In 1882-4, Frances Groome's Ordnance Gazetteer of Scotland described Graemsay like this:
Graemsay, an island of Hoy parish, Orkney, in Hoy Sound, ½ mile S of Stromness, and ½ mile E of Bowkirk in Hoy island. Measuring 1½ mile in length from NW to SE, and 1 in breadth, it is all low and level; lies, almost throughout, on a bed of schistose rock; and is mainly covered with excellent soil, much of it being arable. ...
Two lighthouses, guiding the navigation of Hoy Sound, were erected on the island in 1851 at a cost of £15,880. They bear from each other SE ¼E and NW¼ W; and they show lights visible at the distance of 11 and 15 nautical miles. The higher light, towards the western entrance of Hoy Sound, is a fixed red light, illuminating an arc from SE by E to SE ½ S towards SE; and also shows, towards Stromness, a bright fixed light from SSE¼ E to WSW; and towards Cava, an arc from NNW ½ W to N ½ W southerly. The lower light is a fixed bright light from E ½ S to W ½ N, facing northward. The island was anciently a vicarage united to Hoy rectory, and served every third Sunday by the minister of Hoy; but it neither pays stipend nor has any glebe; and it is now under the pastoral care of the minister of Stromness. Pop. (1831) 225, (1861) 230, (1871) 250, (1881) 236.
Graemsay through time
Graemsay is now part of Orkney Islands district. Click here for graphs and data of how Orkney Islands has changed over two centuries. For statistics about Graemsay itself, go to Units and Statistics.
GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth, History of Graemsay in Orkney Islands | Map and description, A Vision of Britain through Time.
URL: https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/21771
Date accessed: 03rd May 2024
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