View source for Tobermory, Mull

{{Short description|Village on the Isle of Mull, Scotland}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2017}}
{{Use British English|date=September 2017}}
{{Infobox UK place
| country = Scotland
| official_name = Tobermory
| gaelic_name = Tobar Mhoire
| scots_name =
| static_image_name = Tobermory waterfront.jpg
| static_image_caption = Tobermory waterfront
| population = {{Scottish locality populations|name|POP=Tobermory}}
| population_ref = ({{United Kingdom statistics year|ScotSettlement}})<ref>{{Scotland settlement population citation}}</ref>
| os_grid_reference = NM504551
| coordinates = {{coord|56.62|-6.07|display=inline,title}}
| unitary_scotland = [[Argyll and Bute]]
| civil_parish = [[Kilninian and Kilmore]]
| lieutenancy_scotland = [[Argyll and Bute]]
| constituency_westminster = [[Argyll and Bute (UK Parliament constituency)|Argyll and Bute]]
| constituency_scottish_parliament = [[Argyll and Bute (Scottish Parliament constituency)|Argyll and Bute]]
| post_town = ISLE OF MULL
| postcode_district = PA75
| postcode_area = PA
| dial_code = 01688
| edinburgh_distance = {{convert|120|mi|km|abbr=on|0}}
| london_distance_mi = 427
}}

'''Tobermory''' ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|t|oʊ|b|ər|ˈ|m|ɔər|i}}; {{langx|gd|Tobar Mhoire}})<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gaelicplacenames.org/databasedetails.php?id=360|title=Details|publisher=Ainmean-Àite na h-Alba ~ Gaelic Place-names of Scotland|access-date=31 December 2014}}</ref> is the capital of, and until 1973 the only [[burgh]] on, the [[Isle of Mull]] in the Scottish [[Inner Hebrides]]. It is located on the east coast of Mishnish, the most northerly part of the island, near the northern entrance of the [[Sound of Mull]]. The village was founded as a [[fishing port]] in 1788; its layout was based on the designs of [[Dumfriesshire]] engineer [[Thomas Telford]]. As of 2022 its population was 1,045.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk/|title=Scotland's Census|year=2022|accessdate=2024-06-13}}</ref> It is notable as the location for the 2002–05 children's programme ''[[Balamory]]'' by the BBC.

== Etymology ==
The name ''Tobermory'' is derived from the [[Scottish Gaelic|Gaelic]] ''{{lang|gd|Tobar Mhoire}}'', meaning "Mary's well".<ref name= "OS2005" >{{cite web |title=Guide to Gaelic origins of place names in Britain |publisher=[[Ordnance Survey]] |date=November 2005 |url=http://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/oswebsite/freefun/didyouknow/placenames/Gaelic_guide.pdf |access-date=1 September 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060405092558/http://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/oswebsite/freefun/didyouknow/placenames/Gaelic_guide.pdf |archive-date=5 April 2006 |df=dmy-all }}</ref><ref name= "PF2003" >{{cite web |title=A Guide to the Meaning of Gaelic Distillery Names |url=http://www.peatfreak.com/art-distillery-names-pronunciation.php |year=2003 |access-date=1 September 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060813214220/http://www.peatfreak.com/art-distillery-names-pronunciation.php |archive-date=13 August 2006 }}</ref> The name refers to a well located nearby which was dedicated in ancient times to the [[Mary, mother of Jesus|Virgin Mary]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Lewis |first=Samuel |author-link=Samuel Lewis (publisher) |title=[[Samuel Lewis (publisher)#A Topographical Dictionary of Scotland|Topographical Dictionary of Scotland: Tain – Tobermory]] |year=1846 |pages=526–46 |publisher=Institute of Historical Research }}</ref>

