Arnol Blackhouse

Arnol Blackhouse is a historic building in Ross and Cromarty, cared for by Historic Environment Scotland. Read about its history and architecture, plus how to visit and what's nearby.

About Arnol Blackhouse

No.

42 Arnol, on the Isle of Lewis, was among the last blackhouses in Scotland to remain in everyday use.

The house kept family and livestock under one roof, with a peat fire at its centre that is still never allowed to go out.

Historic Environment Scotland looks after the site, which includes a second, ruined blackhouse next door and a 1920s 'white house' that eventually replaced it.

Gaelic-speaking staff are usually on hand to explain what crofting life here involved.

History of Arnol Blackhouse

Blackhouses were the standard form of housing across the Hebrides and Scottish Highlands for generations, built with thick dry-stone walls, thatched roofs and no chimney, and designed to shelter people and animals together under one roof. No. 42 Arnol was among the last in regular use, occupied until the mid-20th century, by which point most families on Lewis had already moved into 'white houses' with separate byres. The byre at Arnol has been left exactly as it was found when the last residents moved out.

Architecture of Arnol Blackhouse

The house is built with double dry-stone walls packed with an earth core, topped by a thatched roof lashed down with ropes and stones rather than nailed. It has no chimney, so smoke from the central hearth filters out through the thatch itself.