FLADDA Island ownership: 1858 - John Stevenson (Whiskey distiller in Oban) 1860 - NLB bought for purpose of sticking lighthouse on. 1976 - A local who runs an Exploration Centre 1977 - Gems Father The first recorded history of Fladda shows that it was owned by John Stevenson in 1858. John was a whiskey distiller in Oban. How John got Fladda is not known. At the time Fladda would not have been worth much because it had no buildings on it so the deeds weren't kept. The deeds show that the island was originally spelt Phladda but was changed by the Northern Lighthouse Board around 1900 because there is another island with a lighthouse on it called Phladda quite near in the Firth of Clyde. Lighthouse: 1860 - First lit using paraffin At some point it was converted to gas, and then (as currently is) to electricity, powered by rechargeable batteries charged by solar panels, with 2 petrol generators as backup.