In 1882-4, Frances Groome's Ordnance Gazetteer of Scotland described Corryvreckan like this:
Corrievrechan (Gael. `Brecan's cauldron'), a strait between the Argyllshire islands of Jura and Scarba. Scarcely a mile across, it lies about 2 miles W of the route of the Oban steamers, and is seldom traversed by boats, never by ships. The tides-running sometimes 13 miles an hour-here meet round a steep pyramidal rock, which rises from a depth of 100 fathoms to within 15 feet of the surface, and cause a whirlpool, dangerous enough to small craft in stormy weather and at floodtides. ...
This whirlpool by fancy has been exaggerated into another Malström, the haunt of strange and horrible sea-monsters. Also of mermaidens, for Leydon's version of the Gaelic legend tells how Macphail of Colonsay, passing the Corrievrechan, was carried off by one, and for years kept in pleasant durance in a cavern beneath the sea. According to Joyce's Irish -Names and Places (2d ser. 1875), the name Corrievrechan was first applied to a whirlpool in the sound between Rathlin Island and the coast of Antrim, and was thence transferred to the Scotch locality, most likely by the monks of Iona.
Corryvreckan through time
Corryvreckan is now part of Argyll and Bute district. Click here for graphs and data of how Argyll and Bute has changed over two centuries. For statistics about Corryvreckan itself, go to Units and Statistics.
GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth, History of Corryvreckan in Argyll and Bute | Map and description, A Vision of Britain through Time.
URL: https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/26171
Date accessed: 19th April 2024
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