Photocopied applications for cinema licences, 1935 and 1947.
(1) Letter from W. Mack dated 24/7/1935 to the County Clerk requesting a licence to show pictures at Tiree and Lochboisdale, (2) Letter from D A Benson dated December 1947 requesting application forms for a licence to open a cinema at the Airport Club by the Ministry of Civil Aviation.
Copy of newspaper article ` Tiree crofters fly to Ulster`.
Photograph of 18 crofters at the airport about to depart on fact-finding mission to Ulster.
Audio cassette recording of Ailig MacArthur, Heylipol, interviewed by Maggie Campbell in Heylipol on 24/5/2002.
Maggie Campbell talks to Ailig MacArthur (Ailig a’ Chìobair) of Heylipol in 2002 about his work as fireman at Tiree airport and the different types of service planes used, crofting and how its affected by the Environmentally Sensitive Area scheme and the grant system, how crofts are being amalgamated into farms, cattle sales and the local wildlife especially geese, the shops in Balemartine and Balephuil and the shop vans, story-telling. Tha Ailig Mac Artair (Ailig a’ Chìobair) a’ bruidhinn ri Magaidh Chaimbeul ann an 2002, mu ’n obair a bh’ aige aig Port Adhair Thiriodh, nuair a bha e na fhear-smalaidh, na h-itealan a bha air an cleachdadh, croitearachd agus mar a tha an sgeama an ‘Environmentally Sensitive Area’, a’ beantal do ’n eilean, mar tha croitean air an cur còmhla mar bhaile-fhearainn, fèill cruidh, eunlainn an eilean, gu sònraichte na geòidh, bùthan ann am Baile Mhàrtainn agus Bail’ a’ Phuill, carabadan agus naidheachdan.
Postcard of the Airport Control Tower.
Airport Control Tower.
Tiree Aerodrome in 1944
Photograph of Tiree Aerodrome in 1944.
Courtesy of Sergeant Neil Owen
The origins of the Tiree airfield go back to 1934 when Midland and Scottish Airways selected a grass landing site on the Reef. A rental dispute delayed until 1937 the start of air services which continued to operate spasmodically during World War II.
The Reef was requisitioned by the Ministry of War in 1940 to provide air cover for the convoys routed from the North Sea to the Irish Channel. Contractors Melville, Dundas & Whitson and Tawse of Aberdeen were among those involved in building the airstrip, roads and living quarters for the RAF base.
Labourers were brought in from Ireland and the mainland, including prisoners from several Scottish jails. Quarries at Baugh and Balephetrish were blasted out and the ruins of the Glassary seaweed factory in Sandaig and the storehouse on Scarinish jetty were demolished and used as hardcore.
Aerial photograph of Tiree Aerodrome, 1944.
Aerial view of Tiree Aerodrome taken in 1944 showing erosion.
Model Halifax bomber with stand.
Kit model Halifax III bomber with stand, made by Stewart Wilson (son of Janet Wilson nee MacEachern). Halifax III bombers were based on Tiree with 518 Squadron in April 1945.
Colour photograph of a Shorts 360 at Tiree airport in May 1998.
Shorts 360 on the apron at Tiree airport in May 1998.
Handwritten letter from Mr Ken Dodgson, Fort William dated 16/1/2002.
Construction of the airport runways during World War II and the source of the rock for the concrete used.
Colour photograph of protesters for the Tiree Mart at the airport, 2001.
Protesters at the airport demonstrating their support for the Tiree Mart to various dignitaries, including MP George Lyon, arriving for a meeting on the island in December 2001.
Colour photograph of protesters for the Tiree Mart at the airport, 2001.
Protesters at the airport demonstrating their support for the Tiree Mart to various dignitaries, including MP George Lyon, arriving for a meeting on the island in December 2001.
