A century of the Lewis emigrants who left to forge new lives in North America

Posted on January 7, 2024

When the Canadian steamship SS Metagama left Stornoway Harbour carrying 300 young Lewisians in April 1923, the pier was thronged with islanders bidding their loved ones an emotional farewell. Bound for a new start across the Atlantic, the emigrants’ average age was 22. On board, they joined a thousand more passengers who had boarded in Glasgow to set sail for the New World.

Those leaving Lewis were not just motivated by economic prospects. They had grown up in the wake of the tragic Iolaire disaster, the 1919 shipwreck that gutted the Isle of Lewis community, leaving shock, grief and despair in its wake, the loss of 200 young servicemen having effectively wiped out a generation, crushing almost every family. Little wonder that the departure merited such a fanfare. After the ship set sail, onlookers cut across to new vantage points to catch their last glimpse as the steamer rounded the top of the island and away to the West.

From Fact to Fiction

The departure of the Metagama is the starting point for Donald S Murray’s latest novel, The Salt and the Flame, a poignant and deeply evocative account of how those young Hebrideans fared as they arrived to forge new lives – on farms in Ontario, factories in Detroit, embracing opportunity and challenge, struggling with poverty and sickness.

As moving and profound as Donald’s acclaimed account of the Iolaire tragedy, As the Women Lay Dreaming, his latest work is destined to become a seminal novel of 20^th-century Hebridean experience, and has been widely anticipated in 2024’s literary previews.

Donald is launching the book on Friday 19^th January at Waterstones, Glasgow (£5, or £12 including the book, reserve your tickets here), in company with friends who have joined the celebrations honouring these pioneers in words and music.

He is also appearing at a flagship musical and spoken word celebration of the emigrants on the Metagama and Marloch, at the Glasgow premiere event opening Celtic Connections (details here, sold out unless further tickets are released).

Praise for Donald’s Lewis novels:

“From the first line I know I’m in the hands of a bard and consummate storyteller. The writing is lyrical and hugely descriptive … The history is rich and fascinating.” Historical Novels Review

“Full of memorable images and singing lines of prose.” Sarah Waters

“A searing poetic meditation on stoicism and loss.” BBC Radio 4

“A powerful novel… A poignant exploration of love, loss and survivor’s guilt.” Sunday Times

“A moving portrait of a place and its people … a quiet, sad but brilliant novel.” Times, Book of the Month