ID:SLD_182_084DESCRIPTION:The atmospheric ruins of Caisteal Camus, also known as Knock or Cnoc Castle, lie on the east coast of the Sleat peninsula on Skye, looking across the Sound of Sleat to the mainland. The castle is situated on a promontory with a steep cliff to the south supporting and giving protection to the structures above.
A limited amount of architectural clues remain on the ground as to the original scale of the castle, the result of stone-robbing and the effects of exposure to the elements. However there was a tower with 1.5m thick walls and at least 3 floors which stood at the eastern end of the site, a dwelling house dating from the late 16th or early 17th century and another range of buildings on the west side.
Caisteal Camus was caught up in the on-going clan rivalry on Skye between the MacLeods and Macdonalds. The MacLeods were in possession until the early 15th century, but the Macdonalds of Sleat then took control and seem to have retained it until the last documentary evidence of the castle's occupation which dates from 1632. By 1689 the site was abandoned and rapidly falling into disrepair.
Olivia James
The images in this collection are a selection from a set of high quality Agfachrome slides taken by Olivia James. Mrs James, a semi-professional photographer, took the photographs on visits to Skye between 1968 and 1989, using a Pentax S1A camera and CT 18 film. They record a variety of locations, people and activities which have now changed or indeed disappeared, and provide one person's view of the island through the camera lens. Born in Elderslie, Renfrewshire on 26th April 1932, Olive Grace James (née Purcell) moved to England in 1944, trained as a teacher and married Richard James in 1956. Her husband's forbears were from Skye and they began visiting on a regular basis in 1968. In addition to the slides, Mrs James has written an evocative account of her memories of places, events and people on Skye which she named 'Skye Magic', a copy of which is held at the Skye and Lochalsh Archive Centre.
'Skye Magic' has been incorporated into her privately printed autobiography 'Neivie, Neivie, Nick, Nack' which she has kindly donated to various institutions including the Clan Donald Library on Skye, the Mitchell Library in Glasgow and the Weaver's Cottage, Kilbarchan.
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Skye and Lochalsh ArchivesPLACENAME:Knock Bay, TeangueDISTRICT:SkyeOLD COUNTY/PARISH:INVERNESS: SleatPERIOD:1980sSOURCE:Skye and Lochalsh Archive CentreCOLLECTION:Olivia James CollectionAsset ID:39529KEYWORDS:
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