General view.

Description General view.

Date c. 1898

Collection Papers of Erskine Beveridge, antiquarian, Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland

Catalogue Number SC 743238

Category On-line Digital Images

Copy of AG 1745

Scope and Content Harbour, Scarinish, Tiree, Argyll & Bute Scarinish, a small settlement on the east coast of Tiree, was developed in the mid-18th century by the 5th Duke of Argyll as a fishing village and the island's first harbour. This photograph of the harbour, taken c.1898, is by the Victorian photographer, Erskine Beveridge. The harbour, a natural bay formed by a narrow creek running inland, provided sheltered anchorage for the island's open single-masted fishing boats (smacks) and vessels that could beach on the hard sand of the bay. The drystone rubble L-shaped pier (centre), dating from 1771, allowed the first small steamers that called at Tiree to dock alongside, but larger vessels were required to anchor outside the harbour (left) while their goods and passengers were ferried ashore in large rowing boats. In the late 19th century, Scarinish was an important port, not only for exporting the island's cattle to market in Oban, but for ferrying cattle to and from the neighbouring islands of Coll, Muck, Canna and Rhum. The absence of trees on the island meant the necessity of importing all timber for building and agricultural purposes, and the lack of sources of good quality peat for fuel required men, women and horses to be shipped to Coll and the Ross of Mull to cut peat. In the late 19th century vessels began delivering coal from the Ayrshire coalfields to be sold on the island for fuel. Source: RCAHMS contribution to SCRAN.

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/collection/1773587

File Format (TIF) Tagged Image File Format bitmap