== Prehistory and archaeology ==
Archaeological excavations have taken place at Baliscate just outside of the town. The site was first noted by Hylda Marsh and Beverley Langhorn as part of the Scotland's Rural Past.<ref name= ":0" >{{Cite journal|last=Ellis|first=Clare|last2=Ballin|first2=Torben|last3=Boyle|first3=Angela|last4=Cruickshanks|first4=Gemma|last5=Haggarty|first5=George|last6=Hall|first6=Derek|last7=Hamilton|first7=Derek|last8=Jones|first8=Richard|last9=Krus|first9=Anthony|last10=Murdock|first10=Kenneth|last11=Ramsay|first11=Susan|date=2017-01-01|title=Monks, Priests and Farmers: A Community Research Excavation at Baliscate, Isle of Mull|url=http://journals.socantscot.org/index.php/sair/article/view/3186|journal=Scottish Archaeological Internet Reports|language=en|volume=68|issn=2056-7421}}</ref> In 2009, it was partially excavated by ''[[Time Team]]''<ref>{{Cite web|title=Baliscate Chapel, Isle of Mull {{!}} Our Work {{!}} Wessex Archaeology|url=https://www.wessexarch.co.uk/our-work/baliscate-chapel-isle-mull|access-date=2021-08-31|website=www.wessexarch.co.uk|language=en}}</ref> and a further longer excavation took place in 2012 as part of a community archaeology project through the Mull Museum.<ref name= ":0" />

The different excavations found that there was a sixth-century agricultural settlement which was either adopted or replaced by a seventh-century Christian community with a chapel and cemetery. In the late 11th or early 12th century, a stone and turf structure was built which was probably a longhouse or hall. Then, in the late 13th or early 14th century, a wattle and turf structure was built over these earlier structures. That then burnt down and was replaced by a new stone and turf structure. It was used from the 16th to 19th century intermittently. All of which showed that people had been living and working in the Tobermory area for over 1,000 years before the village was founded.<ref name= ":0" />

The site is now a listed monument.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Baliscate, chapel 655m WSW of (SM12958)|url=http://portal.historicenvironment.scot/designation/SM12958|access-date=2021-08-31|website=portal.historicenvironment.scot}}</ref>

== History ==
Legend has it that the wreck of a Spanish [[galleon]], laden with gold, lies somewhere in the mud at the bottom of Tobermory Bay—although the ship's true identity, and cargo, are in dispute. By some accounts, the ''Florencia'' (or ''Florida'', or ''San Francisco''), a member of the defeated [[Spanish Armada]] fleeing the English fleet in 1588, anchored in Tobermory to take on provisions. Following a dispute over payment (or possibly, according to local folklore, a spell cast by the witch [[Dòideag]]), the ship caught fire and the gunpowder [[Magazine (artillery)|magazine]] exploded, sinking the vessel. In her hold, reputedly, was £300,000 worth of [[Gold bar|gold bullion]].<ref>{{cite web |title=A Clan Feud, a Spanish Galleon, and a Big Bang |publisher=lostfort.blogspot.com |url=http://lostfort.blogspot.com/2010/02/clan-feud-spanish-galleon-and-big-bang.html |access-date=10 July 2010}}</ref>
Other sources claim the vessel was the ''[[San Juan de Sicilia]]'' (or ''San Juan de Baptista''), which, records indicate, carried troops, not treasure.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Galleon San Francisco |publisher=shipmodeling.net |url=http://shipmodeling.net/vb_forum/thread1722-Galleon-San-Francisco-information-.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110724063137/http://shipmodeling.net/vb_forum/thread1722-Galleon-San-Francisco-information-.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=24 July 2011 |access-date=10 July 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.scotsman.com/iainlundy/The-Tobermory-wreck-that-promises.2765124.jp |title=The Tobermory Wreck |publisher=The Scotsman |access-date=10 July 2010}}</ref><ref name= "BAM2008" >{{cite web |year=2002 |url=http://www.britarch.ac.uk/BA/ba64/feat1.shtml |title=British Archaeology Magazine – Guns of the Armada – Colin Martin |access-date=29 July 2008}}</ref>
Whatever the true story, no significant treasure has ever been recovered in Tobermory Bay.<ref>{{cite web |title=Tobermory Bay |publisher=reese.org |url=http://www.reese.org/duneroller/content/treasure/buried_treasure/tobermory_bay.htm |access-date=10 July 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721114950/http://www.reese.org/duneroller/content/treasure/buried_treasure/tobermory_bay.htm |archive-date=21 July 2011 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

