Uploaded July 2025 | Updated September 2026, 3 days ago
Duncan Williamson (1928-2007) was a Traveller of Furnace, Argyllshire, Scotland, later settled in Fife. Filmed by David Kotyk as part of the John D. Niles folklore research team for the "Scottish Voices" project at the quarry, outside the village of Furnace, Argyll, where his father worked when Duncan was young, in August 1986.
00:00:00 Talks about how People Live on in Memories
00:01:06 Talks About Father and Schooling
00:02:53 Video Ends
The original movie can be watched here:
https://search.library.wisc.edu/digital/AMWUGBEBJOITN68Z
And here:
https://search.library.wisc.edu/digital/AXKX2RTLWEO4GF87
A biography of Duncan Williamson can be read here:
tobarandualchais.co.uk/person/4292?l=en
Linda Williamson's thesis on Scottish Traveller singing can be read here, it's well worth your time if you're interested in Duncan Williamson's song repertoire: era.ed.ac.uk/handle/1842/8223
I used my knowledge on video editing to share the films on Youtube in the highest possible quality, I used manual video upscaling (no AI was used!) for this, to further document variants of traditional ballads and songs which has been my hobby for many years. I claim no ownership of the video, all the rights belong with the University of Wisconsin which houses the John D. Niles Collection.
Note by Kevin W.:
I was delighted to discover these videos of Scotland's great tradition bearers in the John D. Niles Collection. The often poorly treated Scottish Travellers honor the memories of their ancestors through songs, music and storytelling. They are proud of their culture and kept old traditions alive for hundreds of years. Many of our most gifted traditional singers and storytellers are Travellers.
Scottish Travellers are an indigenous ethnic minority in Scotland who live or traditionally lived a nomadic lifestyle and for centuries were unfairly shunned by the settled population. For that reason the singing culture of the Travelling people had not been well documented before the 20th century when non-Travellers with an interest in folklore visited and befriended Travellers and started recording their songs, music and stories.
The videos give us an impression of what Duncan Williamson was like as a person and they show us how he performed his songs and stories to an audience. The visual aspect of performance is completely missed when we listen to sound recordings.
My main interest are the songs and ballads from Traveller tradition which Duncan kept alive. His interest in folklore led him to seek out other Traveller singers and storytellers and learn songs and stories from them, many of which were on the verge of being lost forever. In a way Duncan was a folklore collector himself.
Duncan Williamson (1928-2007) was a Traveller of Furnace, Argyllshire, Scotland, later settled in Fife. Filmed by David Kotyk as part of the John D. Niles folklore research team for the "Scottish Voices" project at the quarry, outside the village of Furnace, Argyll, where his father worked when Duncan was young, in August 1986.
00:00:00 Talks about how People Live on in Memories
00:01:06 Talks About Father and Schooling
00:02:53 Video Ends
The original movie can be watched here:
https://search.library.wisc.edu/digital/AMWUGBEBJOITN68Z
And here:
https://search.library.wisc.edu/digital/AXKX2RTLWEO4GF87
A biography of Duncan Williamson can be read here:
tobarandualchais.co.uk/person/4292?l=en
Linda Williamson's thesis on Scottish Traveller singing can be read here, it's well worth your time if you're interested in Duncan Williamson's song repertoire: era.ed.ac.uk/handle/1842/8223
I used my knowledge on video editing to share the films on Youtube in the highest possible quality, I used manual video upscaling (no AI was used!) for this, to further document variants of traditional ballads and songs which has been my hobby for many years. I claim no ownership of the video, all the rights belong with the University of Wisconsin which houses the John D. Niles Collection.
Note by Kevin W.:
I was delighted to discover these videos of Scotland's great tradition bearers in the John D. Niles Collection. The often poorly treated Scottish Travellers honor the memories of their ancestors through songs, music and storytelling. They are proud of their culture and kept old traditions alive for hundreds of years. Many of our most gifted traditional singers and storytellers are Travellers.
Scottish Travellers are an indigenous ethnic minority in Scotland who live or traditionally lived a nomadic lifestyle and for centuries were unfairly shunned by the settled population. For that reason the singing culture of the Travelling people had not been well documented before the 20th century when non-Travellers with an interest in folklore visited and befriended Travellers and started recording their songs, music and stories.
The videos give us an impression of what Duncan Williamson was like as a person and they show us how he performed his songs and stories to an audience. The visual aspect of performance is completely missed when we listen to sound recordings.
My main interest are the songs and ballads from Traveller tradition which Duncan kept alive. His interest in folklore led him to seek out other Traveller singers and storytellers and learn songs and stories from them, many of which were on the verge of being lost forever. In a way Duncan was a folklore collector himself.
