Eilean Eisdeal - Trust Projects

Easdale Island Community Hall :

Eilean Eisdeal Hall Open
Overview of Original Hall
The Need for a Community Hall on Easdale

Eilean Eisdeal Hall Open

The refurbished Eilean Eisdeal Hall is now open, bringing to fruition the first project taken up by the Eilean Eisdeal Trust when it was formed in 1997.

Many years of hard work by the Trust directors and other members of the community led to the Trust's application to the Community Fund being successful in September 2001, resulting in an award made to the Trust of Ł667,000, the largest ever granted by the Community Fund in Scotland for this type of project.

The award included the purchase of the original 'Drill' hall and the cottage adjacent to it; fees for the professionals (architect, quantity surveyor, engineer, solicitor); and all the renovation and building works, carried out by local contractors MacVicar and MacInnes.

Also included in the award are the first two years of a salary for a part-time Hall Manager, which it is intended will become a permanent position after the two years.

The completed building The newly renovated Eilean Eisdeal Hall opened in May 2003. The spectacular building is a mix of the traditional and the modern. The original square hall and pyramidal wooden roof are still in place, but much-welcomed warmth and light have been brought into the space by means of an under-heated oak floor and roof windows. At the front and side of the hall the glass-fronted bar and reception areas complement the existing structures and traditional materials of the hall and surrounding buildings, while introducing a touch of the new and experimental to the island's architecture. This unique community building is both a celebration of the past and an inspiration for the future.

Restored hall interior The opening of the hall could not have been achieved without the ideas, enthusiasm and hard work of the community, who put their time and labour into making the new building the special place that it has become.

Many thanks to everyone who worked so hard, and to our members and friends for your continued support, which is crucial to making the hall project sustainable.

The Eilean Eisdeal Hall is a centre for community, educational, social and arts activities. For details of ongoing events and activities, and also for information about the hall's facilities and how to book the hall, please email .

Overview of Original Hall

The hall is a unique building. It was built in 1871 as a drill hall for the volunteer force of the island population, which at that time numbered over 450. Being the only building on the island large enough to accommodate more than a few dozen people, it was customarily used for all social gatherings, meetings, celidhs, and weddings. As the population dwindled almost to nothing during the 1950s, the hall ceased to be used as a meeting place and community hall. Its slate roof was stripped and it was turned into a storage shed for fishing nets and the like.

In the 1980s fish processing equipment was installed and for a decade the hall was the centre of a small but thriving fish processing industry. Many people on the island today still know it as 'the fish hall'. When the fish factory moved to Balvicar in 1993 the hall became virtually derelict. It needed a new roof and floor, although the main structure was sound. It was bought in 1996 by Adrian Laycock with the intention of restoring it for the use of the islanders, whose population by this time was increasing again to over 50 permanent people.

The main building is 12 metres square in plan, with a 7 metre high central column supporting a pyramidal roof. The column is formed from a ships mast, generally agreed to be from the 630 ton sailing ship Norval which went down at the southern tip of Inish Island in December 1870. The massive rafters are supported by eight heavy struts which radiate from the central column like the spokes of an umbrella. Flying struts in turn support the intermediate rafters in the corner quadrants. It is possible that these timbers also came from the wreck, which was carrying wood from Montreal to Glasgow. The instant impression of this intricate timberwork is one of eternal harmony with the island and its history.

The Need for a Community Hall on Easdale

The foyer in the new hall Unlike most other islands, Easdale has in the last thirty years not been regarded as a discrete and separate community but has been included as part of the larger community of its neighbouring Island of Seil.

When the once commercially important slate industry fell into decline, so the community it supported on Easdale gradually diminished, a trend matched by the gradual closure of the various amenities on which the community had depended. One by one shops, post office, school and community hall were closed and the process of integrating the facilities and amenities of Easdale with those of Seil has continued until the present day.

With the re-population of Easdale over the last thirty years the Island has once again established an identity as a separate and discrete community. Like many island communities this is enhanced by the restrictions of the ferry. Despite having a fairly good ferry service the Island is effectively cut off from the mainland outwith ferry hours. Whilst the ferry allows integration with Seil in terms of the school, post office, doctors' surgery, and shops, it also restricts social integration and limits the availability of Seil's community hall as well as pubs and restaurants.

View from the bar in the new hall Since the inception of the Seil Community Council which includes Easdale within the geographical boundary that it represents, it was recognised by Islanders that a predominantly mainland-oriented Community Council could not adequately reflect the needs and wishes of an Island community. The Easdale Island Residents Association was formed as an informal organisation which aims to see that the Island is effectively represented on all relevant issues affecting the well-being of the residents. In 1983 a small pub & restaurant was established on Easdale and this facility has been important in allowing the increasing social development which has taken place alongside the continuing regeneration of the community. The pub & restaurant is currently the only social facility open to Islanders and although the current owner is committed to the well-being of the community this has not always been and may not always be the case. The need for a community building has become increasingly apparent as the population has grown, particularly over the last fifteen years as the balance has shifted from a predominantly retired population to the current situation with many young families. Whilst the pub is well patronised by most of the younger adults as a facility it does fall short of meeting all the social needs of the Islanders.

Easdale Island has a vigorous and dynamic community. Its continued well-being is still precarious although it is a characteristic of Islanders that they have a commitment, tenacity and optimism that will not allow them to yield in the face of difficulties. The establishment of the community hall is seen as an important step in furthering social cohesion and solidifying community spirit to enable us to meet the further challenges that inevitably await us in the future.