8. Ædey

On the island of Ædey there has been a large farmstead from the earliest times, as its bird resources are significant. Twenty-four kinds of birds have laid eggs there. Ari, the sheriff at Ögur, and his men surrounded eighteen Spanish sailors at Ædey whose ship had run aground, and killed them all. The Spaniards had been accused of stealing animals and a boat at Dynjandi, and according to a king's decree could be killed on sight. Most of them were stoned to death at the so-called Gulanef at Ædey, others were shot at Sandeyri and in the channel just offshore.

In the latter part of the 19th century the marksman Otúel Vagnsson(1834-1901) was charged by the sheriff at Ædey with poaching ducks. Rósinkar Árnason, farmer at Ædey, brought the accusation, and Otúel was forced to pay a large fine. When the judgement had been made, Rósinkar said to Otúel, "Shoot now, you devil, if you dare." Otúel didn't hesitate, and fired, killing seven birds at once. Otúel got away with this action, as the sheriff was a witness that Rósinkar had indeed asked Otúel to shoot.

Twenty people were registered as living at Ædey in 1703, at which time there were two farms there. People believe a prayer house had existed on the island in the old days. The siblings Ásgeir Gudmundsson, Halldór Gudmundsson and Sigrídur Gudmundsdóttir resided at Ædey around 1930 and for many years after that. A large, well-equipped house was built here in 1863-64, which still stands today, mostly unchanged, although an addition has been made to it.

The family sold the land in 1961, at which time Helgi Thórarinsson from Látrar in Mjóifjördur, and Gudrún Lárusdóttir, the daughter of Gudjóna Gudmundsdóttir from Ædey, moved in.

In Jardabók (The Book of Farms) from 1703 it is said that people believed a farm once stood on the so-called Nordurtún at Ædey. There could be seen the remains of old walls. A fence in a similar shape led west from this field, which was also considered to be the remains of a former settlement. To the north of the dwelling quarters at Ædey is the Mylluhóll hill. There was a grain mill there which blew away in 1941. On the southernmost point of Ædey is Klettshóll hill, where a lighthouse was built in 1949. At the north part of the island is Kaplanes point, where a pier was built in 1971. From there it is about a kilometre to the farm. In the channel between Ædey and the mainland is Djúphólmur which was used for haymaking in the old days. The so-called Bergsel can be found beyond Hávardsstadir; the Ædey farmers used this to house their animals in the summer for a long time. In Jardabók it is called Mánaberg, and says that people lived there in the old days, although little sign could be seen of that in 1703.

The house Jónasarhús was built at Ædey in 1878 and still stands, largely unchanged. This house was initially built for salting at Reykjanes just before 1790. There is a gournd floor and attic with eaves. Rósinkar Árnason bought the house after it had been unused for a long time, and set it up on Ædey when his family suddenly became homeless. Jónas Jónasson and Elísabet Gudmundsdóttir lived in the house until 1936 when they moved to Reykjavík. The house has been used for storage since that time.

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