IN-PERSON Barcelona. Section B

Abstract

This paper discusses the overlooked impact the whaling industry has had on the cultural heritage of Edinburgh’s port area, Leith. The island of South Georgia, a British Overseas territory in the Southern Ocean, was a hub for Antarctic exploration and a centre for whaling in during the early to mid-20th century. The largest whaling station on the island was Leith Harbour – named in recognition of the many Scottish whalers who left Edinburgh, to embark on their journeys to the Antarctic. In 1965, all whaling ceased on South Georgia, and the island was left uninhabited. Leith Harbour, and the other whaling stations, were abandoned and left to ruin. In contemporary Scotland, Leith has become a vibrant district in the city of Edinburgh, yet its heritage of whaling – perhaps because it is a dark and controversial legacy – remains overlooked, despite the economic benefits it had on the city. Meanwhile, conservation efforts by the South Georgia Heritage Trust (UK) have overseen successful campaigns to recover the island’s fragile eco-structure. Recently, attention has turned to cleaning up the abandoned whaling stations, sparking renewed interest in the human stories of life on the island. Through archival photographs and oral histories, this paper will seek to shed light on a period in human history, which although controversial, still holds significance when considering the stewardship of our world. It nuances on how an industrial heritage, built on exploiting the natural resources of a remote environment, can still be found in the cultural heritage of a thriving, cosmopolitan city.