Out Skerries - Joan Dey

Out Skerries, 24 miles north-east of Lerwick, the capital of Shetland, consists of three main islands and several smaller ones. The total area is less than two square miles, and the population is under 90, nearly all of whom are indigenous Shetlanders. Fishing, fish-farming and crofting are the main industries of this tiny archipelago, and there is a small but growing tourist industry.;This book traces the history of Out Skerries, from its neglected past to its flourishing present. It describes how life on the islands revolved around its perfect natural harbour, far out in the fishing grounds of the North Sea, the key to why a small group of families clung through the centuries to this rocky outcrop. It follows their descent from being free Norse udallers, to tenants in an economy dominated by the notorious truck system; fishermen crofters fighting the fierce elements and enslaved by the laird and his tacksmaster. Smuggling and salvaging wrecks added some spice to their lives. The lighthouse brought outsiders into the community;The story continues into the 20th century, with an accelerating increase in prosperity, culminating in the 1980s oil boom, which has helped to give Out Skerries one of the highest standards of living of any island community. Finally, in the 1990s, have come the uncertainties affecting the future of fishing and fish-farming; and the social pressures which led to the depopulation of peripheral areas.