta and Savannah last for four days," Burton said.
The Burtons, like many Scottish families, were too small to form a clan of their own, so they swore allegiance to a larger family, usually that of a duke or an earl.
"The Grahams were basically reavers. As a border clan they would steal from the English, and when they had nothing they stole from the Highlands, and when they had nothing they stole from each other," she said.
A clan can be established several different ways. Research through genealogy libraries is one. Another is through clan reference books available through members of the Utah Scottish Society.
© 2009 Deseret News Publishing Company | All rights reserved
By Dallas Scholes, Staff Writer
Published: Sunday, June 16, 1991 12:00 a.m. MDT
The Jordan River State Parkway was filled Saturday with clan booths, Scottish memorabilia and thousands of Scottish Utahns displaying their pride and showing off their Scottish culture.
And hanging over everything was a constant whine of bagpipes and a spectacular flash of tartan.The collection of Utah kilts and claymores was an important part of the 17th annual Scottish Festival and Highland Games sponsored by the Utah Scottish Association. It is the first of three Highland games in Utah this summer.
Dennis McMaster has been involved with the Highland games in Utah for the past 17 years. He is also a member of the Salt Lake Scots, a bagpipe band that marches in parades and performs for weddings, funerals and several Highland games across the country.
"We haven't done a bar mitzvah yet, but we'll see when one comes along," McMaster said, wearing a red tartan kilt and a silver baseball cap. "A bagpipe is one of those things that you either like them or hate them. It takes a good bit of insanity to take one up and play it."McMaster said that gatherings like the one in Salt Lake County are an important incentive to maintain Scottish culture.
"If nothing else it gives us a chance to show off the skills we develop at home," he said.
One big draw of the festival was the chance to develop more ties with ancestral clans.
Mary Burton, Sandy, is a member of the Graham clan and feels that the history of each clan is exciting and important.
"You find that the people who come to these things, when they establish themselves in a clan, it's like one big family. You meet people from all over the country," Burton said.
Burton became interested in clans when a friend from Savannah, Ga., found out that they were in the same clan.
"She called me up and said we might be related. We love gatherings like this. This one is small. Highland games in Atlanta and Savannah last for four days," Burton said.
The Burtons, like many Scottish families, were too small to form a clan of their own, so they swore allegiance to a larger family, usually that of a duke or an earl.
"The Grahams were basically reavers. As a border clan they would steal from the English, and when they had nothing they stole from the Highlands, and when they had nothing they stole from each other," she said.
A clan can be established several different ways. Research through genealogy libraries is one. Another is through clan reference books available through members of the Utah Scottish Society.
© 2009 Deseret News Publishing Company | All rights reserved
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