Stonehaven
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|---|---|
 Overview of Stonehaven | |
  Stonehaven Location withinAberdeenshire | |
| Population | 11,150 (2020)[1] |
| OS grid reference | NO8786 |
| • Edinburgh | 79 mi (127 km) |
| • London | 386 mi (621 km) |
| Council area | |
| Lieutenancy area | |
| Country | Scotland |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | STONEHAVEN |
| Postcode district | AB39 |
| Dialling code | 01569 |
| Police | Scotland |
| Fire | Scottish |
| Ambulance | Scottish |
| UK Parliament | |
| Scottish Parliament | |
| 56°57′50″N2°12′40″W / 56.964°N 2.211°W /56.964; -2.211 | |
Stonehaven (/stoʊnˈheɪvən/ ⓘstohn-HAY-vən) is a town on the northeast coast of Scotland, 15 miles (24 km) south ofAberdeen. It had a population of 11,177 at the2022 Census.[2]
Stonehaven was formerly the county town ofKincardineshire, succeeding the now abandoned town ofKincardine. It is currently administered as part ofAberdeenshire. The town is known in the localDoric dialect asSteenhive (/stinˈhaɪv/ ⓘ)[3] and is nicknamedStoney.[4]
Stonehaven is the site of prehistoric events evidenced by finds atFetteresso Castle andNeolithicpottery excavations from theSpurryhillock area.[5] In 2004, archaeological work by CFA Archaeology, in advance of the building of the Aberdeen to Lochside Natural Gas Pipeline, found two shortcists burials containing cremated remains to the southwest of Stonehaven.Radiocarbon dating put the burials in the first half of the 2nd millennium BC, which was the Early Bronze Age in Scotland. The burials containedstone tool artifacts and shale/cannel coal beads.[6] That same year, researchers at theNational Museums of Scotland andYale University announced that a fossil found by an amateur paleontologist the previous year was the earliest known fossil of a land-dwelling animal. The fossil was about 420 million years old.[7]
The town lies at the southern origin of the ancientCausey Mounthtrackway, which was built on high ground to make passable this only availablemedieval route from coastal points south ofAberdeen. This ancient passage specifically connected theBridge of Dee toCowie Castle via thePortlethen Moss and the Stonehaven central plaza.[8] The route was taken by theEarl Marischal andMarquess of Montrose when they led aCovenanter army of over 9,000 men in the first battle of theWars of the Three Kingdoms in 1639.[9]
_-_View_of_Stonehaven_from_the_South_East_-_ABDAG017336_-_Aberdeen_City_Council_(Archives%2c_Gallery_and_Museums_Collection).jpg)
The Covenanters were imprisoned inDunnottar Castle, where many died. A memorial to them can be found inDunnottar Church. Other castles in the vicinity areFetteresso Castle andMuchalls Castle, both of which are in private ownership and not open to the public. The oldest surviving structure in Stonehaven is theStonehaven Tolbooth at the harbour, used as an early prison and now a museum.[10]
Dunnottar Castle, perched atop a rocky outcrop, was home to the Keith family, and during theScottish Wars of Independence, theScottish Crown Jewels were hidden there. In 1296, KingEdward I of England took thecastle only forWilliam Wallace to reclaim it in 1297, burning down thechurch 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 ofKinneff, where they remained undetected for eleven years.
Stonehaven was aJacobite town in theFifteen and it was a safe base for the retreating Jacobite army to stay overnight on the night of 5–6 February 1716. In theForty-Five Stonehaven, part of theEpiscopalian north-east, was again ‘reliably Jacobite’ and it was one of the north-eastern ports where reinforcements, plus money and equipment were periodically landed from France.[11] After 1709, whenDunnottar Parish Church was taken over by theChurch of Scotland Episcopalian services were held in the tolbooth until a meeting house was built in the High Street in 1738. Following the failure of the Forty-Five, theDuke of Cumberland ordered the building's demolition. Services were then held in a house on the High Street.[12]Stonehaven Town Hall, which is an events venue in the town, was completed in 1878.[13]
Near theCowie Bridge, at the north of Stonehaven, was a fishing village known asCowie, which has now been subsumed into Stonehaven. Somewhat further north are the ruins ofCowie Castle. Slightly to the west of Stonehaven is the ruinedUry House, originally a property of theFrasers.
