Barra

Barra, a small island of Inverness-shire, near the southern extremity of the Outer Hebrides, 42 miles W. of Ardnamurchan Point. It is 8 miles long, and 2 to 5 broad, with deep inlets of the sea; its area is 25 sq. m. A low sandy isthmus, over which the sea nearly breaks at high-water, connects the two parts into which Barra is divided. The south or larger part contains a rocky mountain, 2000 feet high, and is divided into small valleys. The island is formed of gneiss. The soil is sandy, but sheep and cattle are fed on the hill and meadow pastures. Pop. (1841) 1977; (1861) 1591; (1891) 2131, Gaelic-speaking, and largely Catholic, and among the most industrious of Scottish fishermen. A lighthouse, built on Barra Head in 1833, is 680 feet above the sea, and is seen 33 miles off. Kismull Castle was the ancient seat of the McNeills, who in 1840 sold the island to Colonel Gordon of Cluny.