Oblique aerial view centred on Cleadale township from E

Description Oblique aerial view centred on Cleadale township from E

Date 10/4/2003

Collection RCAHMS Aerial Photography

Catalogue Number E 35359 CN

Category Photographs and Off-line Digital Images

Copies SC 875777, SC 1699307

Scope and Content Cleadale Township from east, Eigg, Small Isles, Highland The island of Eigg is one of the Small Isles along with Canna, Rum and Muck. It lies 16km off the west coast of Scotland and has been inhabited since at least Neolithic times (c.4000-2500 BC). The island was bought in 1997 by its residents in conjunction with the Scottish Wildlife Trust and the Highland Council. This view shows part of the crofting township of Cleadale. The landscape is dominated by the dramatic lines of stone boundary walls built in 1809. Each croft runs from the rocks of An Cruachan to the sea and includes a croft house. Beneath this rigid pattern can be seen the patterns of earlier (c.18th century) fields with their wavy boundaries dictated by natural features. St Donnan's Roman Catholic Church and Presbytery, built in 1910, can be seen top left. Crofters used the rocky ground to keep a small number of animals and grew crops like potatoes, kale and oats on the more fertile land near the sea. With tenants restricted to their croft strips, wealthy landowners could use more of their land to graze sheep, which proved more profitable than the crofting rents. Source: RCAHMS contribution to SCRAN.

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