Isle Martin
Encyclopedia
Isle Martin is an uninhabited island in Loch Broom
, on the west coast of Scotland
. It is the closest of the Summer Isles
to Ullapool
and has been the site of a monastery, a herring curing station and a flour mill. Now recognised as a bird sanctuary it is owned and managed by a community trust.
Agriculture and fishing have been the mainstays of the island economy for most of the its history. It was a centre for the fishing trade, with a curing station, before Ullapool was founded. The island was lotted into crofts in 1831 and crofting continued until the 1960s. Predominantly used for cattle and sheep grazing, there was limited arable at the southern end near the main settlement.
A flour mill operated on the site of the old herring station site between 1939 and 1948. Most of the mill workers were ferried daily to the island, but some housing was constructed at this time. Wheat was carried to an island wharf by sailing ship and flour transported back to Ullapool, from where it was distributed to bakeries across the north of Scotland. Sacks were labelled "Isle Martin Flour Mills". The mill closed, and buildings and wharves were dismantled in 1948.
In the 1960s Monica Goldsmith purchased Isle Martin and took it out of crofting tenure. She mainly ran it for nature conservancy purposes, introducing a number of improvements, including installing water and power supplies, and clearing sheep from the island in 1969. In 1980 she gifted the island to the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
(RSPB) on the understanding that it would be managed for conservation.
Under RSPB management there was an ambitious programme of broad-leaved woodland regeneration, behind the protection of extensive rabbit fencing. A reserve warden carried out experimental work on plant populations, plantations and fertilisation of trees. RSPB recorded visiting and breeding birds and surveyed their populations. However the location of the island and its particular attributes made it difficult for the RSPB to fulfil its aims and remit, and by the middle of 1996 they were looking to dispose of Isle Martin. In May 1999, with the active encouragement of Mrs Goldsmith's daughter, Miss Oriole Goldsmith, the RSPB gifted the island to a trust proposed and established by the communities of Loch Broom and Coigach - The Isle Martin Trust.
Loch Broom
Loch Broom is a sea loch located in northwestern Ross and Cromarty, in the former parish of Lochbroom, in the west coast of Scotland. The small town of Ullapool lies on the eastern shore of the loch...
, on the west coast of Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. It is the closest of the Summer Isles
Summer Isles
The Summer Isles are an archipelago lying in the mouth of Loch Broom, in the Highland region of Scotland.-Geography:The only inhabited isle, Tanera Mòr, is also the largest. It is home to an Atlantic salmon fish farm, some rental holiday homes, a café and a post office, which has operated its own...
to Ullapool
Ullapool
Ullapool is a small town of around 1,300 inhabitants in Ross and Cromarty, Highland, Scotland. Despite its small size, it is the largest settlement for many miles around, and is a major tourist destination of Scotland. The North Atlantic Drift passes by Ullapool, bringing moderate temperatures...
and has been the site of a monastery, a herring curing station and a flour mill. Now recognised as a bird sanctuary it is owned and managed by a community trust.
History
St. Martin, after whom the island is named, is reputed to have established a monastery on the island around 300-400 AD. There is a stone with a Latin triple cross, possibly from 400 -700 AD, which probably related to the Celtic church. There is a post-Reformation chapel/meeting house and the ruins of an old street of houses with the old school. There are other houses and the "new" school near the current jetty.Agriculture and fishing have been the mainstays of the island economy for most of the its history. It was a centre for the fishing trade, with a curing station, before Ullapool was founded. The island was lotted into crofts in 1831 and crofting continued until the 1960s. Predominantly used for cattle and sheep grazing, there was limited arable at the southern end near the main settlement.
A flour mill operated on the site of the old herring station site between 1939 and 1948. Most of the mill workers were ferried daily to the island, but some housing was constructed at this time. Wheat was carried to an island wharf by sailing ship and flour transported back to Ullapool, from where it was distributed to bakeries across the north of Scotland. Sacks were labelled "Isle Martin Flour Mills". The mill closed, and buildings and wharves were dismantled in 1948.
In the 1960s Monica Goldsmith purchased Isle Martin and took it out of crofting tenure. She mainly ran it for nature conservancy purposes, introducing a number of improvements, including installing water and power supplies, and clearing sheep from the island in 1969. In 1980 she gifted the island to the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
Bird Notes and News was first published in April 1903.The title changed to 'Bird Notes' in 1947. In the 1950s, there were four copies per year . Each volume covered two years, spread over three calendar years...
(RSPB) on the understanding that it would be managed for conservation.
Under RSPB management there was an ambitious programme of broad-leaved woodland regeneration, behind the protection of extensive rabbit fencing. A reserve warden carried out experimental work on plant populations, plantations and fertilisation of trees. RSPB recorded visiting and breeding birds and surveyed their populations. However the location of the island and its particular attributes made it difficult for the RSPB to fulfil its aims and remit, and by the middle of 1996 they were looking to dispose of Isle Martin. In May 1999, with the active encouragement of Mrs Goldsmith's daughter, Miss Oriole Goldsmith, the RSPB gifted the island to a trust proposed and established by the communities of Loch Broom and Coigach - The Isle Martin Trust.