In 1899 the fresh customers out of North Ronaldsay, Orkney, had been into the eager demand for good midwife. A letter off William Muir on Congested Chatrooms Region recounts its predicament:“The people is actually 501, there are two churches plus one school, he has got a couple midwives, one is over 80 plus the almost every other is over ninety decades of age, he is almost without any that had out-of medical skills otherwise actually out-of breastfeeding for the instances of illness” .
The younger of these earlier midwives is actually Sarah Swanney, widow of Thomas Swanney. She passed away with the 20 January 1912 from the chronilogical age of ninety five. The latest elderly, Mary Muir, widow off John Muir, a good weaver, passed away on the 29 January 1905 at the ages of 95.