32057: ECC 33.24 Cromore (33)

Summary:

BLACK HOUSE (Post Medieval to Crofting – 1540 AD to 1950 AD)
HOUSE (Post Medieval to Crofting – 1540 AD to 1950 AD)
COW HOUSE (Post Medieval to Crofting – 1540 AD to 1950 AD)
LONGHOUSE (Post Medieval to Crofting – 1540 AD to 1950 AD)
Blackhouse

Location:

NB 39384 20895

Full description:

"Situated on the north-west facing slopes above the southern shores of the inlet of Loch Erisort that leads to Loch Cromore, the remains of this blackhouse measure 5 x 3 metres and are orientated from north-east to south-west. Standing to a maximum height of 1 metre the walls are constructed of stone faces with an earthen core. A large opening may be seen at the south-western end of the south-east facing wall, though this is unlikely to be an entrance, but rather a point where the wall face has been removed. Opposite this opening, in the north-west facing wall, one jamb of an entrance can be clearly seen amongst the tumbled masonry. Internally much of this building’s facing stone has been placed, along with other stones from the surrounding fields, in a clearance pile conveniently bounded by the remains of its walls. Ca 4 metres to the south-west of the south-western end of the extent remains of this building is a large linear pile of masonry measuring 1.5 metres thick and 4 metres long, that may represent the furthest overall extent of this structure. If this is the case, then overall this house originally measured 10 x 4 metres, and this pile of stone now marks the point where much of its masonry has been cleared into a single location to allow more efficient cultivation of the land during the crofting phase. This suggests that this house dates to the pre-crofting phase, or at the latest, the early crofting phase prior to the introduction of the intensive crofting methods of agriculture that lead to its partial clearance and consolidation into piles." (Burgess 2004, 143)

References:

Chris Burgess, Northamptonshire Archaeology. 2004. Northamptonshire Archaeology Archaeological Survey and Evaluation of Eilean Chalium Chille and the Putative Site of the Seaforth Head Castle. Part No Loch Seaforth Head Gazeteer.

Acknowledgement:

Information provided by Western Isles Council Sites & Monuments Record, January 2006.