Stornoway Castle, which once lay near the ferry terminal, was built by the Nicholsons in the 12th century but destroyed by Cromwell's troops in 1653 and the ruins removed in 1882 to make way for a pier.
In 1598, James VI decided to raise some funds for his empty treasury by establishing a colony on Lewis and contracted a group of East Coast farmers and gentry - known as the Fife Adventurers - to "plant policy and civilisation in the hitherto most barbarous Isle of Lewis". They captured Stornoway Castle and established a settlement. However, after illness, lack of money and constant harrying by the locals the settlement was abandoned in 1610.
(1985) Stornoway and the Lews.
(2008) The Western Seaboard: An Illustrated Architectural Guide.