Loch Ewe has been used for UK defence purposes since the 1890s. Anti-submarine nets were laid across the mouth of the Loch in the early months of the Second World War. Known as HMS Helicon from June 1941, it soon became a refuelling base and assembly port for merchant ships which needed convoy escort, initially across the Atlantic and then, from February 1942, to the Arctic. You can find out much more about this fascinating part of our history at the Russian Arctic Convoy Museum in the village.
The building that is now Aultbea Hall is a ‘Romney’ building, a prefab steel structure developed from 1941 by the British military to provide an affordable, easy-to-assemble and large shelter. The design replaced a previous ‘Nissen hut’ which hadn’t stood up well to high winds. These now iconic arched structures served many purposes, accommodating stores – memories suggest our hall was the NAAFI – maybe a canteen, and were often used as dance halls and cinemas.
We don’t know exactly when our Hall was built. Murdoch Murchison, whose father was headteacher at Bualnaluib primary school, remembered going to “the pictures”, first of all to a building part way along what is now Pier Road. But, he also recalled the NAAFI being used as a cinema: “It must have been later on towards the end of the War. I don’t know when it was actually built but I can remember it being there when I was a wee boy”. There are entries in the school’s logbook about a pupil who was, according to her parents, ‘unable to walk with a cut foot’ but “to-night she was seen in the cinema show at the services cinema”, which didn’t go down well with the Attendance Officer! There’s another note in the School logbook, for 20 May 1947, when “All the school children attended a Ministry of Information Film Show at the local cinema”, though we don’t know what the information message was. Can you remember??
We would love to hear your stories about how the Hall was used in times gone by, and piece together a bit more of it’s history – did you go to parties there, use it for games, attend pantos, concerts or plays? It would be great to share your memories and photos, be they of the inside or out, and that might prompt others to look in their albums too! So, check out our ‘Hall Memories‘ page to get a really good picture of just how versatile our fantastic hall has been over the years – from toddler group to dances and everything in between!