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Port of Ness

Page history last edited by PBworks 16 years, 6 months ago
Building of the harbour began in 1835 and continued right up until 1940. At one time the fishing fleet here numbered 50, the most famous being the guga hunters, but today only a few boats use the harbour. The picturesque beach is popular with visitor and locals throughout the summer.
Shops
Port had 4 shops over the years. Buth Dhomhnaill Ghearr - Donald MacDonald of Eorodale. After he moved to Stornoway this continued as Buth Dena and was in the enclosure known as Barr a' Yard.
Buth John - Iain Mhurchaidh - pre 1900 - Grocery and biscuit bakery. This shop provided biscuits to the fishing crews. John was also in the fishing industry. Donald Smith, Lionel, took over the bakery business from John in 1893 after he returned from Glasgow. This was before the bakery was built at Lionel.
Buth Iain a' Chabair - John MacDonald. General and newsagent. He was postman for the Port of Ness area and fr years delivered the papers on his round (always yesterdays papers)
Buth Choinnich Ghobha - Kenneth/Alex Murray - pre 1900. His son had a good drapery/grocer business in the premises. When these premises were taken over by John Paterson they were used as an outlet for furniture/radios for a short period by Snows of Stornoway and, after use as a workshop, was later partly used as a doctors surgery. (Criomagan)
 
Post Offices
In 1880 the Post Office opened an office in Port. Although largely unprofitable, such a facility was considered to be sufficiently important for it to be retained and subsidised. Apart from the benefits to local traders and businessmen, the Butt of Lewis Lighthouse and Lloyds of London (who used the office in support of their signaling station at the Butt) deemed the local Post Office to be crucial to their opertaions. On 2 October 1888, 8 years after being opened, the Ness office was connected to the Island's telegraph network.
On  an island where the postal service was much less efficient than its mainland counterparts, the newly installed telegraphic link was a major improvement in communnication for local businessmen. By 1892 it was also able to issue and pay out money orders and act as a savings bank. (Criomagan 1998)
There are currently 4 Post Offices in Ness, in Port, Cross Skigersta Road, Cross and South Dell 
 
 
 
 

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