Mossbank, Shetland

The Village of Mossbank as seen from the air.

Mossbank is a village in the north east of the Mainland of Shetland, Scotland. Originally served by an inter island ferry steamer from Lerwick, this ceased when the Yell Sound ferry commenced from the small port of Toft, approximately 1 mile further north.^[1] The village was profoundly changed in the early 80s when construction began on the nearby Sullom Voe oil terminal. Large amounts of temporary accommodation were erected to house the construction workforce, with the population expanding from 130 in the early 70s to about a thousand a decade later. The number of residents staying in Mossbank is forever changing, making it hard to record a village population.^[1]

The village has one primary school, Mossbank Primary School, a public house, The Welcome Inn, a shop, The North-Lea Autopoint, a Post Office & a local hall, where the Youth Club is run from.

Mossbank and its adjoining area of Firth are in the parish of Delting. A stone memorial at the entrance to the village commemorates the infamous "Delting Disaster"^[1] of 21 December 1900 when twenty two local fishermen in four boats were lost during a storm. An inscription on the memorial reads "You see dey wirna mine, Da Loard gae dem tae me fir a time and dan he took dem back ageen".^[2]

Mossbank is also the home to Mossbank football club. The club was formed in 2006 and its status is growing throughout the isles, especially after winning the Shetland Works League, and moving up into the B-League. Currently, the club play their home matches in Brae as there are no suitable playing surfaces in the Firth & Mossbank area.

• grid reference HU450751

Coordinates: 60°27′26″N 1°11′02″W / 60.45716°N 1.18375°W / 60.45716; -1.18375

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} "Mossbank" Undiscovered Scotland. Retrieved 1 July 2009.
2. ^ "Delting Disaster" Shetlopedia. Retrieved 1 July 2009. The inscription is in the Shetland dialect and means "You see they were not mine, The Lord gave them to me for a time and then he took them back again."