iram Crombie is the informal leader of the Protestant Thurso settlers who arrive on Fraser's Ridge in 1773.
Personal History[]
Hiram Crombie is originally from Thurso, Scotland. He has been married for at least 20 years.[2] It's possible that he, like many from Thurso, was previously a fisherman. He brought his family to the new world and settled in North Carolina in 1773.
Outlander series[]
A Breath of Snow and Ashes[]
Hiram Crombie is the unofficial spokesman of the families from Thurso. The other Fraser's Ridge residents find him sour and off-putting almost at once. When he meets a group of Cherokee Indians, Hiram is appalled to realize that some may be descended from his wife's great uncle, making them relations of his.[5]
Not long after, Hiram decides that if the Indians really are related to his family, then he has a moral obligation to go live among them and "save" their souls with the Word of Christ. Jamie and Roger partially dissuade him with some difficulty.[6]
In November of 1773, Hiram's mother-in-law Old Mrs. Wilson has an aneurysm. Believing her to be dead, Hiram's wife and daughters prepare the body for the funeral while Hiram goes to inform Roger, the nearest thing to a minister on the Ridge. Hiram asks Roger to say a few words, though not before making veiled remarks about Brianna's housekeeping.[2]
Though the funeral is respectable, some on the Ridge speculate that Hiram wasn't fond of his mother-in-law and "canna get the auld woman underground" fast enough and was not inclined to spend even a single extra cent on the funeral. During the funeral, Mrs. Wilson briefly revives and immediately berates a stunned Hiram for pinching pennies on the funeral.
Hiram continues to have ambitions about ministering to Indians. In preparation for this, he convinces Fergus to teach him French and Ian to teach him bits of the local Indian tongues. Jamie later brings Hiram on a trading mission to the Cherokee village.[7] Though his first visit is short and unsuccessful, he doggedly returns several more times.[2][8]
At one of Roger's first sermons at the Ridge, Hiram is bitten by a snake that had been concealed by young Gully Dornan.[9]
After Malva Christie's dramatic claim that Jamie is the father of her child, and her subsequent death in Claire's presence, Hiram is one of those calling for Claire's arrest. However, he stops the crowd from physically attacking Jamie and Claire.[10]
When Jamie returns to the Ridge and declares his intent to join a rebel militia, Hiram is the only one of the men from Thurso to join Jamie.[11]
An Echo in the Bone[]
Hiram holds lodge meetings for the local Freemasons, of which Roger and Jamie are members. His home is used for meetings.[12]
Written in My Own Heart's Blood[]
From a distance, Claire and Jamie see Hiram escorting the new circuit rider to the Ridge.[13]
Go Tell The Bees That I Am Gone[]
Hiram Crombie is still living on the Ridge. He remains the primary representive of the fisher folk, and often speaks on his behalf. His much younger half brother, Cyrus, has recently come to live with the Crombies. Cyrus begins displaying an interest in Frances Pocock, Jamie and Claire's new ward. Hiram cautiously allows the pair to spend time together. Hiram also attends Jamie's freemasons meeting with other men of the Ridge. Before one such meeting, he asks to speak to Jamie about Cyrus and Jamie promises to speak to him about it after the meeting. However, during that same meeting, Cunningham and several of his loyalist co-conspirators intends to ambush Jamie after the meeting.[14] Hiram later admits to having a vague sense that something might happen, but he thought (correctly) that Jamie had already been warned and did not want to attract more trouble. Jamie forgives him, at which point Hiram finishes his earlier unfinished request - that Cyrus be allowed to serve as a member of Jamie's militia. Jamie accepts this offer, seeing it as a sign of Crombie's loyalty and trust.[15] Months later, Hiram refuses to attend the Quaker wedding of Bobby Higgins and Silvia Hardman, believing marrying without a priest to be heretical. However, he allows his brother to attend.
Personality[]
He is a sour and rigid man. He is deeply religious and regards non-Protestants with perpetual distrust. However, he is dogged in his beliefs, ministering to the Indians despite being repeatedly rebuffed. He's also loyal to Jamie, joining the rebel militia under Jamie and fighting alongside him on several occasions.
Physical Appearance[]
Hiram is a small and stringy man with a narrow face and wrinkles beyond his years. His hair is thin and he normally wears it tightly plaited down his back. His mouth is perpetually downturned.[5] He has a long and hairy nose. [16]
Name[]
- Hiram is probably of Phoenician origin, though it could be from Hebrew meaning "exalted brother". As an English given name, Hiram came into use after the Protestant Reformation.[17]
- Crombie is a Dalriadan-Scottish name, originally for a person who lived in the place Crombie, in the parish of Aucterless in the shire of Aberdeen. The place-name Crombie was originally derived from the Gaelic term crom, which means "crooked."[18]
Trivia[]
- He lives at the west end of the cove, several miles from Claire and Jamie.[19]
References[]
- ↑ Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone, chapter 8.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 A Breath of Snow and Ashes, chapter 39.
- ↑ Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone, chapter 8.
- ↑ A Breath of Snow and Ashes, chapter 20.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 A Breath of Snow and Ashes, chapter 20.
- ↑ A Breath of Snow and Ashes, chapter 25.
- ↑ A Breath of Snow and Ashes, chapter 40.
- ↑ A Breath of Snow and Ashes, chapter 67.
- ↑ A Breath of Snow and Ashes, chapter 48.
- ↑ A Breath of Snow and Ashes, chapter 87.
- ↑ A Breath of Snow and Ashes, chapter 112.
- ↑ An Echo in the Bone, chapter 34.
- ↑ Written in My Own Heart's Blood, chapter 142.
- ↑ Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone, chapter 109.
- ↑ Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone, chapter 122.
- ↑ Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone, chapter 122.
- ↑ Behind the Name: Hiram. Accessed 2 September 2019.
- ↑ House of Names: Crombie. Accessed 2 September 2019.
- ↑ Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone, chapter 53.