Photo: Reading Tom CC BY 2.0
Sculptor: Virginia (Ginny) Hutchison and Charles S. Engebretsen
Materials: Bronze
Dimensions: h. 1.70m (approx.)
Inscription: Plaque adjacent to statue: STORNOWAY HERRING GIRL / In recognition of all the herring girls who laboured / here during the late 19th and early 20th Century. / Sculptors: Charles S Engebretsen & Ginny Hutchison / Stornoway Amenity Trust / 2003
Unveiled: 2003
Herring Girl
Today fishing is still a key part of Stornoway’s economy. Over a century ago the herring business was a major part of this industry, however the main market was to Germany, The Baltics and Russia and as a result the First and Second World Wars led to the close of this business. The girl depicted here carrying a wicket basket of herrings would have been one of a team of women who gutted these fish and packed them in salt into wooden barrels.
Location: Harbourside, South Beach, Stornoway, Western Isles, Scotland HS1 2BN.