50 years plus: Sheigra SY 7
31st October 2024
Launched as UL 63 in 1971, this Macduff-built stalwart has clocked up a long career in the North West of Scotland
By Mike Smylie
John Watt started building his boats in 1940 at Gardenstown, in a partnership with his two sons, before taking over the Stephen’s yard in Banff in 1954. Then, in 1966, they acquired the boatbuilding yard and engineering facilities of the Macduff Engineering Company when the previous owner retired.
The vessel under build on the slip at the Macduff Boatbuilding and Engineering Company yard. (Photo: Douglas McCallum Paterson)
This allowed them to build bigger vessels up to 80ft in length. The name of the business was changed to the Macduff Boatbuilding and Engineering Company – the forerunner of today’s Macduff Shipyards.
In the summer of 1971, the yard launched the 51ft Sheigra for Archie McCallum and the KLB Fishselling Company. Archie had previously skippered the Rose in June BF 172, which was built by the Macduff Engineering Company in 1950 for a distant cousin of his, another Archie McCallum, who died suddenly in 1955 – after which Archie took her over. When her engine packed up in the late 1960s, Rose of June was sold.
By that time, Archie (pronounced Airchie) had negotiated a deal with the Highlands and Islands Development Board Fisheries Development Scheme to relocate to Kinlochbervie with his family to train local men to go into the fishing. Part of the deal was funding for his new boat, as well as a house from Highland Council.
Between leaving the Rose of June in the late 1960s and his new boat being ready, he ran the 1947 John Watt-built Seafield BF 143 until she was sold, and then briefly skippered the Reliance.
Once Sheigra had been launched – she was registered as UL 63, and had a Gardner 172hp 6L3B engine – he proceeded to move his family from Macduff to Kinlochbervie in the September of 1971, specifically to fish from the Clash.
A 1971 view of Macduff harbour, with the hull of Sheigra taking shape in the foreground. (Photo: Douglas McCallum Paterson)
It seems there were no trainees aboard to begin with, but that there was a local crew. The North Times reported: “The arrival at Kinlochbervie last Thursday of the £40,000 seine net fishing boat, the Sheigra, marks a venture in two ways.
“She was built specifically to give local employment; and the east coast skipper, Mr Archibald McCallum, from Macduff, breaks the commuting tradition – he and his wife occupy a new council house near the pier and his daughter Joan is at school at Golspie. The boat is co-owned by Mr McCallum and the Wood group of Aberdeen.”
Sheigra is a tiny crofting hamlet about as far along the northern part of the west coast as you can drive, consisting of some dozen dwellings. There’s a beach of the same name, and a three and a half mile walk to Sandwood Bay, one of the most magical and inaccessible bays on the west coast. So as a name of a fishing vessel working these wild waters, it seems pretty fitting!
Sheigra worked the seine-net out of Kinlochbervie; it’s unknown whether or not she ever did train up crews. Maybe someone reading this can answer that.
Archie died prematurely in 1977, and one of the crew stepped up as skipper. I read that Robert Heggie, who went on to buy the vessel in 1992, was part of the crew from the early days in the North West and was obviously trained by Archie, so it was probably him who became skipper.
Robert was originally from Sheigra, although I don’t know whether this had anything to do with the naming of the vessel. On the other hand, I do know that Archie is buried in the graveyard at Sheigra.
From 1992, the vessel was registered to Robert and the Don Fishing Company of Aberdeen. By 1999, she was registered under the ownership of the Kinlochbervie Fishselling Company of Aberdeen. Then, in 2001, she was purchased by her current owner, Peter ‘Foggy’ MacDonald of Lewis, for working the prawns out of Stornoway. He re-registered her as SY 7.
The vessel close to completion. (Photo: Douglas McCallum Paterson)
“I bought her from Robert, and the crew on her then had mostly been with the boat since new,” Peter told me when I caught up with him towards the end of last year. “The engineer who worked with Archie only died a few weeks ago.
“She’s a great boat – strong. There’s certainly some steel in her hull. We only took the Gardner that was in her from new out about 12 years ago – about the time when we fitted the new winch. We replaced that engine with the 360hp Doosan we have today, though it’s de-rated. We put the shelterdeck on soon after getting her – otherwise she’s just been maintained.
“She was in Macduff in June this year, after we beached her near Stornoway and some of the planking got damaged, and they got her all sorted. Now it’s Fraserburgh next April for the MCA survey, and to get her spick and span with the paint for the summer.
“The prawns have been good this year – one of the best years – and we are still out, though on short days.” This was in November. “Out about 7am, and back by 6.30 or so.”
Thanks to Peter ‘Foggy’ MacDonald and Douglas McCallum Paterson – especially to the latter for his superb photos of the build of Sheigra.
This feature was taken from the latest issue of Fishing News. For more up-to-date and in-depth reports on the UK and Irish commercial fishing sector, subscribe to Fishing News here or buy the latest single issue for just £3.50 here.
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