Seventeenth-century efforts to salvage the treasure are well-documented. The [[James Stewart, 1st Duke of Richmond|Duke of Lennox]] gifted rights to Spanish wrecks near Tobermory to the [[Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of Argyll|Marquess of Argyll]]. In 1666, his son the [[Archibald Campbell, 9th Earl of Argyll|Earl of Argyll]] engaged James Maule of Melgum to use [[diving bell]]s to find treasure, and recover the valuable brass cannon. Maule had learnt diving in Sweden, but raised only two brass guns and an iron cannon, and left after three months. It was later said he had hoped to return, thinking he was the only expert diver. Argyll however raised six cannon by workmen under his direction, and next employed John Saint Clare, or Sinclair, son of the minister of [[Ormiston]], in 1676 and a German sub-contractor Hans Albricht van Treileben, who had worked on the wreck of the ''[[Vasa (ship)|Vasa]]''. The next year, the earl transferred the rights to Captain Adolpho E. Smith and Treileben. At this period the fore-part of the wreck was visible above water, and was called the ''Admiral of Florence''. The project was beset with difficulties in 1678; the Admiralty disputed Argyll's rights to the wreck. Captain Adolpho Smith refused to return the diving equipment to William Campbell, captain of the earl's frigate, the ''Anna of Argyll''. The McLean clan fought the divers on land at Tobermory, led by Hector McLean, brother of Lachlan McLean of Torloisk.<ref>''HMC 6th Report (Duke of Argyll)'' (London, 1877), pp. 625-27.</ref>

The largest attempt made to locate the galleon was in 1950 when [[Ian Campbell, 11th Duke of Argyll|the then Duke of Argyll]] signed a contract with the [[Admiralty (United Kingdom)|British Admiralty]] to locate the galleon. Nothing came of the attempt, apart from the development of equipment still used today to locate ancient sunk vessels.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Preliminary Search for Treasure in Tobermory Bay |journal=Popular Mechanics |issue=October 1950 |pages=160–162 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ydgDAAAAMBAJ&q=1954+Popular+Mechanics+January&pg=PA160 |date=October 1950}}</ref>
Owing to similarities in sailing conditions, in the mid-1800s emigrant sailors created the community of [[Tobermory, Ontario|Tobermory]] in [[Ontario]], Canada. This namesake town has twin harbours, known locally as "Big Tub" and "Little Tub", which sheltered ships from the severe storms of [[Lake Huron]].
[[File:TobermoryLobsterPots.jpg|alt=Lobster pots on the harbour wall at Tobermory|thumb|Lobster pots on the harbour wall at Tobermory]]
[[File:TobermonrWarMemorial (2).jpg|alt=Tobermory war memorial|thumb|Tobermory war memorial]]
During the [[World War II|Second World War]], Tobermory was home to the [[Royal Navy]] training base [[HMS Western Isles|HMS ''Western Isles'']], under the command of the legendary [[Vice admiral]] Sir [[Gilbert Stephenson]], the so-called "Terror of Tobermory". His biography was written by broadcaster [[Richard Baker (broadcaster)|Richard Baker]], who trained under him.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Terror of Tobermory: Vice-Admiral Sir Gilbert Stephenson, KBE, CB, CMG |last=Baker |first=Richard |author-link=Richard Baker (broadcaster) |year=1972 |publisher=W.H. Allen |isbn=978-1-84158-197-2 |pages=196}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=The Terror of Tobermory |first=Richard |last=Baker |year=2005 |publisher=Birlinn |location=Edinburgh |isbn=978-1-84341-023-2}} Paperback edition of the above biography of Vice Admiral Sir Gilbert Stephenson KBE CB CMG and history of HMS Western Isles</ref>

== Demographics ==
As of 2003, 71% of Tobermory residents were born in Scotland, 23% in England and 6% elsewhere.<ref name=SCROL1>{{cite web|url=http://www.scrol.gov.uk/scrol/browser/profile.jsp?profile=Population&mainArea=tobermory&mainLevel=Locality|title=Comparative Population Profile: Tobermory Locality Scotland|publisher=SCROL|access-date=31 December 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030405115504/http://www.scrol.gov.uk/scrol/browser/profile.jsp?profile=population|archive-date=5 April 2003|df=dmy-all}}</ref>

