Cuimhneachan Cogaidh Leòdhais

An initial public meeting was held in January 1920 in Stornoway to organise a memorial to the men of the island who had lost their lives during the 1914-18 Great War and the tragic sinking of His Majesty's Yacht Iolaire 12 months previously. Due to deterioration of the stonework and the internal wrought iron staircase, the tower was closed to the public in 1975. Remedial waterproofing and repairs took place in 1981 and 1982. The £132,000 was the largest ever award by the War Memorials Trust for their programme. Completed by October 2017, the work included replacement of the windows, the roof and the internal cement render (with breathable lime and sand mortar). The main door was painted…

The memorial is in the form of an 85 ft tower, at the top of the Cnoc nan Uan hill outside Stornoway. The tower is built from local Gneiss stone, dressed with Aberdeenshire granite. It has a 20 ft entrance chamber, with four further chambers dedicated to each of the four parishes of Lewis. A staircase in metal and granite leads up the tower to the top turret.