Clydesdale horses at Scarinish harbour

Photograph of Clydesdale horses at Scarinish harbour in the late 19th or early 20th century.

Courtesy of Mr Angus Munn

This photograph, taken before Gott Bay pier was finished in 1913 shows Clydesdale horses from Tom Barr’s farm at Balephetrish being loaded on to a lighter at Scarinish for transportation to the steamer standing off in deeper water outside the harbour.

The horses would be loaded by ramp on to the main deck of the steamer, an operation that could only be attempted in calm weather. Passengers were likewise ferried to and from the steamer by lighter, sometimes sharing the boat with livestock.

Tom Barr, the son of an Ayrshire farmer and the tenant of Balephetrish farm from 1864 to 1913, introduced the first Clydesdale stallions to Tiree in the 1870s. Cross-bred with native ponies, the Tiree Clydesdale was in great demand in the early 20th century.

Black and white photograph of horses being loaded into a lighter at Scarinish harbour.

Horses from Tom Barr`s farm at Balephetrish being loaded into a lighter at Scarinish pier for transportation to the ferry in the early 20th century.