Tarbert, Harris

Tarbert
The MV Hebrides at Tarbert pier
Tarbert is located in Outer Hebrides
Tarbert
Tarbert
Location within the Outer Hebrides
Population503 (1981)
DemonymTairbeartach
LanguageScottish Gaelic
English
OS grid referenceNG154999
• Edinburgh191 mi (307 km)
• London515 mi (829 km)
Civil parish
Council area
Lieutenancy area
CountryScotland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townISLE OF HARRIS
Postcode districtHS3
Dialling code01859
PoliceScotland
FireScottish
AmbulanceScottish
UK Parliament
Scottish Parliament
List of places
UK
Scotland
57°53′56″N 6°48′29″W / 57.899°N 6.808°W / 57.899; -6.808

Tarbert (Scottish Gaelic: An Tairbeart [ən̪ˠ ˈt̪ɛrʲɛbərˠʃt̪]) is the main community on Harris in the Western Isles of Scotland. The name means "isthmus", "crossing point" or "portage", in Gaelic.[1][2] The isthmus, between the sea lochs West Loch Tarbert and East Loch Tarbert, joins south Harris to north Harris and Lewis. In 1981 it had a population of 503.[3]

Tarbert's Church of Scotland parish church was built in 1862, and is within the parish of Harris.[4] Tarbert also has a Free Presbyterian church.[5] The Very Rev Mackintosh MacKay was minister of the latter in the 1860s.

Transport

Tarbert has a car ferry terminal which operates to Uig on Skye.[6] The short A868 joins the terminal to the north–south A859 road.

Preceding station   Ferry   Following station
Terminus   Caledonian MacBrayne
Harris Ferry 		  Uig

Economy

The Harris distillery, a Scotch whisky and Gin distillery is located in Tarbert.[7]

The Harris Hotel is a well established hostelry in Tarbert. Originally known as the Tarbert Hotel after being built in 1865 by the 7th Earl of Dunmore as a 'sporting retreat' for anglers, the hotel has been in the hands of the same family since the early 1900s. J.M. Barrie, on his way to the estate of Amhuinnsuidhe in 1912, spent time at the hotel and engraved his signature in a dining room window.

References

  1. ^ "Gaelic". North Harris Trust. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
  2. ^ "Placenames P-Z" (PDF). Scottish Parliament. Retrieved 17 August 2020.
  3. ^ "Tarbert Details". Gazetteer for Scotland. Retrieved 17 August 2020.
  4. ^ "Harris, Tarbert, Parish Church". Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
  5. ^ "Harris, Tarbert, Free Presbyterian Church". Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
  6. ^ "Uig - Tarbert - Lochmaddy". Ships of CalMac. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
  7. ^ Maclean, Charles (2016). Whiskypedia. A Gazetteer of Scotch Whisky. Edinburgh: Birlinn. pp. 240–241. ISBN 978-1-78027-401-0.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Tarbert, Harris.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Tarbert.


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