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A brief history of the area
Like much of mid Argyll, Craignish has a long and interesting history. Prior to 1778, most of the peninsula was owned by the Campbells of Craignish, but between 1778 and 1800 it was gradually sold off in bits. The northern portion (mainly on the main road, between Ardfern and Craobh) initially went to the Lochnell Trustees, but was later broken up and sold off to a number of different owners; the middle part, consisting of Daill (now called Lunga), Gemmill, Corranmor, Corranbeg and Soroba, went to John MacDougall of Lunga and formed the Lunga Estate; this left Aird, Kirkton, Gartcharron, Dunmhuilig, Pennycastle, Achinarnich and Barrachan. In about 1800, this southern portion went to Campbell of Jura, who, in 1850, sold it on to the Gascoigne family, where it formed the Craignish Estate. Since the 1800s there have been further changes of ownership, with some of the properties having been sold off to private individuals, but broadly speaking, this is the situation today.
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Interestingly, Ardfern (which means ‘Alder Point’), is not expressly mentioned in any of the early lists of Craignish lands, the earliest reference to the name being in 1688. It lies so close to Soroba and Corranbeg, that it was probably regarded as belonging to either one, or both, of these places.
The greatest change in recent times has been the building of Craobh (pronounced ‘Croove’ and meaning ‘Tree’) Haven, on the west side of the peninsula. The land, which was originally part of the Lunga Estate, was sold to a developer and in 1983 work started on the village and marina. Craobh’s history has not been without problems, but it now has an increasing resident population and a flourishing marina, pub and shops.
