A Place to Remember the Sinclair Family: Children Donald and Ian

Of the 11 plaques on the Sinclair family memorial bench, none are more tragic than those of brothers Ian and Donald Sinclair.

The youngest two sons of Annie and Donald Snr – who was also known as Dan, both boys passed away in childhood.

Ian was just eight when he drowned and his baby brother suffered a life-limiting condition which caused his death.

Ian Sinclair

Born in 1938, Annie and Dan’s second son Ian tragically died when he was just eight years old in July 1946. A drowning, while Ian was playing with friends, he fell into Loch Linnhe.

An extract from The Scotsman from Tuesday July 16 1946. Image supplied by the British Newspaper Archive.

Florence, Ian’s sister, wasn’t born when he passed away.

She explained: “Ian’s death was an awful tragedy for the family. I was in my 20s before I ever heard my mother speak about it.

One of the few photos of Ian Sinclair, who died aged eight.

“From what I can gather Ian and his pals were playing near the British Aluminium pier. There was a ledge under it and he was inching along [the ledge] when he fell in.

From the Press & Journal archives: Beyond the rooftops is the end of the long pier built by British Aluminium Company’s works at Inverlochy.

“Most of the kids couldn’t swim so there was a panic. Nothing could be done in time.

“It really was, and is, still a source of huge sadness for our family.”

Another baby boy for Annie

Two years after Ian passed away Annie gave birth to another son.

Donald Junior came along in February 1948 but his life was also to be short-lived.

Born with spinal bifida he was only six months old when he died in July 1948.

A neural tube defect, spina bifida meant Donald’s spine and spinal cord did not develop properly in the womb, causing a gap in his spine.

Baby Donald, who lived for only half a year.

“He had the most beautiful smile, I’m told, and mum kept him wrapped in a shawl most of the time. Neighbours could hear him crying a lot. He must have been in a lot of pain,” said Florence. “The doctor said as much.”

“My mother suffered a great deal of heartache. My father never really spoke about such things but I knew it weighed heavily on them.

“The bench is one of the only places where our whole family are all together.”