 Formerly called "Toon o' Firth", the origin of the Finstown name is thought to come from an Irishman named David Phin who came to the area in 1811.A soldier with the 9th Royal Veteran Battalion, he married a Kirkwall girl in 1813.In 1820, he opened an ale-house which was called the "Toddy Hole" by arrangement with John Miller of Millquoy.