Achmore School District

ACHMORE SCHOOL DISTRICT.
(Achmore, Lochganvich and Cleascro,)
Population last Census. 202 (Males, 91; Females, 111.)

THIS School District, with a male population of 91, had 27 men on service during the war, a percentage of nearly 30.

It is worthy of note that although the townships in the Achmore area are, among the hundred villages of Lewis, the only ones not situated on or near the sea shore, nearlv half of the men serving were in the Royal Naval Reserve. Another notable fact is that the little band of Achmore men included four Colonials from widely scattered parts of the world, two from Canada, one from South Africa and one from Australia.

Those fighting in the land forces saw service in the various theatres of the war and not a few laid down their lives. Among the war-broken men who returned to their homes an outstanding case is that of Finlay Maclean, 4 Lochganvich, who served with the Black Watch and sustained terrible injures at Salonica. In a night attack he was twice wounded, and had to have his right leg amputated, while his right hand was partly blown away and his left shoulder damaged. Dragging his smashed limb, this hero made his way back over a mile of broken country to the dressing station, and after receiving first aid there, attempted to make further back to the field hospital. He, however, fainted outside the dressing station and was conveyed by a stretcher bearer party to hospital, where his leg had to be amputated.

The district lost seven men, all of them from Achmore village, out of 19 men serving, which must be among the highest percentage of casualties in the Island of Lewis. Croft No. 5 sent three men to the service of the King, and all three laid down their lives, namely, Duncan Mackay, of the Camerons, who was killed in France in December, 1914, his brother John, who served with the Seaforths and died in Mesopotamia in May, 1915 : also their cousin. Donald Smith, who perished in the "Iolaire"-disaster.