Landowner Lord George Hill created the port in the late 1830s to encourage fishing. He built a grain store on the quay, opened a shop and a bakery and encouraged women to knit socks for sale. He described the local fishermen at the time as 'fearless boatmen'.
By the 1890s this was a busy port, herring and mackerel being the main catches. Lobster and crab from the islands travelled by currach, then by cart, rail, steamer and rail again to reach London restaurants.
Nowadays, the fishing fleet is a lot smaller, and there are as many pleasure boats as fishing boats in the harbour.
The Harbour is also the embarkment point for the Tory Island Ferry.
