Black and white photograph of Gott Bay pier in the 1920s.
The ferry at Gott Bay pier from a small photograph album from Silversands dating from the late 1920s.
Sand yacht on Gott Bay in the mid-1930s
Photograph of a sand yacht on Gott Bay in the mid-1930s.
Courtesy of Mr Ronnie MacLean
This sand yacht was photographed on Gott Bay in the mid-1930s. It was brought to the island by two or three Germans who stayed for a few weeks, ostensibly on holiday, though the general consensus of opinion at the time was that they were spies.
Whatever the truth of the matter, they were friendly and let local boys, three of whom are pictured in the photograph, sail the yacht. They also gave lifts to Lachie MacKinnon who was then piermaster and used to walk to work from Brock along Gott Bay.
The yacht had three wheels, its stability coming from the front wheels which were positioned wide apart. The driver steered with one hand using a tiller attached to the rear single wheel and controlled the sail by the sheet with the other hand.
Black and white photograph of a sand yacht on Gott Bay in the 1920s or 30s.
Sand yacht on Gott Bay, from a small photograph album from Silversands in Vaul dating from the late 1920s.
Construction of the roll-on roll-off ferry terminus at Gott Bay pier
Photograph of the construction of the roll-on roll-off ferry terminus at Gott Bay pier in 1992.
Courtesy of Ms Rona Campbell
The roll-on roll-off ferry terminus at Gott Bay pier was constructed in 1992 at a cost of £2.5 million. A new pier, incorporating the linkspan, was built to the east of the old pier-head, extending into deeper water where, some argued, the original pier-head should have been situated.
The linkspan, a mechanically operated steel ramp, can be raised or lowered to suit the tides, enabling vehicles to be driven straight on to the car deck of the ferry from the pier. Prior to this, vehicles were side-loaded in batches and lowered to the car deck by lift.
In the same year, a linkspan was constructed at Coll pier. The ferry turnaround times at both piers were cut to around a third, substantially reducing the sailing time from Oban to Tiree.
Colour photograph of the construction of the roll-on roll-off ferry terminus at Gott Bay pier in 1992.
The construction of the roll-on roll-off ferry terminus at Gott Bay pier in 1992.