Broadford, Skye

For other places called Broadford, see Broadford (disambiguation).

Coordinates: 57°14′N 5°53′W / 57.24°N 5.88°W / 57.24; -5.88

Broadford
Scottish Gaelic: An t-Àth Leathann
Overlooking Broadford village
Broadford  Broadford shown within the Isle of Skye
Population	est. 620[1] (2006)
OS grid reference	NG650230
Council area	Highland
Lieutenancy area	Ross and Cromarty
Country	Scotland
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	ISLE OF SKYE
Postcode district	IV49
Dialling code	01471
Police	Northern
Fire	Highlands and Islands
Ambulance	Scottish
EU Parliament	Scotland
UK Parliament	Ross, Skye and Lochaber
Scottish Parliament	Ross, Skye and Inverness West
List of places: UK • Scotland •

Map of Skye showing Broadford

Broadford (An t-Àth Leathann in Scottish Gaelic), together with nearby Harrapool, is the second-largest settlement on the Isle of Skye, Scotland, lying on the SW corner of Broadford Bay, on the A87 between Portree and the Skye Bridge. Overlooked by the eastern Cuillins, Broadford is in a beautiful tranquil area as well as having many services available.

History

Beinn na Caillich and Goir a' Bhlair from Broadford

Like many places in Skye, Broadford derives its name from Old Norse. To the Vikings this was Breiðafjorðr - the wide bay.^[2] The Gaelic name is of modern derivation and assumes that the "ford" element meant a river crossing.^[3]

West of Broadford, on the lower slopes of Beinn na Caillich, is Goir a' Bhlàir, 'the field of battle' (grid reference NG624234 ^[4]). The battle concerned was apparently a decisive action by the Gaelic Clan Mackinnon against the Vikings.^[4]

Broadford was a cattle market until 1812, when Telford built the road from Portree to Kyleakin. Veterans of the Napoleonic Wars settled during the first half of the 19th century. Writing in the middle of the 19th century, Alexander Smith said, "If Portree is the London of Skye, Broadford is its Manchester."^[5]

Legend holds that the recipe for the liqueur Drambuie was given by Bonnie Prince Charlie to Clan MacKinnon who then passed it onto James Ross late 19th century. Ross ran the Broadford Inn (now the Broadford Hotel), where he developed and improved the recipe, initially for his friends and then later to patrons. Ross then began to sell it further afield and the name was registered as a trademark in 1893.^[6][7]

Services

Broadford is a key service centre for southern Skye. Services include the Co-op supermarket combined with a 24 hour Gulf Oil garage, a few restaurants (including the Claymore, Broadford Hotel, Dunollie Hotel and Hebridean Hotel), the Skye Serpentarium and a youth hostel. It also has a small airfield (see Broadford Airfield) at Ashaig. The local hospital, the MacKinnon Memorial Hospital, has a small ward and casualty department.

In popular culture

• There is a song by the rock band Jethro Tull called "Broadford Bazaar" (on the remastered version of the Heavy Horses album) which is named after this town.

• There is also a song entitled 'The Trip to Broadford' on the 1990 album Room to Roam by The Waterboys.

Geology

The mineral harkerite was first found near Broadford by the geologist Alfred Harker.^[8]

Wildlife

A variety of marine life can be seen at Broadford Bay including otters^[9] and occasionally Orca whales.^[9]

Birds that can sometimes be spotted at the bay include the Whooper Swan^[10][11], Brent Goose^[10][11], Red-throated Diver^[10][11] and the Black-tailed Godwit.^[10][11]

Notes

1. ^ http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/statistics/publications-and-data
2. ^ Gammeltoft, Peder "Scandinavian Naming-Systems in the Hebrides—A Way of Understanding how the Scandinavians were in Contact with Gaels and Picts?" in Ballin Smith et al (2007) p. 484
3. ^ Iain Mac an Tàilleir. "Placenames" (pdf). Pàrlamaid na h-Alba. http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/vli/language/gaelic/pdfs/placenamesA-B.pdf. Retrieved 23 July 2010. 
4. ^ ^{a b} Site Record for Skye, Goir A' Bhlair, Broadford, Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland, http://canmore.rcahms.gov.uk/en/site/11589/ 
5. ^ A Summer in Skye (1865), which includes a lengthy description of Broadford fair.
6. ^ "Georgina Mackinnon". Undiscovered Scotland. Retrieved 29 Dec 2010.
7. ^ "The Broadford Hotel is The Original Home of Drambuie". broadfordhotel.co.uk. Retrieved 29 Dec 2010.
8. ^ Alec Livingstone, 2002, Minerals of Scotland, Edinburgh, National Museums of Scotland
9. ^ ^{a b} “sightings” page on www.otter.com
10. ^ ^{a b c d} Reports page on www.skye-birds.com
11. ^ ^{a b c d} Skye section on www.birdwatch.co.uk

References

• Ballin Smith, Beverley; Taylor, Simon; Williams, Gareth (eds) (2007) West Over Sea: Studies in Scandinavian Sea-Borne Expansion and Settlement Before 1300. Leiden. Koninklijke Brill. ISBN 9789004158931

External links

• Article on Undiscovered Scotland