Afossil of the oldest known land animal,Pneumodesmus newmani, aspecies ofmillipede, was found at Stonehaven's Cowie Beach in 2004.[14][15]
Stonehaven is 15 miles (24 km) south ofAberdeen sheltered inStonehaven Bay. TheCarron Water andCowie Water run through the town. Stonehaven lies adjacent to a deeply indented bay surrounded on three sides by higher land betweenDownie Point and Garron Point. The harbour, consisting of two basins, was improved in the 1820s by the engineerRobert Stevenson (grandfather of the authorRobert Louis Stevenson), and became an important centre of the 19th centuryherring trade;[16] the harbour is bordered on the north byBellman's Head and the south byDownie Point. At the western edge of Stonehaven west of theA90 road lies the village ofKirkton of Fetteresso. Nearby to the south,Fowlsheugh is a coastalnature reserve, known for its 230-foot-high cliff formations and habitat supporting prolific seabird nesting colonies.
Stonehaven has grown rapidly since theoil boom in Aberdeen. The increasing demand for new, middle-class housing has seen four new estates being appended to the town, creating an expanse ofsuburbs and Stonehaven has been bypassed since 1984.
Parts of Stonehaven near to the Carron Water were prone toflooding following heavy rain.[17][18]Aberdeenshire Council has completed construction of flood defenses in 2023 that have now been effective at preventing flooding from major storms.[19]
TheHighland Boundary Fault traverses Scotland from theIsle of Arran andHelensburgh on the west coast to immediately north of Stonehaven on the east coast.
The largest park is Mineralwell, situated adjacent to theGlenury Viaduct which carries theDundee–Aberdeen line. St Kieran's Well, a grade-C listed public fountain, is situated in the park. It was restored in 1982, though its water supply has since been severed.[20] The park contains one of the largest purpose built radio controlled car circuits in the UK, located at the edge of the park beside the viaduct.[21] The John McRobert Pavilion was opened in the park in 1993 and anartificial turf pitch opened in the park in 2015.[22] The park is home to aparkrun.[23] In 2021, 120 cherry blossom trees were planted as part of theSakura Cherry Tree Project. The trees are dedicated toThomas Blake Glover.[24][25]
Nearby Baird Park occupies an area of four acres and was given to the town bySir Alexander Baird in 1920, though it had been leased to the council for the previous twelve years.[26]
Stonehaven Recreation Grounds was opened in 1885 and is situated near the beach.[27] It is owned by the council.[28] It containstennis courts and abowling green.[29]
Dunnottar Woods is a 32.91-hectare (81.3-acre) woodland area managed by theWoodland Trust.[30][31]
The town has a secondary school,Mackie Academy, which was founded at the site occupied currently by Arduthie School. Mackie takes pupils from a relatively large chunk of southern Aberdeenshire with its catchment zone stretching fromJohnshaven andSt Cyrus (Although the primary school is in the catchment area for Mearns Academy in Laurencekirk) in the south toNetherley in the north and out toDrumlithie in the west.The feeder primary schools include: Glenbervie, Inverbervie, Lairhillock, Gourdon, Catterline, Kinneff, Arduthie, Mill’o forest, Dunnottar and Carronhill.
There are three primary schools:
Onespecial education school, Carronhill,[36] opened in 1975.[37] It is situated in the newer part of the town near Mill O' Forest Primary School.
Historically the chief commerce of Stonehaven lay in fishing. Led by theherring fishery, the catch peaked around the year 1894 with a peak catch of about 15 million fish per annum and employment in the fishing industry of 1280 people. Due to overfishing to serve theexpanding regional population, the fishing industry declined with diminishing catches, such that by 1939 only a remnant of the earlier fishing fleet continued to exist,[9] and the catch mostly supported the local population from that point onward.Glenury distillery was situated near Mineralwell park, and closed in 1985.
Currently, the town's primary industries are marine services andtourism, with Dunnottar Castle, a local landmark, bringing in a large number of tourists every year. Dunnottar Castle is regularly used in promotional material by the Scottish tourism industry; in addition, it was used in the 1990 filmHamlet, and appeared as a featured desktop background in the UK edition ofMicrosoft Windows 7. Furthermore, Dunnottar Castle was also selected as Merida's home in theDisney movie,Brave.Situated nearby isStonehaven War Memorial, constructed afterWorld War I.[38] It was unveiled byViscountess Cowdray in 1923.[39] It is visible from much of the town thanks to its prominent position on a hilltop overlooking the bay. Another attractive feature of the town is the long beach facing theNorth Sea, with large cliffs at either end sheltering small rock pools and inlets. It is also famous for itsOlympic-size outdoor swimming pool, which is heated and filled with filtered seawater. The local harbour features theTolbooth, the town's small museum of local heritage.
DuringHogmanay festivities, crowds watch the annual fireballs ceremony in which volunteers walk down the High Street swinging their fireball - a homemade ball of burning waste materials with a chain and handle attached. The Fireball Festival was part of the content ofSTV'sHogmanay coverage. The fireballs are finally thrown into the harbour.[40] It is uncertain when the fireballs began, however, reports covering the event from as early as 1911 exist.[41] The event has taken place annually, though has been cancelled during the world wars and in 2021 due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.[42][43][44] 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 also hosts a Folk Festival.
