• project ref : 008

  • location : Gruinard Island

  • grid ref : centred on NG 945 945

  • category : pre-crofting township, 2nd WW experimental station

  • features : buildings, cultivation enclosures, dykes, banks, burial ground

Gruinard Island

This island in Gruinard Bay lies only 1km from the mainland. At the SE corner there is a township of about 10 buildings and some fairly large cultivation enclosures.

It has a recent sinister past with biological warfare experiments carried out during WWll.

 

Almost all the features on Gruinard Island are located in the SE corner, where boats can land.

 

A recent survey of the island was lead by Anne MacInnes for Gairloch museum.

 

List of features (all grid ref NG) :

1 Large pile of stones 94660 93097

2 footings of turf and stone building 7 x 4.2 m, there is a wall continuing up the hillside 94570 93143

3 turf and stone dyke curving around base of slope in both directions 94517 93256

4 large erratic boulder 3.5 x 2.5 m 94477 93354

5 field dyke 94502 93375

6 footings of building 16 x 5 m with two compartments 94561 93465

7 footings of building 12.5 x 3.5m 94578 93537

8 footings of building 6 x 2.5m 94587 93564

9 footings of two adjoining buildings  8 x 4 m and 9 x 4 m 94601 93595

10 footings of possible barn/byre with central open area adjoined by house 30 x4.5 m overall. There is a midden downslope of barn/byre and enclosure upslope 94679 93783

11 continuing wall of turf and stone towards the shore 94684 93856

12 footings of building 7.5 x 5 m 94712 93697

13 footings of building 3 x 4 m 94715 93654

14 ruins of 3 adjoining buildings 16.5 x 4.3 m 94623 98556

15 ruin of walled enclosure with house and outbuildings along three sides 94686 93547

16 slipway 94844 93192

17 ruined shepherd’s bothy with adjoining fank and dipper 94772 93113

18 burial ground with simple unmarked stones (hidden below surface) 94848 93316

 
 

The area on the map marked in yellow shows the location of a biological warfare experiment carried out during the 2nd World War.

In experiments on the island in 1942 & 1943, small bombs containing deadly anthrax spores were suspended from a gantry and detonated, causing contamination of an area of the island. One bomb containing the spores was also dropped from an aircraft. The lethal clouds were carried downwind through lines of tethered sheep, resulting in the deaths of the sheep after a few days. The unfortunate legacy was an island heavily contaminated with the resistant spores. However, after a decontamination programme the island was given the all-clear for use in 1990.