Shuna () is one of the
Slate Islands lying east of
Luing
Luing ( ; ) is one of the Slate Islands, Scotland, Slate Islands, Firth of Lorn, in the west of Argyll in Scotland, about south of Oban. The island has an area of and is bounded by several small skerries and islets. It has a population of aroun ...
on the west coast of Scotland.
History
In 1815, James Yates, a Glasgow native living in Woodville in Devon, bought the island from Colonel McDonald of Lynedale.
In 1829 Yates bequeathed the island in
trust to
the magistrates and council of Glasgow, with profits from the estate divide two fifths to the city, two fifths to
Glasgow University
The University of Glasgow (abbreviated as ''Glas.'' in post-nominals; ) is a public research university in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded by papal bull in , it is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ...
and one fifth to
Glasgow Royal Infirmary.
This was disputed by Yates' heir, who accepted £300 from the trustees to settle his claim.
The revenue from the island was scarce and the trustees sold it in 1911.
Shuna Castle was built as recently as 1911. It fell into disrepair in the 1980s when the cost of maintenance became too great.
["Shuna Wildlife & History"]
Internet Archive. Original access: islandofshuna.co.uk on 28 July 2007. Archived at 14 August 2007. Retrieved 24 July 2012.
Unlike the other Slate Islands, Shuna has little
slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous, metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade, regional metamorphism. It is the finest-grained foliated metamorphic ro ...
, and has historically been farmed, although it is now overgrown with
woodland
A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with woody plants (trees and shrubs), or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the '' plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunli ...
. There are several
cairn
A cairn is a human-made pile (or stack) of stones raised for a purpose, usually as a marker or as a burial mound. The word ''cairn'' comes from the (plural ).
Cairns have been and are used for a broad variety of purposes. In prehistory, t ...
s in the south and west of the small island.
During the nineteenth century the population numbered up to 69, but by the 2001 census, Shuna was one of four Scottish islands with a population of one.
The island has been privately owned by the Gully family since 1946. It is currently occupied by a farmer and his family, who let four houses as holiday cottages and had a usually resident population of 3 in 2011. The holidaymakers are brought onto the island by boat from the jetty at
Arduaine on the mainland.
[
In 2025, freehold possession of the island, including all buildings, was listed for sale at £5.5 million.]
Wildlife
The island has healthy populations of red, roe and fallow deer; along with otters, common and grey seals, porpoises and dolphins out on the water.[
]
References
External links
Island website
Slate Islands
Islands of Argyll and Bute
Private islands of the United Kingdom
{{Argyll-geo-stub