Fethaland

Shetlopedia - The Shetland Encyclopaedia

Fethaland ca. 1890. The croft where J. D. Ratter was born
Photo from Shetland Museum and Archives.

West Ayre, Fedaland haaf station; sixareen LK 280 Empress and two fourareens shoarded up. Scales set up under shearlegs and a washing tub sits in front. Salting vat at far right. (The Empress was built by Davie Leask in 1888, for William Hay, Lerwick. Skipper was John Henderson 1888-1893, Charles Ratter 1893-1903. Fishing registry cancelled 1903, and sold as flitboat).
Photo from Shetland Museum and Archives.

Charles Ratter and his crew round their fourareen at the West Ayre, Fedaland haaf station. Fourareens were used to dredge for yoags (horse mussels), and in turn catch mackerel etc. for bait. The sixareens then caught the ling etc. This was the last crew of haaf fishermen to operate from Fedaland.
Photo from Shetland Museum and Archives.

Fethaland, Northmavine, lies at the farthest north point of the Shetland mainland, beyond the last settlement of Isbister. A track over the hilly land from here leads to Fethaland with its two rocky beaches and the remains of what was once one of Shetland's largest and busiest Haaf Stations. Up to sixty sixareens fished from here and needed 360 men to crew them with additional workers ashore to deal with the catches. The remains of about twenty fishing booths, built from the early 1800's, which were occupied by the men during the fishing season, which lasted from May to August, are mostly still standing and give an idea of the conditions under which life went on. The men who worked here were not here by choice but because their Lairds had made it a condition of their croft tenancy that they manned boats fishing for him and they had no option but to sell their fish to him at his price.
The rocky beach extends across the land from west to east and in storm conditions, the outer Point of Fethaland, where some of the booths are located, becomes an island.
On its highest tip is the modern Point of Fethaland Lighthouse, first lit in 1977 , to aid the oil tankers entering and leaving the Sullom Voe Oil Terminal through Yell Sound.
It is recorded that, on one stormy occasion, when most of the haaf men had been at Ollaberry attending a funeral, on sailing back to the lodges and turning into the bay on the east side, they were met by the roofs of some of the booths which had been blown off by the fury of the wind.
On the east side of the point is a steatite (soapstone) cliff face where partly cut out bowls still remain. The stone face is also decorated with many sets of initials and the names of boats which have called here.

There were earlier inhabitants; the outline of a Pictish broch can be seen, though most of the stone has been re-used in booth building and the broch itself is on a 4000 year old Neolithic mound.

Fethaland was the birthplace of one of Shetland's most famous photographers of the early 20th century, J. D. Ratter, and the remains of his croft-house home are still standing.