== Attractions ==
{{Wide image|Tobermory Main Street 2012-08-09.jpg|1000px|Tobermory's Main Street}}

Many of the buildings on Main Street, predominantly shops and restaurants, are painted in various bright colours, making it a popular location for television programmes, such as the children's show ''[[Balamory]]''. The [[burgh]] hosts the Mull Museum, the [[Tobermory distillery|Tobermory whisky distillery]] (and from 2005 to 2009 there was also a [[brewery]], the Isle of Mull brewing company)<ref>{{cite web|title=Isle of Mull Brewing Company|url=http://www.scottishbrewing.com/breweries/hebrides/mull.php|website=Today's Breweries|publisher=ScottishBrewing.com|access-date=17 August 2016}}</ref> as well as Mull Aquarium, the first catch and release [[aquarium]] in Europe.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mullaquarium.co.uk/ |title=Mull Aquarium |publisher=Mull Aquarium |access-date=5 November 2015}}</ref>
The clock tower on the harbour wall is a noted landmark. The town also contains an [[arts centre]], An Tobar, the management of which was merged with [[Mull Little Theatre|Mull Theatre]] in 2012 to form the umbrella arts organisation [[Comar]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://forargyll.com/?p=99997 |title=Mull public meeting on Comar mess: a rout ending in An t-Eilean Muileach |publisher=Argyll News |access-date=2 January 2016 |archive-date=20 December 2015 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151220161605/http://forargyll.com/?p=99997 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The theatre remains, based just outside Tobermory in Drumfin, and is used by youth and adult dance and drama groups, hosting a wide variety of performances.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mulltheatre.com/ |title=Music, visual arts & theatre |publisher=Comar |access-date=16 March 2013}}</ref> Staffa Tours popular boat tours leave from Tobermory to visit the Treshnish Isles and Fingals Cave on Staffa.

[[Tobermorite]], a [[calcium silicate hydrate]] found near Tobermory in 1880, was named after the town.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mindat.org/min-3985.html |title=Tobermorite |publisher=mindat.org |access-date=24 July 2010}}</ref>

== Notable residents ==
[[File:Calve Island.jpg|thumb|[[Calve Island]] shelters the harbour.]]
[[File:Tobermory Mull from the sea.jpg|thumb|Tobermory, Mull – as viewed from the Sound of Mull]]
[[File:Rubha nan Gall lighthouse and MV Clansman ferry.jpg|thumb|[[Rubha nan Gall|Rubha nan Gall Lighthouse]], north of Tobermory]]

*[[Isabella Bird]] (1831–1904), the Victorian traveller and writer, frequently stayed in the town, where her sister Henrietta had a house. She often assisted the local doctor and, on at least one occasion, served as anaesthetist when he removed a tumour from a local woman. When Henrietta died, she funded the building of the clock tower as a memorial to her sister.<ref>{{cite book |title=The life of Isabella Bird: (Mrs Bishop) |url=https://archive.org/details/b31358962 |first=Anna |last=Stoddart |year=1906 |publisher=Murray |isbn=9781169984554}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Mull, Tobermory, Main Street, Clock Tower {{!}} Canmore |url=https://canmore.org.uk/site/157772/mull-tobermory-main-street-clock-tower |access-date=2022-09-13 |website=canmore.org.uk |language=en}}</ref>
*Janet MacDonald, gold medal winner at Scotland's [[Royal National Mòd]].{{citation needed|date=July 2018}}
*Duncan MacGilp, gold medal winner at Scotland's Royal National Mòd.{{citation needed|date=July 2018}}
*Three generations of the MacIntyre family:
**[[Colin MacIntyre]], a singer-songwriter
**[[Kenny Macintyre (sports broadcaster)|Kenny Macintyre]], sports broadcaster for BBC Scotland
**[[Kenny Macintyre (political journalist)|Kenny Macintyre]] (1944–1999), political correspondent for BBC Scotland
*[[Donald McLean (fur trader)|Donald McLean]] (1805–1864)<!--don't know his parents, maybe a Tobermory historian can fill in the blanks?-->, emigrated to Canada before he was 20 and became a [[Fur trade|fur trader]] and [[Exploration|explorer]] for the [[Hudson's Bay Company]] in the [[New Caledonia (Canada)|New Caledonia]] and [[Columbia District|Columbia Department]] fur districts, rising to the position of Chief Trader at Thompson's River Post (Fort Kamloops) in the then-[[Colony of British Columbia (1858–1866)|Colony of British Columbia]]. He was the last casualty of the [[Chilcotin War]] of 1864; his "halfbreed" sons were known as the ''[[Wild McLean Boys]]'' and were tried and hanged for murder.<ref>{{cite DCB |title=McLean, Donald |first=Mary |last=Balf |volume=9 |url=http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/mclean_donald_9E.html}}</ref>
*Bobby McLeod, accordionist, lived in the town from his birth in 1925 until his death in 1991, and owned the Mishnish Hotel.{{citation needed|date=July 2018}}
*Prof [[George Ritchie Thomson]], military surgeon, born in Tobermory in 1865.{{citation needed|date=February 2020}}
[[File:Tobermory, the clock tower - geograph.org.uk - 3380483.jpg|alt=Clock tower in memory of Isabella Bird|thumb|Clock tower in memory of Isabella Bird]]

