Teàrlach mac Caluim Iain Dhòmhnaill

Reverend Charles Angus “Holy Charlie” MacDonald was born in Tarbot, near North River Bridge, Victoria County. His MacDonald ancestors hailed from Lewis, Scotland. He was one of seven children born to Malcolm W. and Annie (Smith) MacDonald, a family known for their deep religious faith and biblical knowledge. His father was a teacher, farmer, merchant, and Presbyterian church scholar and elder for over 50 years.

Charlie married Elizabeth (Betty) Walker from Fife, Scotland, who was a deaconess in the church. Together they had four children.

He was a highly regarded minister, known for his ability to deliver sermons in Gaelic and lead psalm singing in the precenting style. Over the course of 40 years in the ministry, he became one of the last Gaelic preachers in Nova Scotia.

Beyond his work in the church, Rev. Charlie was a founding member of the Gaelic College in St. Ann’s, where he also served as a Gaelic teacher. While he was deeply committed to the clergy and the preservation of Gaelic culture, he was equally practical and hardworking, lending his skills as a carpenter, woodsman, trapper, and shoer of horses to help the rural parishes he served.