Scalloway


Scalloway is the largest settlement on the North Atlantic coast of Mainland, the largest island of the Shetland Islands, Scotland. The village had a population of roughly 900, at the 2011 census. Until 1708 it was the capital of the Shetland Islands.
Scalloway is the location of the North Atlantic Fisheries College, which offers courses and supports research programmes in fisheries sciences, aquaculture, marine engineering and coastal management. It is also home to the Centre for Nordic Studies. Nearby are the Scalloway Islands, which derive their name from the village.
The village has a swimming pool and a primary school. Scalloway Junior High School, the secondary department, was closed in July 2011 by the Shetland Islands Council.

History

was built in 1600 by The 2nd Earl of Orkney. The remains of the castle are the most notable feature of the village, located near the quay.
Norwegian boatbuilders from Hordaland, around the Bergen areas of Os and Tysnes, built yoals from about the 16th century. Oselvar, the traditional small wooden boat of Os, were taken apart and then 'flat packed' for shipping to Scalloway. Instead of sending complicated assembly instructions, they sent boatbuilders to rebuild them. Many of these stayed for years in Shetland, and some married there.
To the Hanseatic merchants from Bremen and Hamburg, Scalloway was known as Schaldewage, and as a good sheltered harbour on the route to Hillswick.
Barbara Tulloch and her daughter Ellen – the last witches to be burned in Shetland – were executed on Gallow Hill, overlooking the village.
During World War II, Scalloway was the home base for, and housed for some time the headquarters of The Shetland Bus, part of the Norwegian resistance against the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany. The Norway House and the Prince Olav Pier / slipway, which formed major parts of the base are still existing. Details of the history of The Shetland Bus are on display at the Scalloway Museum.
In 1996, Kåre Emil Iversen published his wartime memoirs,I Shetland Bus Man. It was reprinted in 2004, with a new introduction and the title '. Another Shetland author Willie Smith discusses this period extensively in his 2003 memoir ' as does David J. Howarth in published in 1998.
After the war Scalloway served as harbour of the Shetland-Orkney ferry service on the Scalloway–Stromness route. After the opening of the Schiehallion Oil Field off the west coast of Shetland, Scalloway took over some functions as a service base for the oil business.

Primary source