Highland Houses

Title

Highland Houses

Artist

Clare Bevan

Medium

Photograph - Photography

Description

This small lochside village is one of the most attractive in Scotland. A row of neatly painted cottages hugs the shoreline following the curve of the tiny harbour. Palm trees line the main street and the whole scene is framed by a landscape of islands, heather and pine. Across the harbour the views are of white cottages on a craggy point, with the mountains of Wester Ross in the background. It comes as no surprise to find that Plockton is a haven for artists.

Although it may seem as if time has stood still, Plockton wasn't always like it is today. Originally called Am Ploc, the settlement was a crofting hamlet until the end of the 1700s. As in so many other parts of the Highlands this all changed when landowners found it was possible to make much more money from their estates by letting their land to sheep farmers: and to make room for the sheep they simply cleared the crofters from the land, people who in many cases had lived there for generations. Many had little choice but to emigrate, and Plockton soon became a port of embarkation for those displaced during the clearances.

In the early 1800s the landlord, Sir Hugh Innes, decided he could increase the value of his estates further by giving tenants cleared from inland areas an option to emigration: to resettle in a new fishing port he developed under the name of "Plocktown". New streets of houses were built, many with small crofts, pieces of land that the residents could use to supplement the income they derived from fishing. This was the era of the "herring boom" and Plockton rapidly grew to accommodate over 500 people, many living two families to a cottage.



© 2015 Clare Bevan

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Uploaded

October 13th, 2015

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