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Duirinish Byres, Western Range
Barn (Period Unassigned), Byre (Period Unassigned)
Site Name Duirinish Byres, Western Range
Classification Barn (Period Unassigned), Byre (Period Unassigned)
Canmore ID 253111
Site Number NG73SE 56
NGR NG 78410 31333
NGR Description Centred on NG 78410 31333
Datum OSGB36 - NGR
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/site/253111
- Council Highland
- Parish Lochalsh
- Former Region Highland
- Former District Skye And Lochalsh
- Former County Ross And Cromarty
Duirinish (Norse: headland of the deer) Straddling a burn in linear plan, this is one of a number of crofting and fishing settlements cut off by the railway from the sea. The village is approached from the east on a steep, rubble ramp. This abuts onto a tall, turf-coped bridge, 1826, which stands above the village like a viaduct. Most of the houses here started life as simple thatched cottages, 'improved' by the Mathesons of Duncraig in the later 19th century. But Duirinish's most memorable feature is the survival of its traditional barns - at least one to almost every house, with a group of about 15 - known as 'the sheds' - arranged about a green at the village's west end. Concern persists as to the future survival of this unique group of single-storey structures, which are mostly drystone with louvred sides, corrugated iron replacing their original thatch.
Taken from "Western Seaboard: An Illustrated Architectural Guide", by Mary Miers, 2008. Published by the Rutland Press http://www.rias.org.uk
Condition Survey (1998 - 1998)
It is presumed that the settlement of Barneleg recorded on the mid-17th century map by Bleau (and presumably taken from Pont's survey of the area of the 1590s) equates with the settlement marked in much the same area by Roy in the mid-18th century and named as Dureness. Roy records a large area of runrig around the township.
The settlement of Durinish is marked on the Blackadder estate map of 1807, and Duirinish is recorded on the 1st (surveyed in 1873-4) and 2nd edition (1902) OS maps. The latter has a large area of runrig detailed around the settlement.
NTS ref: BAL104 (Information from condition report for NTS produced by Jill Harden 2000)
NTS commissioned condition report as follow-up to Dualchas survey, undertaken by Jill Harden
