Pladda
Pladda (Scottish Gaelic: Pladaigh) is an uninhabited island 1 km off the south coast of the Isle of Arran in the Firth of Clyde at grid reference NS027191, western Scotland. It is home to an automated lighthouse of the same name. The island is privately owned, having been put up for sale by Arran Estate in 1990.[1]
Geography
Pladda is a small, flat, teardrop-shaped island, less than a kilometre along its length and rising to just 27 metres (89 ft) above sea level. Unusual for such a small island it has its own source of fresh water.
Pladda shares its name with Pladda Island, a tiny islet situated in the Lynn of Lorn between Lismore and Ardmucknish Bay.
Lighthouse
Pladda Lighthouse and its ancillary buildings stand at the southern end of Pladda. The lighthouse dates from 1790 and was designed by Thomas Smith. It was the first light on the Clyde to be commissioned by the Commissioners of the Northern Lights. It had both an upper and a lower light to distinguish it from the three other lighthouses in the Firth of Clyde. In 1876 Pladda was about the third station to have a foghorn. The 'double lights' were replaced by a powerful flashing system in 1901. Lightkeepers were withdrawn in 1990 when the lighthouse was automated; it is now remotely monitored from the Northern Lighthouse Boards Headquarters in Edinburgh.
The lighthouse tower is 29 metres in height; there are 128 steps to the top. Under normal conditions, its light (3 white flashes every 30 seconds) is visible for 17 Nautical Miles.[2][3]
Pladda and its lighthouse feature extensively in Peter Hill's book Stargazing: Memoirs of a Young Lighthouse Keeper.
Church
There appears to have been a church or chapel on Pladda. John of Fordun and other chroniclers from 1400 to 1500 speak of the isle of St Blase of Pladda.
Nothing now remains to mark its site, and its whereabouts are unknown.[4]
References
- ^ Haswell-Smith, Hamish (2004). The Scottish Islands. Edinburgh: Canongate. p. 16. ISBN 978-1-84195-454-7.
- ^ "Northern Lighthouse Board - Pladda". Nlb.org.uk. Retrieved 2012-08-04.
- ^ "Site Record for Pladda, Lighthouse Pladda Light; Arran; Kilbrannan Sound; Firth Of Clyde Details". Canmore.rcahms.gov.uk. 2010-07-12. Retrieved 2012-08-04.
- ^ "Pladda, Church". ScotlandsPlaces. 1977-11-11. Retrieved 2012-08-04.
External links
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