Loch Beannach

Two neighbouring townships are located on high, flat ground, with a dyke separating the lands between them. The area to SW comprises site 77, and the area to the NE is Site 77B.

Site 77 comprises six reasonably well preserved building remains. Two of the buildings have attached enclosures. The buildings are of dry stone construction, with walls around 0.7m wide, consisting of two faces containing a rubble fill. The walls of these structures survive to 1.8m in height and are built from gneiss. Remnants of cultivation are visible around both townships.

Site 77B is a neighbouring settlement to the NE, comprising four buildings with associated enclosures of the same build style as HLP 77. A dam and mill at the south end of Loch An T Sabhail was also visited. The mouth of the loch is revetted and narrowed with stone rubble; large stone rubble formed the dam. Around 20m downstream of the dam lie the mill and lade which are both constructed from varied rubble. The mill is a curving broad wall built against the bank of the burn circa 5m by 4m, and 1m in height. The lade is visible running through and exiting the centre of the mill walls, which are 2m wide.

Both sites had sizeable longhouses. Build quality was somewhat better in the longhouse in site 77B, which features dressed quoins. The building is sub-divided internally, and has a single window opening.

Building A has dimensions of 8m x 5m x 0.35m high

Building B has dimensions of 5m x 4m x 1.8m high

Building C has dimensions of 11m x 5m x 1.2m high

Building D has dimensions of 11m x 4m x 1.8m high

Building E is a longhouse with dimensions of 16m x 5m x 2m high. Building is sub divided internally into three compartments c.4m squared with walls up to 1m thick

Building F has dimensions of 7m x 3m x 0.45m high

Building G has dimensions of 6m x 3m x 1.45m high joined to building H by a short wall.

Building H has dimensions of 10m x 5m x 0.35m high

Building I has dimensions of 8m x 4m x 1.2m high

Structure J is an enclosure d-shaped with area 30m squared with ancillary wall to east side. The dimensions are 8m x 5m x 0.35m high.

Building K has dimensions of 6m x 3m 0.45m high

Building L is a longhouse with dimensions of 16m x 5m x 2m high and walls measuring 0.6m wide. The building is divided internally into three compartments with sub-division in NE room. Quoins form corners of building with two possible entrances into main central and NW compartments. There is one window visible in E Wall.

Building M is an enclosure with dimensions of 20m x 16m x 1.5m high with an entrance from SE.

77C: Sheilings

Setting: Terrace overlooking Site 77 to the North.

These lie to SW of Site 77 on an improved area of Heather Moor terrace with good views to North and East. 3 small stone rubble structures are visible. Structure A measures 4m by 3m, Structure B measures 2m by 2m and Structure C measures 5m by 3m.

These are possibly sheilings associated with HLP 77.

(HLP_no 77)

Assynt's Hidden Lives Project 2009

SRP Field Recording Project

LOCH BEANNACH & DOIRE BEATHAIG, ASSYNT

Township (NC 149 263) and Shieling (NC148 258)

Loch Beannach township lies on the SE facing slopes of a wide but relatively sheltered valley close to Loch an t-Sabhail which is to the NE, and rather further from Loch Beannach to the W. The township is between 90m and 100m above sea level.

It was first recorded in 1638 with a single tenant and had grown to six households by the 1811 census. The following year five families from other townships were cleared to Loch Beannach, which was itself cleared in 1821 and the land incorporated into a sheep farm. Home’s survey of 1774 shows five buildings within an area of arable and several detached shielings none of which is at a significantly higher altitude than the township. The 1st edition of the OS 6 inch map shows the township remains consisting of seven unroofed buildings, one significantly larger than the others, three enclosures and two stretches of wall. The current OS 1:10,000 shows some 19 unroofed features, but it is unclear whether some of these are buildings or enclosures.

The settlement now forms part of the Little Assynt Estate owned by the Culag Community Woodland Trust which is engaged in path building and tree planting as part of a wide ranging redevelopment of the estate. This survey was conducted ahead of these developments and focussed initially on the main settlement and the nearby Doire Beathaig shieling, both of which lie on the line of a proposed path. Measured sketches were made of every feature discovered and these have been developed into 1:100 plans for the major structures.

Doire Beathaig shieling comprises the remains of two oval shieling huts (A1 and A2) both of which have been subsequently modified to create animal pens. They lie on a ridge with a south facing slope below it on which there are another nine pens (A3- A11) and some overgrown mounds which might be clearance cairns. Pens A6 and A7 lie in a hollow which may have had a dyke around it, but there is not enough evidence to be sure. At the bottom of the slope below pens A8 – A11 is a short stretch of dyke (A12). These remains suggest the abandonment of the site as a shieling after the clearance of the settlement and its later development as a lambing area, though there are no surviving signs of enclosure walls or fences.

