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Keith
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|---|---|
  Keith Location withinMoray | |
| Population | 4,610 (2022)[1] |
| OS grid reference | NJ430506 |
| • Edinburgh | 110 mi (177 km)S |
| • London | 432 mi (695 km)SSE |
| Council area | |
| Lieutenancy area | |
| Country | Scotland |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | KEITH |
| Postcode district | AB55 |
| Dialling code | 01542 |
| Police | Scotland |
| Fire | Scottish |
| Ambulance | Scottish |
| UK Parliament | |
| Scottish Parliament | |
| 57°32′35″N2°57′07″W / 57.543°N 2.952°W /57.543; -2.952 | |
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Keith (Scottish Gaelic:Baile Chèith, orCèith Mhaol Rubha (archaic)) is a small town in theMoraycouncil area in north eastScotland. It has a population of 4,734.
Keith is historically inBanffshire, a name which persists in common usage and historical references. Keith has three distinct sections: Old Town, where the original settlement was first established; Keith which is the main commercial centre and Fife Keith which was originally a separate town built in competition by the Earl of Fife but which, having proved less economically successful, was eventually joined to form one homogeneous settlement separated now only by the river.
The oldest part of Keith dates to around 1180[2] where the Old Town still remains, now almost indistinguishable from the rest of the town. It developed around the old bridge which was built there by two mourning parents as a permanent memorial to their dear child who drowned in the river at that crossing point in the hope that none should suffer similar loss.[citation needed] The main part of the town is on higher ground above the river, laid out around 1750 by theEarl of Findlater.[3] It is located at the crossing of theA95 andA96 roads. Local services include a health centre, dentist, optician and multiple hairdressing salons. The town has three schools:Keith Grammar School, Keith Primary School and St Thomas RC Primary School.
The annual Keith Country Show, held at Seafield Park, is an event in the farming calendar of north-east Scotland.[citation needed]
Newmill is a village approximately two kilometres (1+1⁄4 miles) north of Keith.
The name appears to come from aBrythonic word meaning "wood" (cf. Welshcoed), but it may also be related to thePictish territorial division in this area, which was known asCé.[4]
The Chronicles of Keith,[5] compiled in the 19th century, provide an unusually comprehensive view of the area's history. According to them Keith was originally known as "Kethmalruff", a dedication toSaint Maol Rubha (d. 722), also Latinised as "St Rufus". This dedication to aCeltic Church saint fromBangor Abbey may imply that the parish hasHiberno-Scottish missionary origins, possibly by monks from St Maol Ruba's monastic foundation ofApplecross Abbey. The first parish church at Keith (still marked by an ancient graveyard, though theparish church was rebuilt on another site in the early nineteenth century), though no archaeological evidence for this has been identified.
During theJacobite rising of 1745, theJacobite Army won a skirmish at Keith on 21 March 1746. A Jacobite force under Major Nicholas Glasgow and Captain Robert Stewart surprised and defeated a Government force, killing over 20 of them.[6] This victory at Keith is a reminder that the Jacobites were continuing to take the initiative in parts of northern Scotland until theBattle of Culloden on 16 April 1746.
The language spoken indigenously round Keith isDoric, which superseded Scottish Gaelic (see language section atMoray).
The town is home of psych/folk/country band, the Carousels, whose track 'Marianne' was used on an advertising campaign forIrn-Bru.
The first Keith Golf Club (now defunct) was founded in 1901. TheSecond World War saw the demise of the club and the course reverted to farmland.[7]
TheUnion Street drill hall was completed in around 1908.[8]
Keith has anoceanic climate (Köppen:Cfb).
