Friends of the Ochils Newsletter 15: September 1999Book review: History of Dollar, by Bruce Bailliepublished by Dollar Museum Trust, 153pp, £10 reviewed by Rennie McOwanTHIS BOOK should be on the shelves of all Ochils buffs. It is the product of 30 years of research by the author and is fluently written with an occasional sardonic or humorous touch. History of Dollar was originally produced in photocopied form for schools, and the Scottish Museums Trust, who have given a grant towards its publication in book form, can rest assured that their money has been put to good use. The text is aimed at a general audience, but it is still scholarly - a combination not too easy to achieve - and it ranges from the Ice Age to the present day. Bruce Baillie arrived in Dollar in 1966 to teach English and drama at the Academy. He is also well known as a writer and dramatist and although now retired from teaching he continues as school archivist and as a museum trustee. He combines his knowledge with a deep affection for Dollar and he has a broad canvas: royalty, battles, the story of Castle Campbell, the McNabb bequest, the railway, the new town, the church, commerce, education, local worthies, legends, landowners, mills, sport. It is all there and the text is backed up by maps and old photographs. Some local histories are as dull as ditchwater. Others present unsubstantiated legend as fact. This book avoids both pitfalls. It is an entertaining and instructive read and deserves to succeed. Some sections, such as the 19th century churches, might appear on the surface to be rather dull, but such is the skill of the writer that they crackle and live. It is inevitable in a local history that not all readers will agree with every statement or every opinion and that is certainly true of the meanings of place names. It might have been better there to present a number of alternatives because the author's choice of one interpretation in an area where there are sometimes three or four will cause many a debate. However, local histories are supposed to stimulate interest in the community and this enlightened book most certainly does that. Ochils devotees who do not have this book should make a point of getting it from local shops or from the Dollar Museum Trust, 1 High Street, Dollar, FK14 7AY. |