Flannan Isles Lighthouse

Flannan Isles Lighthouse Flannan Isles Lighthouse is a lighthouse near the high- eastwards to the east landing place, on the south-east cor- est point on Eilean Mòr, one of the Flannan Isles in the ner of the island, thus forming a half-circle, while the Outer Hebrides off the west coast of Scotland. It is best other, slightly shorter, branch curved back to the west to known for the mysterious disappearance of its keepers in serve the west landing, situated in a small inlet on the is- 1900. land’s south coast. The final approaches to the landing stages were extremely steep. The cable was guided round the curves by pulleys set between the rails, and a line of 1 History posts set outside the inner rail prevented it from going too far astray should it jump off the pulleys. The cargo was carried in a small four-wheeled bogie.[4] In 1925, the lighthouse was one of the first Scottish lights to receive communications from the shore by wireless telegraphy.[5] In the 1960s, the island’s transport system was modernised. The railway was removed, leaving be- hind the concrete bed on which it had been laid to serve as a roadway for a “Gnat” - a three-wheeled, rubber- tyred cross-country vehicle powered by a 400cc four- stroke engine, built by Aimers McLean of Galashiels. This had a somewhat shorter working life than the railway, becoming redundant in its turn when the helipad was constructed.[6] On 28 September 1971, the lighthouse was automated. A reinforced concrete helipad was constructed at the same time to enable maintenance visits in heavy weather. The The remains of the Flannan lighthouse railway as of 2012. This light is produced by burning acetylene gas and has a range view is looking approximately west-south-west from the lighthouse. The site of “Clapham Junction” is just visible at left centre. of 17 nautical miles; 20 miles (32 km). It is now moni- tored from the Butt of Lewis[7] and the shore station has [8] The lighthouse was designed by David Alan Stevenson, been converted into flats. the 23-metre (75 ft) for the Northern Lighthouse Board (NLB), Construction, between 1895 and 1899, was un- dertaken by George Lawson of Rutherglen at a cost of 2 Mystery of 1900 £6,914 inclusive of the building of the landing places, stairs, railway tracks etc. All of the materials used had Other than for its relative isolation, the lighthouse would to be hauled up the 45-metre (148 ft) cliffs directly from be relatively unremarkable, were it not for the events supply boats, no trivial task in the ever-churning At- which took place just over a year after it was commis- lantic. A further £3,526 was spent on the shore station sioned. at Breasclete on the Isle of Lewis.[3] It was first lit on 7 December 1899. The purpose of the railway tracks was to facilitate the 2.1 Discovery transport of provisions for the keepers and fuel for the light (paraffin, at that date; the light consumed twenty bar- The first hint of anything untoward on the Flannan Isles rels a year) up the steep gradients from the landing places came on 15 December 1900. The steamer Archtor on by means of a cable-hauled railway. This was powered by passage from Philadelphia to Leith passed the islands in a small steam engine in a shed adjoining the lighthouse. poor weather and noted that the light was not operational. A track descended from the lighthouse in a westerly di- This was reported on arrival at Oban, although no imme- rection and then curved round to the south. In the ap- diate action seems to have been taken. The island light- proximate centre of the island it forked by means of a set house was manned by a three-man team (Thomas Mar- of hand-operated points humorously dubbed "Clapham shall, James Ducat, and Donald MacArthur), with a ro- Junction"; one branch continued in its curvature to head tating fourth man spending time on shore. The relief ves- 1 2 2 MYSTERY OF 1900 for clues as to the fate of the keepers. At the east landing everything was intact, but the west landing provided con- siderable evidence of damage caused by recent storms. A box at 33 metres (108 ft) above sea level had been bro- ken and its contents strewn about; iron railings were bent over, the iron railway by the path was wrenched out of its concrete, and a rock weighing more than a ton had been displaced above that. On top of the cliff at more than 60 metres (200 ft) above sea level, turf had been ripped away as far as 10 metres (33 ft) from the cliff edge. The missing keepers had kept their log until 9 a.m. on 15 December, however, and their entries made it clear that Flannan Isles Lighthouse the damage had occurred before the disappearance of the writers.