Hut A1 (NC 14840 25810) is an oval dry-stone structure with an internal area of 6.5 x 3m. Its southern end survives to several courses and at the exterior SE are the remains of a possible circular dairy (A1a) 1m across internally. The long walls of the hut have been largely demolished to create an irregular cross wall (A1b) at the southern end of the hut which appears to have then been used as a pen. The NE end of the one surviving course of N wall has been modified to hold a post (A1c) for a way marker.

Hut A2 (NC 14908 25822) is similar sized but very poorly preserved with only parts of the end walls and one long wall surviving as mounded features. Most of it appears to have been demolished and reused to create two adjoining pens (A2a & A2b) partially built on the N long wall and partly in what was the interior space.

Pens A3, A4 and A6 are roughly semicircular dry-stone arcs built against natural rock faces and with interiors 1 – 1.5m across and surviving to two or three courses.

Pens A5, A7 and A8 – A11 are of similar size and construction but free-standing and roughly circular with an entrance discernable in most of them.

Dyke A12 is about 10m long and lies at the base of a steep slope and about 1m above a marshy area with a partially underground burn running through it.

The Loch Beannach Township as indicated on Home’s map lay within a roughly semi circular area of arable to the NW of the burn which drains Loch an t-Sabhail. The SW section of head dyke follows a markedly regular course with a short extension to the NW. The surviving field dykes C2, C7, C9, (together with the highest terrace below the ridge to the NW,) delineate a very similar shaped area and are presumed to survive from that period or earlier.

Adjoining the SW section of the head dyke is an irregular enclosure (C1) some 14 – 15m across at its widest points. On a terrace immediately W of C1 (centred on NC 14764 26188) are the foundations of three buildings (B1, B3, B5) all approximately the same size and form as A1 and A2. What appear to be the foundations of dairies survive close to two of them (B2 & B4). To the SE two circular pens (B6 & B7) similar to those at Doire Beathaig lie just outwith C1.

Within the head dyke are a total of four farmsteads each comprising a byrehouse, barn, outbuilding and enclosure. F & G lie on a terrace at the southern end in an area where Home does not indicate any buildings. An isolated byrehouse (D) lies on higher ground a little to the NW, but on land that would still have been within the township arable. At the NE end of the township area are two further farmsteads (H & J) in the area where Home indicates three buildings. A little to the west of J another building like those at B but with an attached diary (E) has been built along the terrace from house D and still within the arable area. Towards the head of the burn that drains Loch an t-Sabhail is a mill (M). C11 is an enclosure lying between H and M. Another lies outside the head dyke at C8 and there is a short stretch of substantial retaining wall below a bluff at C10. Remnant lazy beds can be seen between C10 and Loch an t-Sabhail and within the arc created by J, H, C11 and M. To the S and SE of enclosure C1 are what might be the remains of peat cuttings running down to the burn. The survey found no sign of the southernmost buildings shown on Home’s map, nor of a number of the enigmatic structures indicated on the current OS 1:10,000 map.

The surviving four farmsteads and one substantial house would not provide housing for the eleven families resident from 1812. Some sharing of the larger houses may have occurred, especially if, as is likely, some of the families were related. It is possible that some families were moved onto the outlying shielings(such as the distant House O at Ruigh Coinich) and that further houses will be discovered in future surveys. However in 1818 the Sub Factor for Asssynt described Loch Beannach and four adjoining inland settlements as ‘the poorest and most miserable in the parish’ so it is also possible that some or all of the small structures that resemble shieling huts (B1, B3, B5, E) were used as houses by those moved to Loch Beannach in 1812, especially when it is noted that structure E lies within the township arable and that B1, B3 & B5 overlook the large enclosure (C1) added to the southern part of the head dyke some time between 1774 and 1821. An alternative interpretaion of the evidence revolves around the peculiarity that the settlement known since the 18th century as Loch Beannach lies some distance from that loch and closer to two others. Perhaps the original single tenant farmstead of Loch Beannach lay close to the surviving House O at Ruigh Coinich beside Loch Beannach, and the settlement now known as Loch Beannach was originally an associated shieling onto which families moved as the settlement expanded. That would imply that the shieling huts within or close to what is now called the Loch Beannach settlement pre-date the farmsteads there. Another complicating factor is that House H, the most sophisticated of all the structures on the site could post date the clearances of 1821. It closely resembles post clearance shepherd's houses elsewhere in Assynt, although there is no known record of such a development at Loch Beannach. The building of House H might therefore have resulted in the demolition of earlier structures.

Farmstead F (NC 14875 26276) comprises a byrehouse (F1), barn (F2) and a further outbuilding (F3) with an enclosure (F4) adjoining the house. All are aligned approximately NE – SW.

