Hidden away in a far-flung Scottish archipelago lie the remains of a once-bustling settlement, deserted by all who called it home. The island of Hirta in the Outer Hebrides was occupied for 2,000 years, but during the 1930s, its final inhabitants evacuated due to health concerns.
Isolation and Wildlife
It is so isolated that it is often omitted from maps altogether and can only be reached by boat, weather permitting. Hirta is one of 40 islands in the St Kilda archipelago and now hosts the world's largest gannet colony alongside some of the biggest puffin populations. During its inhabited years, islanders depended heavily on these seabirds, not merely for sustenance but for commerce. They traded every component of the birds, from feather to flesh.
Ruins and Remnants
Today, the population has vanished, but a handful of military structures remain scattered across the island, overshadowing the crumbling stone cottages that once housed the community. The structures line what was formerly Hirta's main thoroughfare, now occupied solely by sheep. Existence there was extraordinarily harsh, with severe weather conditions and scarce resources available.
Harsh Living Conditions
To stay warm throughout the lengthy winters, inhabitants would bring livestock inside their basic stone dwellings and allow the waste from cattle and sheep to serve as insulation. At its height in 1851, Hirta was inhabited by 112 people, but this number rapidly dwindled over subsequent years.
Medical Crisis and Evacuation
Medical provision on the island had always been severely restricted, and as visitors began arriving on the isolated outpost as tourists, they introduced unfamiliar illnesses that the islanders were poorly prepared to combat. During the 1930s, following the death of a young woman from appendicitis and pneumonia — conditions that might have been treatable on the mainland — the inhabitants of Hirta took the difficult decision to abandon the island.
The residents were evacuated by vessel in August 1930 and transported to mainland Scotland. Following their local custom, islanders left a plate of oats and an open bible in every dwelling before stepping aboard the ship. The final surviving former inhabitant of St Kilda, who was eight years old when the island was evacuated, passed away in 2016.
