Mealista (Scottish Gaelic: Mealasta) was a township in the west of the Isle of Lewis. It is currently largely uninhabited due to the Highland Clearances, which occurred there in 1838.[1] The beach is a visitor attraction. [2]
Mealista
| |
|---|---|
 Mealasta beach | |
  Mealista Location within the Outer Hebrides | |
| Language | Scottish Gaelic English |
| OS grid reference | NA991241 |
| Civil parish | |
| Council area | |
| Lieutenancy area | |
| Country | Scotland |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | ISLE OF LEWIS |
| Postcode district | HS2 |
| Dialling code | 01851 |
| Police | Scotland |
| Fire | Scottish |
| Ambulance | Scottish |
| UK Parliament | |
| Scottish Parliament | |
History
editMealista is a name of Norse origin, melr-stadhr, meaning 'lyme-grass steading'.[1] Mealasta lends its name to Eilean Mhealasta which is just to the southwest. The area of Mealasta is known to be the location of a medieval settlement[3]
Tigh nan Cailleachan Dubha, the House of the Black Women, is one of the medieval ruins, which is purported to have been a nunnery, but that is doubted.[4]
During World War II, fourteen of the survivors of the merchant ship SS Geraldine Mary reached shore at Mealista in August 1940.[5] The ship had been torpedoed, off the coast of Ireland, by the German U-Boat U-52.[6][7][8]
During WWII several hundred people were stationed at Mealista and Brenais, to operate wireless and radar installations. There was a cinema, a bar, regular dances, but the area was again abandoned after the war.[9]
Teampall Mhealastadh
editOutside of Mealista is Teampall Mhealastadh, the remains of small chapel and graveyard. Most of the tombstones are now buried.[10][11]
References
edit- ^ a b "Mealista". Hebridean Connections. Retrieved 21 December 2014.
- ^ "Isle of Lewis Visitor Guide - Accommodation, Things To Do & More". www.visitscotland.com. Retrieved 12 September 2021.
- ^ "Data structure report of small-scale sampling at Mealasta, Lewis, Western Isles of Scotland". Durham University. Retrieved 21 December 2014.
- ^ "Mealista, Lewis | Hebridean Connections". www.hebrideanconnections.com. Retrieved 12 September 2021.
- ^ "Mealasta Beaches". Welcome to Scotland. Retrieved 21 December 2014.
- ^ "Canadian & Newfoundland Merchantmen Lost Due to Enemy Actions in WWII". Battle of the Atlantic. Archived from the original on 17 April 2015. Retrieved 21 December 2014.
- ^ Watson, Patrick (11 December 2007). Watson's Really Big WWII Almanac. Xlibris Corporation. ISBN 9781469101903. Retrieved 21 December 2014.
- ^ "Geraldine Mary". uboat.net. Retrieved 21 December 2014.
- ^ "Mealista Beaches , Uig, Isle of Lewis - Outer Hebrides Photos".
- ^ Barrowman, Rachel C.; Francoz, Charlotte; Hooper, Janet; Rennie, Christine; Tompsett, Gary (17 February 2020). "Chapel-sites on the Isle of Lewis: Results of the Lewis Coastal Chapel-sites Survey". Scottish Archaeological Internet Reports. 88 (88): 1–134. doi:10.9750/issn.2056-7421.2020.88. ISSN 2056-7421.
- ^ "Lewis, Mealista | Canmore". canmore.org.uk. Retrieved 12 September 2021.
External links
edit
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