F1 lies in a sheltered hollow below a low ridge which curves around it from NW to S. It is a sub-rectangular, dry-stone house surviving to two or three courses of mainly large stones to create double-faced walls packed with much smaller stones. Some of the stones may have been worked. Its SW end wall is concave, but this may be the result of partial collapse inwards. All of the external corners are rounded. There are three compartments. The only visible external door (F1d) enters the lowest lying compartment (F1c), 4m square, which is interpreted as the byre. A doorway (F1e) placed centrally in the partition wall leads into the similar sized central compartment (F1b) which may have been the living room. A similar central doorway (F1f) leads into the smaller NE compartment (F1a), probably the bedroom, which is approximately 4 x 3m. The NE wall is built up from a revetment within the lower lying F4.

F2 is an oval, single cell, double-faced dry-stone building approximately 9 x 3.3m with a doorway (F2a) in the centre of the W wall. The walls, which survive to over a metre high at the southern end are of smaller stones than those used in F1. None appear to have been worked and the whole construction seems looser than F1. The building sits on top of the ridge above F1 and is very exposed. This site, the loose construction and overall size suggest it served as a barn.

F3 also lies on the ridge. It is a roughly D shaped and encloses a space just under 6 x 4m. Only the footings survive, of large blocks with some smaller stones and a large boulder incorporated in the NW wall. The entrance was probably in the SE wall towards the southern end. This structure could have served as a storage shed or stable or both.

F4 appears to be a substantial kale yard with a dyke around it and a marked build up of soil within.

Farmstead G (NC 14885 26285) comprises a byrehouse (G1), barn (G2) outbuilding

(G3) and enclosure (G$) and lies close to farmstead F.

G1 is an oval dry-stone house with no internal partitions aligned approximately E-W. It is double-faced and built of stones of similar size to F2. The sloping interior is about 10.5m long and varies in width from 3m at the higher, domestic, W end to 3.5m at the lower E byre end. Most of the walls stand over a metre high although the E end outer face has largely fallen(G1b). Some parts of the upper walls appear to have been rebuilt. There are the signs of a possible blocked entrance (G1c) in the centre of the N wall, but no signs of any windows. The E end wall is built up from a revetment foundation (G1a) within enclosure G4.

G2 survives only as footings. The foundations align NW –SE and appear to have been laid out as a rectangle but the lowest course of relatively small stones round off the corners creating a sub-rectangular structure 6.5 x 3m internally with a central doorway (G2a) in the SW. Like F2 this structure has been built on a very exposed site and is presumed to be a barn.

G3 lies close to G1 and its E end wall (G3a) is incorporated in the stretch of dyke which partially encloses G4. The W wall and the western stubs of the N and S walls survive to several courses high and are now linked by a cross wall (G3b) to create a space approx 1 x 3m. It is assumed that this cross wall is a later construction incorporating stone from the N and S wall (as at A1 Doire Beathaig) which turned the structure into a pen.

G4 seems to have been an enclosure, but there is no surviving sign of the enclosing dyke on the east side. The dyke adjoining G1 and incorporating the end wall of G3 curves round on to the top of a stretch of rock face and peters out.

House D (NC 14854 26353) is an oval, single cell structure approx 12 x 3 m internally and survives only as an interior wall foundation of substantial unworked stones with signs of a possible turf outer face incorporating smaller stones. It lies in a sheltered position on a terrace above farmsteads F and G, is aligned NE – SW and slopes down to the NE which is assumed to be the byre end of the house. There is a probable entrance into the byre area (D1) in the SE wall. Adjoining the S end of the house is an amorphous area of stone, but it is unclear whether it is clearance or the remains of a structure. There are no clear signs of ancillary buildings or enclosures.

Hut E (NC 14933 26434) is aligned NW – SE, survives only as an oval of large stones around an interior space approx 5 x 2.2m and has an attached 1m circular foundation at the NW end. The entrance may have been in the centre of the SW wall. This structure would appear to be a shieling hut but is very close indeed to Farmsteads H and J which lie at the heart of the 18th century settlement. As discussed above, this building, together with very similar B1, B3 and B5 may have been built to house the extra families moved to the township in 1812.

Farmstead H (NC 15080 26510) consists of a byrehouse (H1), Barn (H2) and another outbuilding (H3) but the is no enclosure adjoining any of theses buildings as at Farmsteads F and G. However a detached enclosure at C11 nearby which is located out of the prevailing winds, could have served as an associated kaleyard.

