Catacol is located on the north west side of the island, just a few miles along the coastal road from Lochranza that continues on to Blackwaterfoot. It derives its name from Old Norse, referring to the 'gully of the cat', referring to the wildcats that may have roamed here.[1] It is situated at the foot of Glen Catacol, a steep-sided valley down which the Abhainn Mor flows, where the river is crossed by a bridge just inland from the banks of shingle on the beach beside Catacol Bay.[2]
Landmarks
Catacol's main feature is the row of cottages called the 'Twelve Apostles', which were completed around the middle of the 1860s.[3] They were built to house those people cleared from the surrounding countryside, when much of the interior of the island was set aside for deer, the hunting of which had become fashionable among the landed gentry. The theory was these former farmers evicted from the land would turn to fishing, and with this in mind, each of the twelve cottages had a differently shaped first floor window. This would allow the woman of the house to signal by placing a candle in the window to her husband while he was out fishing on the Firth of Clyde. The husband would know who was being signalled by the shape of the window in which the candle was lit. In reality, most of the dispossessed crofters moved away to other parts of the island in protest against their eviction, and the houses remained empty for two years, during which time they were known as "hungry row".[3]
The village formerly housed a hotel, the Catacol Bay Hotel, which permanently closed in September 2018.[1] The surrounding area has grassy hills, moorland and patches of woodland in the steep-sided gullies. The Isle of Arran is the only place in which the Catacol whitebeam (Sorbus pseudomeinichii) is to be found. This is an extremely rare tree endemic to the area, thought to be a hybrid of the native rowan (Sorbus aucuparia) and the cut-leaved whitebeam (Sorbus pseudofennica), of which there may be only one or two surviving specimens.[4]
^Philip's (1994). Atlas of the World. Reed International. p. 18. ISBN0-540-05831-9.
^ abBasford, Joan, ed. (2002). History of the Villages of the Isle of Arran. Scottish Women's Rural Institute. p. 29. ...from old newspapers found plastered on to the roof timbers of one of the houses it is clear that they were not completed until the middle of the 1860s
^Beech, E.; Rich, T.C.G.; Rivers, M.C. (2017). "Sorbus pseudomeinichii". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2017: e.T79749367A79749371. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-2.RLTS.T79749367A79749371.en. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Catacol.
Image of the "Twelve Apostles" from the shore at Catacol
March 03, 2023
catacol, scottish, gaelic, catagal, small, village, isle, arran, scotland, scottish, gaelic, catagalthe, twelve, apostles, baylocation, within, north, ayrshireos, grid, referencenr909496civil, parishkilmorycouncil, areanorth, ayrshirelieutenancy, areaayrshire,. Catacol Scottish Gaelic Catagal is a small village on the Isle of Arran Scotland CatacolScottish Gaelic CatagalThe Twelve Apostles at Catacol BayCatacolLocation within North AyrshireOS grid referenceNR909496Civil parishKilmoryCouncil areaNorth AyrshireLieutenancy areaAyrshire and ArranCountryScotlandSovereign stateUnited KingdomPost townISLE OF ARRANPostcode districtKA27Dialling code01770PoliceScotlandFireScottishAmbulanceScottishUK ParliamentNorth Ayrshire and ArranScottish ParliamentCunninghame NorthList of places UK Scotland 55 41 42 N 5 19 34 W 55 695 N 5 326 W 55 695 5 326 Coordinates 55 41 42 N 5 19 34 W 55 695 N 5 326 W 55 695 5 326 Contents 1 Geography 2 Landmarks 3 References 4 External linksGeography EditCatacol is located on the north west side of the island just a few miles along the coastal road from Lochranza that continues on to Blackwaterfoot It derives its name from Old Norse referring to the gully of the cat referring to the wildcats that may have roamed here 1 It is situated at the foot of Glen Catacol a steep sided valley down which the Abhainn Mor flows where the river is crossed by a bridge just inland from the banks of shingle on the beach beside Catacol Bay 2 Landmarks EditCatacol s main feature is the row of cottages called the Twelve Apostles which were completed around the middle of the 1860s 3 They were built to house those people cleared from the surrounding countryside when much of the interior of the island was set aside for deer the hunting of which had become fashionable among the landed gentry The theory was these former farmers evicted from the land would turn to fishing and with this in mind each of the twelve cottages had a differently shaped first floor window This would allow the woman of the house to signal by placing a candle in the window to her husband while he was out fishing on the Firth of Clyde The husband would know who was being signalled by the shape of the window in which the candle was lit In reality most of the dispossessed crofters moved away to other parts of the island in protest against their eviction and the houses remained empty for two years during which time they were known as hungry row 3 The village formerly housed a hotel the Catacol Bay Hotel which permanently closed in September 2018 1 The surrounding area has grassy hills moorland and patches of woodland in the steep sided gullies The Isle of Arran is the only place in which the Catacol whitebeam Sorbus pseudomeinichii is to be found This is an extremely rare tree endemic to the area thought to be a hybrid of the native rowan Sorbus aucuparia and the cut leaved whitebeam Sorbus pseudofennica of which there may be only one or two surviving specimens 4 References Edit a b Walk the Arran Coastal Way Walkguides p 7 Philip s 1994 Atlas of the World Reed International p 18 ISBN 0 540 05831 9 a b Basford Joan ed 2002 History of the Villages of the Isle of Arran Scottish Women s Rural Institute p 29 from old newspapers found plastered on to the roof timbers of one of the houses it is clear that they were not completed until the middle of the 1860s Beech E Rich T C G Rivers M C 2017 Sorbus pseudomeinichii IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2017 e T79749367A79749371 doi 10 2305 IUCN UK 2017 2 RLTS T79749367A79749371 en Retrieved 24 October 2020 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Catacol Image of the Twelve Apostles from the shore at Catacol Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Catacol amp oldid 1040110648, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
