Vatersay
| Gaelic name |  Bhatarsaigh |
|---|---|
| Meaning of name | Water island |
 Vatersay Bay |
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| Location | |
 Vatersay
Vatersay shown within the Outer Hebrides
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| OS grid reference | NL635955 |
| Coordinates | 56°56′N 7°32′W / 56.93°N 7.53°W |
| Physical geography | |
| Island group | Uist and Barra |
| Area | 960 hectares (3.7 sq mi) |
| Area rank | 51 |
| Highest elevation | Theiseabhal Mòr 190 metres (623 ft) |
| Administration | |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Country | Scotland |
| Council area | Comhairle nan Eilean Siar |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 90 |
| Population rank | 45= |
| Population density | 9.4 people/km2 |
| Largest settlement | Baile Bhatarsaigh |
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| References | |
Vatersay (Scottish Gaelic: Bhatarsaigh, pronounced [vaʰt̪əɾs̪aj]) is the southernmost inhabited island in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. Vatersay is also the name of the only village on the island.
Vatersay is also the westernmost permanently inhabited place in Scotland and in Great Britain. It is linked to the larger island of Barra by a causeway about 200 metres long and completed in 1991. At low tide, the island is also linked to the islet of Uineasan to the east.
Wildlife on the island includes otters, seals and herons. Bonnie Prince Charlie's flower (Calystegia soldanella), reputedly originating from French seeds dropped by Bonnie Prince Charlie is, in Scotland, found only on Vatersay and Eriskay.
The island has remains of an Iron Age broch at Dun a' Chaolais overlooking the Sound of Vatersay and nearby is a passage grave dated to the 3rd millennium BC. There is also a Bronze Age cemetery at Treasabhaig south of the heights of Theiseabhal Mòr and a cairn built circa 1000 BC west of the village of Vatersay. The offshore islet of Biruaslum has a walled fort that may be of Neolithic provenance.
One of the saddest events to befall the island happened when the Annie Jane, a three-masted immigrant ship out of Liverpool bound for Montreal, Canada, struck rocks off West Beach during a storm in September 1853. Within ten minutes the ship began to founder and break up casting 450 people into the raging sea. In spite of the conditions, islanders tried to rescue the passengers and crew.
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Wikipedia