H1 is a substantial byrehouse, larger than others at Loch Beannach and incorporating worked blocks of masonry for quoins and surrounds, although still a dry-stone build. The gables and back (W) wall largely survive to sill height, but much of front wall of the house around doors and windows has collapsed. It is aligned NNE – SSW and the byre at the southern end is separated from the house by a cross wall with a doorway into the living quarters. The byre is 4.5m x 4.2m, has an external entrance in the E wall and signs of an internal drain to the S of the entrance. The internal measurements of the house are 9.7m x 4.3m with the fragmentary remains of a central doorway in the E wall and windows to either side. The N side of the N window is largely intact and there appears to be no internal splay. There are no fireplaces. Against the inside of the back wall almost opposite the doorway, a probable animal pen 1m x 1m has been built, and the house wall at this point survives a little higher than to either side, but not enough to determine whether there was a window in the wall. An irregular feature, probably another pen, 1.8m long x between .3m and 1m wide has been created in the NE corner.

H2 is an oval dry-stone structure, measuring approx 8.5m x 3.8m at its widest internally. Little survives above a couple of courses. It is aligned NE – SW on a ridge a short distance to the SW of H1 and with a centrally placed entrance in the SE wall. It is presumed to be a barn.

H3 is a smaller sub rectangular dry-stone structure to the NE of H2 and linked to it by a short section of dyke on the SE side, which appears to have been inserted after the two buildings were completed. The SW gable wall, the N corner and some of NW wall survive to several courses high, but the SE wall is very fragmentary. The internal space of approx 4.8m x 3.5m is subdivided by a cross wall which abuts the NW wall and may be a later addition. The smaller compartment is less than 2m wide.

Farmstead J (NC 15030 26446) is the least well preserved of the four main farmsteads on the site, but parts of the foundations of three possible buildings survive together with an adjoining enclosure, which is better preserved than the buildings.

J 1 is presumed to be the byrehouse. It seems to have been a semicircular ended dry-stone structure aligned NE – SW. The SW end is difficult to discern but might have been built up against a rocky knoll. The NW wall is extended to NE and SW in a dyke, part of which surrounds the probable kaleyard (C5). The internal space might have been approximately 16m x 4m.

J2 is a smaller foundation on a similar alignment to J1 a short distance to the SW. Its NE end cannot now be determined but parts of the side walls and a substantial section of the revetted, dry-stone, semi circular SW end wall survive. It appears to have been approx 3.5m wide and in excess of 8m long, similar to the barns at the other farmsteads.

J3 is on a smaller dry-stone structure on a similar alignment to J1 and J2 but sited to the SE of J1. It measures 5.5m x 2.5m internally but the position of the entrance is unclear.

Mill M (NC 15230 26379) is aligned W – E beside the burn that runs out of Loch an t’Sabhail.

Where the burn leaves the loch a dam (M2) has been constructed where the water falls steeply into a narrow gully. The dam consists of coursed dry stone blocks and water currently flows through the wall. There are no signs of an outflow opening in the wall, nor of a sluice gate or mechanism, but a possible gap upstream of the wall could indicate that a simple gate was slotted behind the dam wall to force a build up of water and a regular fast flow over the damn wall and down the gully to the mill.

Where the burn leaves the gully it widens out and bends E. In this bend the mill (M1) has been built with a leat running from the narrow gully directly to the N wall of the mill. The leat no longer carries any water and the burn has returned to its natural course, but some of the flat slabs that formed the floor of the leat and the large side blocks survive in situ, while others lie displaced nearby. The point where the leat enters the mill is currently obscured by fallen stone and vegetation, but may be largely intact. The mill walls survive to almost full height, though obscured by vegetation towards the W. They are 1.5m thick at the present wall head, may well be wider at the base, and enclose an internal space approximately 3 x 1.5m. The working platform is to the west (M1b) and the 1.5 x 1.5m chamber for the mill stones and mechanism (M1c) lies at the E end. The S wall of M1c has partially collapsed so that the dimensions of the outflow are unclear. There are no signs of mill stones in the chamber but a few possible fragments lie on the loch bed just upstream of the dam.

Structure N (NC 15170 26364) is close to the mill and consists of some fragments of a dyke or wall running E-W across a shallow gully with some vague suggestions of two curving extensions on falling ground to the south. It is most probably a section of field dyke or just possibly the severely robbed remains of a drying kiln.

Byrehouse O (NC 14198 26918) is aligned NNE – SSW and located on a south facing slope in a sheieling area called Ruigh Coinich, near the NE end of Loch Beannach and close to the remains of two much later bothies. At 16m long and between 3.10m and 3.30m wide and with semi-circular ends it appears to have been of very similar size and construction to Byrehouse J1, but is in a better state of preservation with walls surviving over 1m high in places. The doorway in the SSE wall is off centre to the north and opens into the lower byre end of the house which would have been approx 6m long internally. Protecting the higher domestic end of the house to the south there is a partial cross wall just inside and to the south of the doorway. It currently extends about half way across the building.

Gordon Sleight

Historic Asynt