The town's Haven Fish Bar was the likely origin of thedeep-fried Mars Bar,[45] a snack now culturally associated with Scotland - and its health record - as a whole. In 2012, the (since renamed) Carronfish and chip shop sold around 100–150 deep-fried Mars bars per week, with tourists accounting for around 70% of this figure.[46] The Carron was awarded No 1 Fish and Chip Shop in Scotland 2020.[47] Another local fish and chip shop, the Bay, was awarded the number one fish and chip shop in Scotland, at the National fish and Chip awards in 2012 and 2013.[48]
Every July, Stonehaven holds aHighland Games. All those competing in the heavy events (which include the Hammer, the Heavy Stone, andTossing the Caber) must wear fullHighland dress. Other events include the Stonehaven Folk Festival, regularly attended by famous Glaswegian comedianBilly 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 tire and attracts an impressive range of vintage and classic cars. There are two harbour festivals each summer. Afarmers' 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.[49]
Stonehaven supports a rugby club - Mackie Academy Former Pupils Rugby Football Club - which plays in the RBS Caledonia Regional League Division 1. They have previously trained on pitches atRed Cloak.[50]
The town has aJunior football club -Stonehaven F.C. - that plays in theNorth RegionScottish Junior Football North Premier League. Home games are played at Glenury Park, set in Mineralwell Park. There are also three amateur football clubs: AC Mill Inn, Cowie Thistle and Stonehaven Athletic, as well as Stonehaven Youth Football Club, who all play their games in Mineralwell Park. In 2015, a combination of Stonehaven Football Club, Cowie Thistle, Stonehaven Athletic, Stonehaven Youth Football Club and Stonehaven Ladies Football Club created the Stonehaven Community Football Club, which was recognised by the Scottish Football Association with a Quality Mark Community Level Award, and subsequently the Legacy Award in November 2017.
The Local Community Radio StationMearns FM broadcasts to the town and surrounding area, includingInverbervie andLaurencekirk. Staffed completely by volunteers, it is run as a not-for-profit organisation, broadcasting under a community radio license, with a remit to provide locally focused news, events, and programming. Jointly funded by local adverts and local and national grants,Mearns FM has one of the largest listening areas of any community radio station owing to the Mearns' distributed population.[51]
Stonehaven was the birthplace ofRobert William Thomson, inventor of thepneumatic tyre.[52]It is also the birthplace ofJames Murdoch, a journalist and Orientalist,Lord Reith of Stonehaven, the first Director-General of theBBC, andTom McEwen, a Canadian communist politician and trade union organiser.
John Ellis, an architect who was born and lived here, was responsible for many local buildings including the War Memorial.[53]George Thomson Chapman (1824–1881), a New Zealand publisher, was born in Stonehaven.
Ury House, Stonehaven, is theancestral seat of theViscounts Stonehaven. It was built bySir Alexander Baird, 1st Baronet in 1885.
The novelistLewis Grassic Gibbon (James Leslie Mitchell) attended school at what was the oldMackie Academy (now Arduthie Primary).
Famous historical visitors includeWilliam Wallace andMary, Queen of Scots. PoetRobert Burns met friends in Stonehaven in 1787.[54]
The town has been served byStonehaven railway station on theDundee–Aberdeen line since 1849. Initially located outside the town, Stonehaven has since grown and has absorbed the station. TheA90 road bypasses the town, and meets theA92 here. The town has a local service and is also on theX7 Coastrider route betweenAberdeen andPerth.[55] A locally runLand Train runs from the town square to the outdoor pool, Dunnottar Castle and the harbour.[56]
Woodcot Hospital operated from 1867 to 1998.Kincardine Community Hospital continues to operate today. On 11 June 2013, it was decided by the Justice Committee thatStonehaven Sheriff Court would be closed. This was despite a petition attracting nearly 300 signatures and disagreement from the local community.[57]
Lifeboats were provided by the local charityMaritime Rescue Institute until its closure in 2013. ARoyal National Lifeboat Institution station was subsequently established.
Stonehaven Leisure Centre was opened in 1985 following an investment of £650,000 and contains sports halls and a 25 metre swimming pool.[58]
Settlements and places of interest inKincardine and Mearns,Aberdeenshire | ||
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| Other settlements | ||
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Areas and primary settlements inAberdeenshire(see also:Aberdeen City) | ||
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| inBanff and Buchan |  | |
| inBuchan | ||
| inFormartine | ||
| inGarioch | ||
| inKincardine and Mearns | ||
| inMarr | ||
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