Salt Island, Anglesey

Salt Island ("Ynys Halen" in Welsh) is an island joined to Holy Island, itself an island joined to Anglesey in North Wales. It is a natural provider of shelter for the towns Old Harbour from the Irish Sea.

History

The island gained it name by a factory located on it which which processed sea water in order to extract sea salt. By the early 18th century the sea salt was often mixed with rock salt (often smuggled onto the island) to increase the quality of the factory's product. The factory ceased production in 1775.

Another building no longer standing on the island was the Stanley Sailor's Hospital. This hospital was set up in 1871 by a local philanthropist and initially only treated sailors although it quickly became a general hospital. It was taken over by the National Health Service in 1948 and closed it's doors in 1987.

There have been three lighthouses located on the island. The current house, the Holyhead Mail Pier Light is a conical white house which was built in 1821. It is however no longer in use although it is used as a navigation reference for sailors. Before the conversion to electricity a gas works was located on the island to power the lighthouses, the piers and even part of Holyhead itself. The works were constructed at a cost of £130,000, an astronomical fee at the time.

In more recent times, starting in February 2001, the island was expanded into the sea by the process of land reclamation. In total 11 acres was gained at a cost of £10 million. An average of 7,000 tonnes of rock and mud was extracted per day during the process.

The Island Today

It is part of the port of Holyhead and almost the whole extent of the island is used as a passenger, car and freight terminal and berths for ferries to and from Ireland. Both Irish Ferries and Stena Line sail from Salt Island to Dublin port and to Dún Laoghaire. The Holyhead lifeboat station is on the island and there is a 840 metre pier extending north into the sea. The Admiralty Arch, the end of the A5 which links London to Holyhead is located very close to the southern tip of the island. This was opened in 1826 when the last section of the road the Menai Suspension Bridge was completed. There is a beach on the island which was open to the public but was shut in 2003 due to the increasing terror threat and still hasn't reopen.

External links

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