Monument record MHG13622 - Broch, Dale House

Dale (NAT) on site of (NAT) Pict's House (NR)
OS 6" map, Caithness, 1st ed., (1877)

The present house of Dale occupies site of a broch now removed. About 1850 a cist, containing bones, was found when digging the foundations of some outhouses but owing to the prevailing superstition it was destroyed by the workmen before anyone in the house could see it. A sandstone quern, which was found when the house was built nearly 200 years ago, is still preserved.
J Anderson 1873.

There is no evidence of a broch at Dale house. The house itself is a plain, harled building, the oldest part of which was built in the 16th century and occupies the centre part of the present building; it has three storeys. No historical association is attached to the house. N and S wings were added in 1910 and 1933 respectively (information from Mrs M Threipland, Dale House, Westerdale).
Visited by OS (E G C) 14 April 1962.

Dale house is as described by the previous field investigator. There is no trace of a broch.
Visited by OS (N K B) 19 February 1982

House, Dale. House dating from 16th century with landscaped grounds.
R J Mercer, NMRS MS/828/19, 1995

See also ND15SW 21 Westerdale, Dale House, Dovecot