I often receive pictures and information of significance from around the globe. These pictures are courtesy of the good people at Gannaway in New Zealand. Scotty was kind enough to forward these pictures to me and to the rest of the bagpipe world.
We know that Duncan and Gavin exported many sets of bagpipes to Australia and New Zealand. The concentration of MacDougall bagpipes “down under” is second only to Scotland. This particular item is stamped “McDougall Aberfeldy” so we know that it was made sometime between 1891 and when the business closed in 1913.
The walking stick is made with three 12 inch “outer” sections. These are bored to store the chanter section (#1) and the drone section (#4) and the ivory-tipped mouthpiece. Its design and manufacture is quite interesting.
It is my recollection that Sinclair made something similar, but not as complex in design. Jack Dunbar made a couple that were similar to the Sinclair walking stick out of his shop in St. Catharines, although I have lost track of them over the years. Rick may know their whereabouts.
