Badbea Clearance Village ***
Region: Caithness, Sutherland & Ross
© Copyright Martyn Gorman and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence
Description:
Perched above the cliff tops of Berriedale on Caithness’s east coast, this former clearance village was settled in the 18th and 19th centuries by families forced from their homes when the straths of Langwell, Ousdale, and Berriedale were cleared to make way for sheep farms. The last resident left the village in 1911, and in that year David Sutherland
© Copyright Carron K and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence
the son of former inhabitant Alexander Robert Sutherland, who had emigrated to New Zealand in 1838, erected a monument, built from the stones of John Sutherland's home, in memory of his father and the people of Badbea. Today, the village ruins stand as a preserved historic landmark and memorial to the Highland Clearances. The dwellings have crumbled away, leaving little more than a few drystone walls, though the outlines of the buildings and traces of the old crop fields are still visible. Three stars? Absolutely, for the historical significance!