Everything about Stonehaven totally explained
Stonehaven (
Steenhive in the
Doric dialect of
Scots) and
Cala na Creige in
Gaelic is a town with around fourteen thousand inhabitants (9,577 in the 2001 census) on the northeast coast of
Scotland. It is the county town of the historic county of
Kincardineshire or
The Mearns and the present day county of
Aberdeenshire. It grew around an
Iron Age fishing village, now the "Auld Toon" ("old town"), and expanded inland from the Seaside. As late as the 16th century, old maps indicate the town was called
Stonehyve or
Stonehive.
The town is served by
Stonehaven railway station.
History
Stonehaven is the site of prehistoric events as witnessed by finds at
Fetteresso Castle and
neolithic pottery excavations from the Spurryhillock area. The town lies at the southern origin of the ancient
Causey Mounth trackway, which was built on high ground to make passable this only available
medieval route from coastal points south to
Aberdeen. This ancient passage specifically connected the
Bridge of Dee to
Cowie Castle via the
Portlethen Moss and the Stonehaven central plaza. The route was that taken by the
Earl Marischal and
Marquess of Montrose when they led a
Covenanter army of 9000 men in the first battle of the
Civil War in
1639.
The Covenanters were imprisoned in
Dunnottar Castle, where many died. A memorial to them can be found in
Dunnottar Church. Other castles in the vicinity are
Fetteresso Castle and
Muchalls Castle, both of which are in private ownership and not open to the public. The oldest surviving structure in Stonehaven is the
Stonehaven Tolbooth at the
harbour, used as an early
prison and now a
museum.
Dunnottar Castle, perched atop a rocky
outcrop, was home to the Keith family, and during the
Scottish Wars of Independence, the
Scottish Crown Jewels were hidden there. In 1296 King
Edward I of England took the
castle only for
William Wallace to reclaim it in 1297, burning down the
church in the process with the entire English garrison still in it. In 1650,
Oliver Cromwell sacked the castle to find the Crown Jewels following an eight month siege (having previously destroyed the English Crown Jewels). However, just before the castle fell, the Crown Jewels were smuggled out by some ladies who took them by
boat to a small church just down the coast in the village of Kinneff, where they remained undetected for eleven years.
Near the
Cowie Bridge, at the north of Stonehaven. was a prior
historic fishing
village known as
Cowie, which area has now been subsumed into Stonehaven. Somewhat further north are the ruins of
Cowie Castle. Slightly to the west of Stonehaven is the ruined
Ury House, originally a property of the
Frasers.
The
fossil of what is said to be the oldest air-breathing invertebrate discovered was found at Stonehaven's
Cowie Beach.
Famous People
Stonehaven was the birthplace of
Robert William Thomson, inventor of the
pneumatic tyre and the
fountain pen, of journalist
James Murdoch and
Lord Reith of Stonehaven, first Director-General of the
BBC.
Stonehaven was a holiday retreat of the poet,
Robert Burns. The
novelist Lewis Grassic Gibbon (James Leslie Mitchell) attended school at what was the old
Mackie Academy (now Arduthie Primary).
Famous historical visitors include
William Wallace and
Mary Queen of Scots.
Geography
Stonehaven is 15 miles (24 km) south of
Aberdeen in a sheltered position between the
Carron Water and the
Cowie Water. Stonehaven lies adjacent to a deeply indented bay surrounded on three sides by higher land between
Downie Point and
Garron Point. The harbour, consisting of two basins, was improved in the 1820s by the engineer
Robert Stevenson (grandfather of the author
Robert Louis Stevenson) and became an important centre of the 19th century
herring trade; the harbour is bordered on the north by
Bellman's Head and at the south by
Downie Point. At the western edge of Stonehaven west of the
A90 road lies the
village of
Kirkton of Fetteresso.
Stonehaven has grown rapidly since the
oil boom in Aberdeen. The increasing demand for new, middle-class housing has seen four new estates being appended to the town, creating an expanse of
suburbs.
Commerce and culture
Historically the chief commerce of Stonehaven lay in
fishing. Led by the
herring fishery, the catch peaked around the year
1894 with a peak catch of about 15 million fish per annum and an employment in the fishing industry of 1280 people. Due to
overfishing to serve the
expanding regional population, the fishing industry declined with diminishing catches, such that by 1939 only a remnant of the earlier fishing fleet continued to exist, and the catch mostly supported the local population from that point onward.
At present day the town's primary industries are marine services and
tourism, with
Dunnottar Castle, a local landmark, bringing in a large volume of tourists every year. It was used in the
1990 movie
Hamlet (directed by
Franco Zeffirelli, and starring
Mel Gibson and
Glenn Close). Dunnottar Castle is a prominent landmark and is visible on many leaflets (flyers) advertising Scotland.
The town has a long beach facing the cold
North Sea, with large cliffs at either end sheltering small rock pools and inlets. It is also famous for its
Olympic-sized outdoor swimming pool, which is heated and filled with a mixture of tap water and filtered seawater. Another attraction is the
local harbour
, which features the
Tolbooth, the town's tiny museum of local heritage.
During
Hogmanay festivities, the
High Street comes alive with crowds watching the annual fireballs ceremony, in which volunteers walking down the High Street swing huge balls of fire around and around at the ends of chains. The Fireball Festival was part of the content of
stv's
Hogmanay coverage. The fireballs are finally thrown into the harbour.
Every July Stonehaven holds a
Highland Games. All those competing in the heavy events (which include the Hammer, the Heavy Stone and
Tossing the Caber) must wear full
Highland dress. Other events include the Stonehaven Folk Festival regularly attended by famous Glaswegian comedian
Billy Connolly. On the first Saturday in June the Feein' Market recreates a 19th Century agricultural hiring fair. The RW Thomson Classic Car Rally is an annual celebration of the inventor of the pneumatic tryre and attracts an impressive range of vintage and classic cars. There are two harbour festivals each summer. A farmers market is now held once a month in the market square where local food suppliers and producers can sell fresh fruit, vegetables, poultry and other types of meat.
The town's Haven Fish Bar was the likely origin of the
Deep-fried Mars Bar, a snack now culturally associated with Scotland - and its health record - as a whole. The premises are now the award-winning Carron fish and chip shop.
Stonehaven has three primary schools (Dunnottar, Arduthie and Mill O' Forest) and a large secondary school (
Mackie Academy). Population expansion has led to the expansion of primary schools and extra spaces built for classrooms in the secondary school.
The town supports a Rugby club - Mackie Academy Former Pupils Rugby Football Club - which plays in the BT National League Division 5. The town also has a junior football club who play in the North Region SuperLeague at Glenury Park.
Stonehaven's long established Pipe Band plays at events throughout the year, including the folks festival and fireball ceremony. The band has competed at various levels throughout its illustrious history including several years at the prestigious Grade 1.
Stonehaven was mentioned in the Sport section of the Guardian newspaper, by one Sir Alex Ferguson. "When we went to camp in places like Stonehaven..." (Friday 14th December 2007). It is unknown if Sir Alex Ferguson continues to camp at places like Stonehaven, if at all.
Nearby places of interest
Further Information
Get more info on 'Stonehaven'.
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