[7][10] sel, the lighthouse tender Hesperus, was unable to set out on a routine visit from Lewis planned for 20 December due to adverse weather and did not arrive until noon on 2.2 Speculations and misconceptions Boxing Day (26 December).[7] On arrival, the crew and relief keeper found that the flagstaff was bare of its flag, No bodies were ever found and the loneliness of the none of the usual provision boxes had been left on the rocky islets may have lent itself to feverish imaginings. Theories abounded and resulted in “fascinated national landing stage for re-stocking, and more ominously, none [11] of the lighthouse keepers were there to welcome them speculation”. Some were simply elaborations on the truth. For example, the events were commemorated in ashore. Jim Harvie, captain of the Hesperus, gave a stri- [12] dent blast on his whistle and set off a distress flare, but no Wilfrid Wilson Gibson's 1912 ballad Flannan Isle. reply was forthcoming. The poem refers erroneously to an uneaten meal laid out on the table, indicating that the keepers had been sud- A boat was launched and Joseph Moore, the relief keeper, denly disturbed. was put ashore alone. He found the entrance gate to the compound and main door both closed, the beds unmade, Yet, as we crowded through the door, and the clock stopped. Returning to the landing stage We only saw a table spread with this grim news, he then went back up to the light- For dinner, meat, and cheese and bread; house with the Hesperus’s second-mate and a seaman. A But, all untouch'd; and no-one there, further search revealed that the lamps were cleaned and As though, when they sat down to eat, refilled. A set of oilskins was found, suggesting that one Ere they could even taste, of the keepers had left the lighthouse without them, which Alarm had come, and they in haste was surprising considering the severity of the weather on Had risen and left the bread and meat, the date of the last entry in the lighthouse log. The only For at the table head a chair sign of anything amiss in the lighthouse was an overturned Lay tumbled on the floor.[1] chair by the kitchen table. Of the keepers there was no sign, neither inside the lighthouse nor anywhere on the 1. ^ Quotation from Nicholson (1995) p. island.[7][9] 178. Moore and three volunteer seamen were left to attend the light and the Hesperus returned to the shore station However, Nicholson (1995) makes it clear that this does at Breasclete. Captain Harvie sent a telegram to the not square with Moore’s recorded observations of the Northern Lighthouse Board dated 26 December 1900, scene, which state that: “The kitchen utensils were all stating: very clean, which is a sign that it must be after dinner some time they left.”[7][13] A dreadful accident has happened at the Other less plausible rumours ensued—that one keeper Flannans. The three keepers, Ducat, Mar- had murdered the other two and then thrown himself into shall and the Occasional have disappeared from the sea in a fit of remorse (which is likely not the case, the Island... The clocks were stopped and simply because the keepers only had to work together for other signs indicated that the accident must short amounts of time, and none of the men reported any have happened about a week ago. Poor fellows psychotic behavior); that a sea serpent (or giant seabird) they must have been blown over the cliffs or had carried the men away; that they had been abducted by drowned trying to secure a crane or something foreign spies; or that they had met their fate through the [7][9] like that. malevolent presence of a boat filled with ghosts—and the baleful influence of the “Phantom of the Seven Hunters” The men remaining on the island scoured every corner was widely suspected locally.[7] 3 2.3 Northern Lighthouse Board investigation The westernmost of the Flannan Isles: Eilean a' Ghobha and Northern Lighthouse Board Ensign Roareim with Brona Cleit in the distance On 29 December 1900, Robert Muirhead, a Northern Lighthouse Board (NLB) superintendent, arrived to con- of large waves approaching the island, and knowing the duct the official investigation into the incident. likely danger to his colleagues, ran down to warn them, only to suffer the same fate as well.[15] This theory has The explanation offered by Muirhead is more prosaic the advantages of explaining the over-turned chair, and than the fanciful rumours suggested.

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