Cairn
Station marks of the old Principal Triangulation were usually buried, and only a few of the old primary and secondary stations were provided with some form of mark above ground level which normally consisted of a cairn, and then only when the station was on the top of a high mountain; see History of the Retriangulation of Great Britain [1]
A 'Cairn' is an uncommon type of mark in the Retriangulation. 16 instances, mainly in Scotland, are recorded in the OSGB36 list [2].
| T:UK | Station name | Order | Computed | Block |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TP7922 | Beinn Dearg Cairn | 3 | 1955 | NC20 |
| TP7916 | Ben Griam More Cairn | 2 | 1954 | NC85 |
| TP7926 | Bogengarrie Cairn | 3 | 1953 | NK03 |
| TP7925 | Core Hill Cairn | 3 | 1952 | NK03 |
| TP7929 | Drumaldrace | 3 | 1955 | SE38 |
| TP7920 | Gars Bheinn Cairn | 3 | 1959 | NG24 |
| TP7917 | Great Bernera | 4 | 1961 | NC20 |
| TP7551 | Killegray | 4 | 1957 | NG24 |
| TP7924 | Mealfuarvonie | 3 | 1955 | NH40 |
| TP7928 | Prince Alberts Cairn | 3 | 1956 | NJ40 |
| TP7630 | Queensberry Cairn | 3 | 1954 | NX99 |
| TP7927 | Rosinish | 4 | 1957 | NG24 |
| TP7921 | Sgurr A Choire Ghlais | 3 | 1955 | NH54 |
| TP7923 | Suidhe Ghuirman Cairn | 3 | 1955 | NH54 |
| TP7918 | Suilven Cairn | 3 | 1955 | NC20 |
| TP7919 | The Stack (Stack Islands) | 4 | 1957 | NG24 |
Given the impermanence of cairns, with passers-by liable to add or remove stones, perhaps rebuilding or even relocating them, then it is surprising that only Drumaldrace is recorded by the OS as 'destroyed'. Photos on T:UK show that this cairn was just a heap of stones in 1994 and was subsequently rebuilt.
References
- ↑ The History of the Retriangulation of Great Britain 1935-1962, Section 2.06
- ↑ https://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/documents/gps/CompleteTrigArchive.zip