== Annual events ==
The visit of the [[composer]] [[Felix Mendelssohn]] in 1829, en route to [[Staffa]], is commemorated in the annual [[Mendelssohn on Mull Festival]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://soundwavesscio.org.uk/mendelssohn-on-mull-festival/ |title=Mendelssohn on Mull Festival |publisher=Mendelssohn on Mull Festival |access-date=17 March 2017}}</ref>
Other highlights of the town's calendar include an annual Traditional Music Festival held on the last weekend in April, the local [[Mòd]], which takes place on the second Saturday in September and has established itself as one of the best local Mòds on the circuit, the Mull Fiddler's Rally, also in September, and the traditional Mull [[Highland games|Highland Games]] held every summer.

== Literary associations ==
The fictional town of Torbay in [[Alistair MacLean]]'s novel ''[[When Eight Bells Toll]]'' was based on Tobermory, and much of the 1971 movie was filmed in the town and other parts of Mull. The writer [[Saki]] gave the name to a cat taught to speak English in one of his most famous short stories.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.eastoftheweb.com/short-stories/UBooks/Tob.shtml|title = Short Stories: Tobermory by Saki}}</ref> and two well-loved children's TV series have made use of the town's name. [[Elisabeth Beresford]] called one of [[The Wombles]] 'Tobermory', and more recently the town played host to its almost-namesake ''[[Balamory]]'' for three years (2002–2005).
Other films made in the area include the 1945 [[Powell and Pressburger]] classic ''[[I Know Where I'm Going!]]''.
In the 44 Scotland Street series by Alexander McCall Smith (1933–), volume 7 - titled ''[[Bertie Plays the Blues]]''<ref>Alexander McCall Smith: Bertie Plays the Blues; pub. Anchor Books, 2013</ref> - has baby triplets named Tobermory, Rognvald, and Fergus.
In the children's animated feature, [[Nocturna (film)|Nocturna]], the Cat Shepherd's faithful cat, is called Tobermory.

== Transport ==
{{CalMac Oban ferries|collapse=yes}}

Ferries sail between Tobermory and the mainland to [[Kilchoan]] on the [[Ardnamurchan]] peninsula, but principal access to the island is via ferry between [[Oban]] and Craignure. Craignure is around {{convert|22|mi|km|abbr=off}} from Tobermory. This is the main route for visitors to the island. An additional ferry sails between Lochaline on the mainland and Fishnish.

== References ==

{{Reflist|2}}

== External links ==

{{commons category|Tobermory}}

*[https://www.scottishhistory.org/blog/spanish-gold-in-tobermory-bay Story on the Tobermory Spanish Galleon]
*[http://www.tobermory.co.uk/ All about Tobermory]

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{{Mull}}

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[[Category:Tobermory, Mull| ]]
[[Category:Towns in Argyll and Bute]]
[[Category:Isle of Mull]]
[[Category:Ports and harbours of Scotland]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1788]]
[[Category:Geological type localities of Scotland]]
[[Category:1788 establishments in Scotland]]
[[Category:Wreck diving sites in Scotland]]
[[Category:Towns on Scottish islands]]
[[Category:Fishing communities in Scotland]]