Kinghorn
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 A view across Kinghorn harbour | |
  Kinghorn Location withinFife | |
| Population | 2,940 (2022)[1] |
| OS grid reference | NT271869 |
| Council area | |
| Lieutenancy area | |
| Country | Scotland |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Burntisland |
| Postcode district | KY3 |
| Dialling code | 01592 |
| Police | Scotland |
| Fire | Scottish |
| Ambulance | Scottish |
| UK Parliament | |
| Scottish Parliament | |
| 56°04′N3°10′W / 56.07°N 3.17°W /56.07; -3.17 | |
Kinghorn (/ˈkɪŋhɔːrn/ ⓘ;Scottish Gaelic:Ceann Gronna) is atown and parish inFife,Scotland. Aseaside resort with two beaches, Kinghorn Beach and Pettycur Bay, plus afishing port, it stands on the north shore of theFirth of Forth, oppositeEdinburgh.
Known as the place where KingAlexander III of Scotland died, it lies on theA921 road and theFife Coastal Path.Kinghorn railway station is on theEdinburgh to Aberdeen andFife Circlerailway lines. Kinghorn only has aprimary school, so high school pupils must travel by bus toBalwearie High School inKirkcaldy.Burntisland was in the past referred to as Little Kinghorn or Wester Kinghorn.[2]
Kinghorn Lifeboat Station is one of Scotland's busiest – regularly getting called out to all sorts of emergencies in the Firth. Currently stationed at Kinghorn is anAtlantic 85 inshore lifeboat, B-836 "Tommy Niven".
The civil parish has a population of 4,201 (in 2011).[3] According to the 2008 population estimate, the town has a population of 2,930.[4]
The meaning of the name Kinghorn (or Kingorn/kɪŋˈɡɔːrn/ ⓘ, with stress on the lattersyllable, as it was pronounced locally until at least the early 20th century) comes from Scottish Gaelic ceann gronn 'head of the marsh'.[5][6]
The historicRoyal Burgh of Kinghorn lies on the coast ofFife. The former royal castle at Kinghorn was frequently visited by theScottish Court in the period of the House of Dunkeld. The King's castle, controlling the seaway, stood on the headland above Pettycur.[note 1] KingAlexander III was returning on horseback to Kinghorn Castle to see his new wifeYolande of Dreux, when he fell and was found dead on the beach of Pettycur Bay in March 1286, creating the succession crisis that led to theWars of Scottish Independence.[7]
A later structure, Glamis Tower (or Glamis Castle), stood just behind the High Street.[note 2] When SirJohn Lyon married Princess Johanna in 1373, the daughter of KingRobert II, her dowry included Glamis Castle.[8] Rebuilt in 1543, the castle was besieged byJames Kirkcaldy of Grange in 1546 and fell. Both buildings have totally disappeared and the sites built over in modern times.
During theScottish Reformation, French troops commanded byHenri Cleutin andCaptain Sarlabous sailed from Leith and fought with theLords of the Congregation at Pettycur Bay on 7 January 1560. Kinghorn Castle remained an important possession of the Scottish Crown, and this was recognised by the creation of theEarldom of Kinghorne in 1606.
In October 1589 the minister of Kinghorn parish,John Scrimgeour, was chosen byKing James VI to accompany him on his voyage to meet his bride,Anne of Denmark, in Norway.[9]
Aburn, fed from the freshwater KinghornLoch above the town, once provided the town with its water and subsequently provided the source of power to drive the machinery offlax mills.
The old town was dramatically transformed in 1846 by the construction of the railway viaduct across the valley of the burn and the opening of Kinghorn Station by theEdinburgh and Northern Railway which had its terminus atBurntisland for ferries across the Forth toGranton. Much of the former horse ferry traffic from Pettycur Bay was lost to Burntisland. The huge viaduct (mainly solid) splits the original town in two and totally dominates the lower (southern) section.
Following the opening of theForth Railway Bridge in 1890, theNorth British Railway started to promote Kinghorn's picturesque sheltered bay and beach as aresort, which led to considerable development of the town.
The town contains a number of 18th-century houses in the Scots vernacular style, but the integrity of the streetscapes are seriously compromised by the "town planning" of the 1960s and 70s, which failed to respect the original character and form.
Kinghorn Primary School is the only school in Kinghorn.[14] The school is housed in a building that was built in 1986. The school has currently achieved three of the four "green flags" available under theEco-Schools scheme, with the third flag being achieved on 27 May 2009.[15] The school has a long history. The original Parish School building of 1823 designed byThomas Hamilton is now a library and community centre that retains the original octagonal Museum vestibule with replicas of theElgin Marbles.[16]
An annual attraction is the Black Rock '5' Race, commonly referred to as the "Black Rock '5'" or the "Black Rock Race", a road and beach running race of about 4.5 miles (7.2 km) that has been held in Kinghorn each year since 1987. Its distinguishing feature is the loop around the Black Rocks, over a mile from the shore, and largely under water except atlow tide. The race is held on a suitable Friday in May or June, when the tide is out and the water is no more than knee deep. Over the years it has changed from a simple race into a full-blown social night in Kinghorn's calendar.
The inaugural Black Rock '5', held in 1987, was won by Gifford Kerr, ahead of 66 other finishers; a very small field by today's standards - in 2005 there were over 600 participants, of a wide variety of abilities. The race has been staged every year since 1987, apart from 1991, and throughout the years the numbers have increased significantly, as did the quality of the top end of the field, with recent winners including Neil Renault and Ross Houston.
In the 21st century the race has been dominated by Edinburgh running club Hunters Bog Trotters (HBT) with both Phil Mowbray and Don Naylor having taken the spoils. The course record belongs to Ian Harkness, also of HBT, in a time of 22:03.
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