Castle Island, Scotland

Castle Island (Scottish Gaelic: Eilean a' Chaisteil) or Allimturrail is a small tidal island, lying off the east coast of Little Cumbrae, and to the west of Trail Island, in the Firth of Clyde. It is joined to Little Cumbrae at low tide. The castle which gives the island its name was built in 1527, and was destroyed by Cromwellian forces in 1650. It is a square keep, and is said to have been built originally to prevent deer poaching.

Nearby Places View Menu

Little Cumbrae

Little Cumbrae (Scottish Gaelic: Cumaradh Beag) is an island in the Firth of Clyde, in North Ayrshire, Scotland. It lies south of Great Cumbrae, its larger neighbour. The underlying geology is igneous with limited outcrops of sedimentary rock. Little Cumbrae House is of 20th century construction, although the island has no permanent inhabitation at present, its population having peaked at 23 in the late 19th century. There is a lighthouse on the western coast.

The Holy Cave, Hunterston

The Holy Cave at Hunterston in the Parish of West Kilbride is associated with Saint Mungo, also known as St Kentigern. It is often referred to as the Hawking Craig Cave; however two caves exist in the Hawking Craig Wood and 'Three Sisters' area of the cliffs, the other being Smith's Cave, better described as a rock shelter lying a short distance to the south. The main cave has been excavated, and the finds indicate three periods of occupation over many centuries.

Hunterston A nuclear power station

Hunterston A nuclear power station is a former Magnox nuclear power station located at Hunterston in Ayrshire, Scotland, adjacent to Hunterston B. The ongoing decommissioning process is being managed by Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) subsidiary Nuclear Restoration Services.

2.9 km

Murder of Mary Speir Gunn

Mary Speir Gunn (31 August 1862 – 18 October 1913) was murdered in a shooting attack at the isolated Northbank Cottage near Portencross in North Ayrshire, Scotland on the evening of Saturday, 18 October 1913. Six shots were fired through the living-room window at night. Three shots struck Mary Gunn, the fatal one piercing her heart. Two shots hit her sister Jessie McLaren, who collapsed with a bullet lodged in her back, but she survived the attack. Jessie's husband, Alexander McLaren, was injured in the index finger of his left hand. Newspapers described the murder at the time as "a terrible and most mysterious tragedy". Nobody was charged or prosecuted for the crime, which remains an unsolved murder.