Friends transform remote Scots farm after finding 200 years of contents

Daily Record

9 hours ago

Jackie Sinclair and Dave Walker spent two years restoring Boloquoy on Sanday, Orkney, after discovering it had become a time capsule, from the 1880s.
Two friends have transformed one of Britain's most remote farms into an authentic 19th century hom e - after its owners left behind 200 years of contents.
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Jackie Sinclair and Dave Walker spent two years restoring Boloquoy on Sanday, Orkney, after discovering it had become a time capsule, from the 1880s.
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The family who had lived there had barely thrown anything away for two centuries.
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They found ancient rugs and furnishings, bird feathers, ancient clothes - and even unopened Christmas gifts from over a century ago.
Jackie and Dave wanted to restore it "to show what life was like as a 19th century farmer on the edge of the world".
The house, farm and water mill lie on the island's western coastline was owned and inhabited by the Fea family since 1762.
The property was bought by Jackie and her husband Malcolm in 2013, but the former Boloquoy farmer and last member of the Fea family stayed in the farmhouse on a life tenancy until he left in 2023.
The property then fell legally to Jackie and her family - even though she had never been in the house.
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The untouched historic items they unearthed in the property inspired them to preserve Boloquoy farm as a piece of island heritage, turning it into a museum and accommodation.
Some of the items they discovered included an ancient Scottish ingrain rug, one of the first ever made in the late 1700s, as well as 18th and 19th century furnishings and clothes.
Jackie said: "It is a frugal life living on an island farm - you couldn't just order something from Amazon, and it would arrive a few days later!
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"People kept everything just in case: it was common to fashion something new out of old things.
"Inside the property, we were shocked to find out that the family had kept everything.
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"They had kept feathers from birds, had shredded all their old clothing to make rag-rugs, and they had taken the thread out of old clothing and threaded it into old bobbins.
"None of their possessions had been thrown out either: everyone who had ever died, their entire belongings were put into a chest and then a barn. So, there were about eight to nine chests - which were a collection of peoples' lives.
"They had done the same in the workshop, which contained the screws from everything the family had ever scrapped - all bundled up and kept for reusing.
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"There was so much history and heritage that we needed to preserve it as island heritage.
"It is a listed farms - and one of the last traditional farms with all its innards intact. We had to work out a way of restoring it!"
The pair decided to reset Boloquoy farmhouse to its original period state, using all its original contents.
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She said: "I knew if we could do this, then we could let people experience staying in it, as well as use the property as a local heritage resource and an immersive historical experience, and raise funds to preserve the mill on the site."
Jackie loves buying and restoring properties with her business partner Dave, who is a keen interior designer.
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Together, they have purchased four holiday lets on Orkney, an archipelago off the northeastern coast of Scotland, and have done them up in different styles, such as a mid-century theme and another with a heritage style.
The pair knew this Boloquoy property was special, which is why they invested a year to "pull the derelict house apart" and another year to "put it back together".
When they were renovating the house, Jackie said they found items which made her "burst with excitement".
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She said: "We found the most remarkable things.
"In one of the bedrooms, when we were gutting them out, we found a piece of 1970s linoleum, then Edwardian linoleum and a piece of Victorian oilcloth.
"These were samples of historic floor coverings. I found a layer on the bottom - which was a mushy brown thing that I later shoved in the washing machine, and when I pulled it out, I couldn't believe it - it was a yard-wide woven piece of woolen fabric with a beautiful Celtic knot design on it.
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"When we investigated further, we discovered that it was an ancient Scottish ingrain rug - one of the first carpets ever made in the late 1700s or early 1800s."
The pair tried to restore as many of the items as they could, but some were unsavable - such as some of the original furniture which was ridden with woodworm.
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Local residents have also donated some of their old contents to help "fill in gaps".
Jackie and Dave have now entirely gutted out the property - with the aim to transport their guests and visitors "to a bygone era".
Guests can sleep in original Victorian beds, including a traditional Orcadian box bed, and be surrounded by authentic furnishings and d cor meticulously recreating the original patterns and colors.
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Beyond the house itself, the farm is home to restored barns housing historic farm implements beneath traditional turf roofs, and heritage breeds of livestock, vegetables and crops.
The nearby mill pond habit has also been revitalised in partnership with RSPB Scotland and now supports a greater diversity of waders and coastal birds.
Future plans include bringing the highly unique water mill itself back to life.
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Jackie and Dave have said they have been getting 'brilliant feedback' on their renovation from professional historians, and Orkney museum want to work with them too.
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Jackie said this whole experience has taught her a valuable life lesson in sustainable living. She added: "It has changed the way I live my life.
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"I don't order stuff from amazon anymore - I use materials that are solid and that I can keep for years. "It is a great lesson in how to live."
Boloquoy Victorian Farmhouse and Mill is now open and welcoming visitors for tours and afternoon teas, and will be welcoming its first residential guests for a unique and deeply immersive experience in 2026.
The story of Boloquoy, its history and its subsequent restoration feature in a new documentary film.
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The Sinclairs aim to make Boloquoy farmhouse a trust. They declined to reveal how much it cost to buy the farm or renovate it.
The family are active farmers on the island who built up their farm business by buying smaller, neighbouring farms over time.
The island of Sanday in Orkney is known for its Neolithic houses and, a recently-discovered 16th century shipwreck and whale strandings.