National Gazetteer, 1868

"SOUTH UIST, a parish in county Inverness, Scotland. It extends in length about 22 miles from N.N.W. to S.S.E., with an extreme breadth of about 7¾ miles, and is bounded on the N. by a strait which separates it from Benbecula, on the E. by the Little Minch, on the S. by a sound of from 5 to 8½ miles in breadth, and on the W. by the Atlantic Ocean. The surface is flat towards the W., and boggy in the centre, with hilly pasture in the E. The highest summit is Mount Hecla, which rises nearly 3,000 feet above sea-level, and is the place where Charles Edward, the Pretender, was secreted in 1746. The island contains a considerable number of lakes and islets. There is an abundance of fish and game. The parish of South Uist is about 7 miles S. of North Uist, and comprises the islands of Benbecula, Eriskay, and Flodda. In the vicinity are ruins of Danish forts and Druidical circles. This parish is in the presbytery of Uist and synod of Glenelg, and in the patronage of the crown. The stipend of the minister is about £281. The parish church was erected in 1838. There are also two mission churches, named Boisdale and Eriska, two Free church preaching stations, besides other places of worship. There are a parochial school and several other schools."

"BEN BECULA, an island in the parish of South Uist, Inverness-shire, Scotland. It lies between the islands of North and South Uist. It is low, flat, sandy, and unproductive, measuring 8 or 9 miles each way, and in 1851 had a population of 1,718. A missionary of the Royal Bounty resides here, and there is a station of the Free Church."

Description(s) from The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland (1868)
Transcribed by Colin Hinson ©2003