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Coordinates: 60°46′N 0°52′W / 60.76, -0.86
Baltasound is the largest settlement on the island of Unst in Shetland. Unst is the most northerly inhabited island in the United Kingdom. The village lies halfway along the island's east coast on a sheltered bay called Balta Sound.
Baltasound Post Office, the most northerly in the UK
Baltasound was formerly the most second most important herring port in Shetland, in 1902 its catch exceeded that of the Shetland capital Lerwick. The herring trade declined rapidly after 1905 but the physical remains of the herring boom remained long after.[1]
Baltasound can also lay claim to the most northerly "wood" in the British Isles, although it is not very substantial.[2]
[edit] Amenities
Many of Baltasound's current amenities hold the record for the most northerly in the UK:
- Airport - Baltasound Airport - Airport code UNT, runway length 2099ft.[3], currently only used by emergency services.
- Leisure Centre
- School - Baltasound Junior High School[4]
- Hotel - The Baltasound Hotel[5]
- Brewery - Valhalla Brewery, opened in 1997[6]
- Post Office - Baltasound Post Office is now the most northerly post office. For many years this record was held by the post office at Haroldswick until its closure in 1999.[7]
[edit] References
- ^ Hudson, Norman - Souvenir Postcards from Shetland, Shetland Times, 1992
- ^ Blackadder, Jill Slee Shetland (Colin Baxter Island Guides) (2003) Colin Baxter Photography, Strathspey ISBN 1-84107-125-0
- ^ Airports Worldwide
- ^ Baltasound Junior High School website
- ^ Baltasound Hotel website
- ^ Valhalla Brewery website
- ^ BBC News report on closure of Haroldswick post office
[edit] External links
