St Kilda hut linked to exiled Jacobite wife sees 'most challenging' conservation effort yet
The drystone structure was used to store seabirds and eggs for the former island residents.
A historic hut linked to a woman banished to St Kilda by her Jacobite-supporting husband has undergone what conservationists have described as the most challenging work of its kind on the archipelago.
The beehive-shaped, stone building known as ‘Lady Grange’s House’, is notable among the 1,200 stone cleitean scattered across the main island of Hirta due to its size and a longstanding historical connection.
They were built by the former St Kildan community, the last of whom were evacuated from the archipelago in 1930, to store food, fuel and other essential supplies.
Lady Grange’s House is a particularly significant cleit in Scotland’s history due to its connection with historical figure Rachel Chiesley, known by her title ‘Lady Grange’.
Chiesley was famously exiled to St Kilda in the 18th century by her husband James Erskine, a Jacobite supporter who feared his wife would expose his sympathies to the UK government.
While direct archaeological evidence linking her to the structure has not been confirmed, historical accounts, maps and the intrinsic oral tradition of Hebridean storytelling have long associated the cleit with her imprisonment on the island.
In January 2022, the structure suffered a significant collapse. The National Trust for Scotland (NTS), a conservation charity that was bequeathed the archipelago in 1956, said the complex repair project has been one of the most challenging undertaken on the archipelago in more than half a century of conservation work.
A defining feature of the historic isle, the drystone structures were built without mortar and topped with turf roofs. In the harsh Atlantic weather, they are known to withstand wind speeds have been recorded as high as 144 miles per hour.
Joiners Neville Oldroyd and Andy Smith built a bespoke timber access structure that allowed specialist drystone workers Euan Thompson and Steve Denham to carefully rebuild the damaged sections using original stonework.
Archive photographs taken before the collapse were used to ensure the repairs closely matched the original construction.
Clare Henderson, an NTS archaeologist, said: “Traditional St Kildan construction techniques were followed throughout the repair project. The unique turf roof was re-instated using a combination of new turf, grass seed harvested on the island and turf from the roof that had come away during the collapse. The building was intricately repaired stone-by-stone using methods found on St Kilda.
“During the repair, we also had a rare opportunity to examine the internal structure and construction method of the cleit, including the roof composition, which gave us a new insight into precisely how St Kildans built and maintained these unique buildings. This ongoing conservation work is essential to ensure these remarkable buildings survive for future generations.”
Susan Bain, Western Isles Manager for the NTS, said: “This sympathetic repair has brought this historic cleit back to life and is a testament to the Trust staff’s expertise, the skilled contractors and the St Kildans ingenuity. As custodians of the archipelago, the National Trust for Scotland continues to monitor and maintain these fragile yet resilient cleitean and the other buildings that form a vital part of the island’s cultural landscape.”
St Kilda is the UK’s only dual UNESCO World Heritage Site, one of only 39 in the world, and is recognised for its unique natural environment and cultural heritage.
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