We can segment the RG Lawrie bagpipe legacy into perhaps four eras. The earliest Lawrie bagpipes are very similar to Henderson bagpipes. The early history is very murky with considerable speculation regarding the relationship between Lawrie and Henderson.
From 1879 to 1882 Lawrie was listed as a wood and ivory turner and some believe that he was employed by Henderson. Perhaps so or perhaps one or more of the other makers in Glasgow at that time. In 1900 he was listed for the first time as a bagpipe maker, and a lawn-bowling ball and ivory turner. A quick search of the Internet will find several images of RG Lawrie lawn or carpet bowling balls. These early bowls were made of Lignum Vitae. Despite the black color of some, I doubt that African Blackwood was used however one never knows.
The early Lawrie bagpipes that are most obvious to us span that period from 1900 to the onset of WWI or thereabouts. RG died in 1904 with the company passing to his two sons. Changes to the design of the bagpipe took place around 1912 and with few exceptions the bagpipe remained unchanged until the onset of WWII. The Lawrie bagpipes pictured here are from that time.
The bagpipe below came to me in 2014, shortly after I returned to Canada. They were in very difficult condition. I was pleased to preserve them as a family artifact. With additional work, I’m confident that they could return to sing once again. Here is their story.
David Bowman Forrester 1893-1974 – David was born in September 1893 in Kilmarnock, Scotland. At age 16, in July, 1910 David immigrated to Canada where he worked as a farm labourer in Drinkwater, Saskatchewan. Private David B. Forrester joined the 46th Battalion of the Canadian Expeditionary Force in 1916 and fought in France until the end of World War One. David may have brought his bagpipes with him to Canada in 1910. Over a period of 4 years from 1910 to 1914, the rest of David’s immediate family members immigrated to Canada. These bagpipes could have been brought to Canada by his father, also David Bowman Forrester, in 1913 when he came. Another possibility is that he could have returned to Canada with them after WW1 in 1918.
Another early Lawrie. Things to note… The bottoms of the stocks are rounded and the threads cut into the tie-in groove are quite large. Both of these features are a departure from Henderson stocks. Also note that there are no hemp-stops. It could be that the slides were installed later in life, however I’ve encountered may Lawrie bagpipes without hemp-stops. I’m inclined to conclude that it wasn’t part of their normal manufacturing. The last picture shows a nasty post-restoration crack, something we hate to see. There are no hallmarks on the metal however it has the “look” of silver. A simple test will tell all.
The following sub-directories have been created to provide an idea of the evolution of RG Lawrie bagpipes.
- Early years to WWI
- John MacColl era to late 1930’s
- 1940 to 1970