| Climate data for Keith (142 m or 466 ft asl, averages 1991–2020) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 6.1 (43.0) | 6.9 (44.4) | 8.8 (47.8) | 11.5 (52.7) | 14.2 (57.6) | 16.3 (61.3) | 18.7 (65.7) | 18.3 (64.9) | 16.1 (61.0) | 12.3 (54.1) | 8.6 (47.5) | 6.1 (43.0) | 12.0 (53.6) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 2.9 (37.2) | 3.3 (37.9) | 4.8 (40.6) | 7.2 (45.0) | 9.6 (49.3) | 12.2 (54.0) | 14.3 (57.7) | 13.9 (57.0) | 11.9 (53.4) | 8.5 (47.3) | 5.2 (41.4) | 2.7 (36.9) | 8.1 (46.6) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −0.3 (31.5) | −0.3 (31.5) | 0.7 (33.3) | 2.9 (37.2) | 5.1 (41.2) | 8.0 (46.4) | 9.9 (49.8) | 9.5 (49.1) | 7.6 (45.7) | 4.8 (40.6) | 1.8 (35.2) | −0.7 (30.7) | 4.1 (39.4) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 62.6 (2.46) | 55.9 (2.20) | 54.9 (2.16) | 59.9 (2.36) | 61.6 (2.43) | 91.6 (3.61) | 73.2 (2.88) | 81.2 (3.20) | 83.6 (3.29) | 109.5 (4.31) | 89.7 (3.53) | 65.2 (2.57) | 888.9 (35) |
| Average rainy days(≥ 1 mm) | 14.3 | 12.1 | 12.4 | 11.6 | 11.5 | 13.5 | 13.4 | 14.0 | 12.3 | 15.8 | 15.7 | 14.0 | 160.6 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 49.6 | 83.0 | 114.4 | 150.1 | 199.6 | 149.8 | 155.4 | 145.4 | 120.0 | 87.8 | 58.5 | 36.9 | 1,350.5 |
| Source:Met Office[9] | |||||||||||||
The town is at the start ofScotland's Malt Whisky Trail, and has threedistilleries: Strathmill, Glenkeith andStrathisla distillery, one of the oldest in theHighlands and since 1950 headquarters of Chivas Brothers, producers ofChivas Regal.[10] Within the town's immediate environs there may also be foundAuchroisk, Aultmore andGlentauchers. TheKeith and Dufftown Railway is an 11-mile (18-kilometre)heritage railway running toDufftown.
TheKeith Heritage Group have published a number of maps that lead visitors on walking tours through the town and surrounding countryside.
Two annual events attract tourists to Keith. The first of these, the TMSA Keith Festival,[11] falls on the second weekend of June and celebrates the traditional (and not so traditional) music of the area, providing entertainment in the form of concerts,ceilidhs, competitions and sessions. On the second weekend of August the town hosts the Keith Country Show. The show was founded in 1872 and every year promises days of prize-winning livestock and family fun.[12]
The Seabury Chair, the chair on whichRobert Kilgour, Bishop of Aberdeen andPrimus of Scotland sat when he consecratedSamuel Seabury, the firstEpiscopalbishop in the Americas, is preserved in Holy Trinity Episcopal Church.[13]
The town is served byKeith Grammar School, Keith Primary School and St Thomas' School.
The nearbyBlackhillockelectrical substation is the landing point for a 1200 MWhigh-voltage direct currentCaithness - Moray Link.[14][15][16] Another cable, the 550 MWShetland HVDC Connection was planned to reach Blackhillock,[17] but was moved to Spittal instead.[18]
Keith has an 18-holegolf course, threetennis courts, a bowling club, skate park and a large sports hall. The swimming pool has been refurbished with a gym and sauna room added to the facilities. Keith Cricket Club play their home games at Fife Park. Keith also has multiple football pitches in the area. One official pitch,Kynoch Park, which is home toKeith F.C., Simpson Park which is owned by Keith & District Sports Trust is whereIslavale F.C. play their home games.
Keith railway station provides connections toInverness andAberdeen and the localrailway provides travel toDufftown as part ofScotland's Malt Whisky Trail.Stagecoach Bluebird operate bus services which provide hourly transport toInverness city centre &AberdeenUnion Square bus station including local towns along theA96.
Media related toKeith, Moray at Wikimedia Commons| International | |
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