Deanston

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Deanston
Mill workers' houses, Deanston - geograph.org.uk - 174418.jpg
Mill workers' houses, Deanston
Stirling UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Deanston
Location within the Stirling council area
OS grid reference NN713016
Civil parish
Council area
Lieutenancy area
Country Scotland
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town DOUNE
Postcode district FK16
Dialling code 01786
Police Scotland
Fire Scottish
Ambulance Scottish
UK Parliament
Scottish Parliament
List of places
UK
Scotland
56°11′24″N4°04′26″W / 56.1899°N 4.0739°W / 56.1899; -4.0739

Deanston (Scottish Gaelic : Baile an Deadhain) is a village in the Stirling council area, Scotland, on the south bank of the River Teith east of Doune, in south-west Perthshire. It is a part of the parish of Kilmadock.

Contents

Etymology

The name comes from Walter Drummond, Dean of Dunblane in 1500, originally called Deans Town. After his appointment as Dean of Dunblane, he acquired the lands now known as Deanston from the Haldanes of Gleneagles. [1]

Deanston mill

Deanston Distillery and the River Teith Deanston Distillery and River Teith.jpg
Deanston Distillery and the River Teith

Deanston Cotton Mill was built by the Buchanan brothers of Carston, Killearn near Glasgow, in 1785, and utilised the River Teith to power the mill. In 1808 James Finlay & Co bought and developed the mill, including the construction of a 1,500-yard-long (1,400-metre) Lade. James Smith, manager of the mill from 1807, was a successful entrepreneur and inventor. [2] He built unusually designed accommodation over four levels for his workforce, called the divisions, which was new in its day. At its peak, the mill had over 1000 workers and had the largest waterwheel in Europe, Hercules, with a diameter of 36 feet 6 inches (11.13 metres). [3]

The cotton mill closed in 1965. On the site, the Deanston Distillery opened in 1966 and is owned by Burn Stewart Distillers Limited (part of Distell Group Limited), where it produces several megawatts for the National Grid (2007).

Description and significance

Deanston is a Stirling Council Conservation Area, comprising not only the village but the mill / distillery buildings, Deanston House and grounds and the whole of the mill lade. [4] All the buildings are Listed, varying from Grade A to C under the Scottish Listing system. [5]

Deanston village, extract from OS map, Perth CXXV.13,1900, with features lettered A - E referred to in text. Published with acknowledgment to National Library of Scotland. Deanston Village OS Map, with features lettered.jpg
Deanston village, extract from OS map, Perth CXXV.13,1900, with features lettered A - E referred to in text. Published with acknowledgment to National Library of Scotland.

The village domestic housing (A – see plan) comprises essentially one long straight street, consisting of five blocks of terrace houses or ‘Divisions’ as they were known. This unusual arrangement probably reflects the nature of the site, a narrow flat terrace facing the River Teith with the land rising steeply behind. Nos 1 to 17 on the north side of the road were built circa 1811 for the mill overseers. On the south side of the road, the four blocks were built for the mill workers and their families, blocks 12 to 22 c. 1811 and the remaining blocks c.1820, thus all these buildings date to the Georgian era. [6] The houses were on three floors, being reached in the case of the workers’ cottages by a common entrance passage. Despite their early date, the houses are only listed as [Scottish] Category C.

The Mill buildings (B) were commenced in 1785, but saw significant changes over the years, including a serious fire in 1796. The Spinning Mill (the large five storey building) was constructed 1830 – 31, the Weaving Shed c.1830, both Category A. The mill finally closed in 1965, but was re-opened the following year as a whisky distillery, hence all the buildings have been re-purposed. Evidence of some of the original functions still remain, for example the water wheel pits. [7]

Deanston House (C) was built c.1820, but subsequently significantly extend in 1881 - 83. The grounds were extensive, again seeing considerable change over the years. Deanston Villa (D) built for the Mill Manager still stands, as do much of the walls of the original walled garden. Much of the former grounds to the west of the House have been given over to extensive C20 housing.

Perhaps the most extraordinary feature of the village is the 1.5 kilometre long mill lade (E - only part shown on plan), built circa 1826. This replaced an earlier shorter mill lade and was built to channel the waters of the River Teith to power a series of five large waterwheels. The open lade terminates 200 metres short of the Mill, continuing underground. It was evidently designing in this manner as the Ordnance Survey map of 1862, Sheet CXXV surveyed 1862, shows this.

The Significance of the village is that it is one of only a few Scottish planned villages founded in the Eighteenth Century based on fabric/cotton spinning, along with New Lanark (South Lanarkshire), Stanley (Perthshire) and Catrine (Ayrshire). This was apparently as a direct result of a mission by Richard Arkwright, the towering figure of the early Industrial Revolution, to set up cotton spinning factories in Scotland according to his principles. No single one of these four villages is any longer complete [8] but together they provide a very full picture of how these villages were designed and operated.

Notable people

Oddly as a small village, Deanston links to two Lord Provosts of Glasgow: Sir John Muir and Sir David Richmond.

Deanston is the birthplace of the pioneering documentary maker John Grierson after whom a street in the village is named. John Grierson built the first play-park in Deanston and his grandmother's ashes were scattered underneath the swings.

James Tod of Deanston WS FRSE laird off Deanston from around 1830 to 1858.

Related Research Articles

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Perthshire, officially the County of Perth, is a historic county and registration county in central Scotland. Geographically it extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the north, Rannoch Moor and Ben Lui in the west, and Aberfoyle in the south; it borders the counties of Inverness-shire and Aberdeenshire to the north, Angus to the east, Fife, Kinross-shire, Clackmannanshire, Stirlingshire and Dunbartonshire to the south and Argyllshire to the west. It was a local government county from 1890 to 1930.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dunblane</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Dunblane is a town in the council area of Stirling in central Scotland, and inside the historic boundaries of the county of Perthshire. It is a commuter town, with many residents making use of good transport links to much of the Central Belt, including Glasgow and Edinburgh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Doune</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Doune is a burgh within Perthshire. The town is administered by Stirling Council. Doune is assigned Falkirk postcodes starting "FK". The village lies within the parish of Kilmadock and mainly within the area surrounded by the River Teith and Ardoch Burn.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Lanark</span> Village in Lanarkshire, Scotland

New Lanark is a village on the River Clyde, approximately 1.4 miles from Lanark, in Lanarkshire, and some 25 miles (40 km) southeast of Glasgow, Scotland. It was founded in 1785 and opened in 1786 by David Dale, who built cotton mills and housing for the mill workers. Dale built the mills there in a brief partnership with the English inventor and entrepreneur Richard Arkwright to take advantage of the water power provided by the only waterfalls on the River Clyde. Under the ownership of a partnership that included Dale's son-in-law, Robert Owen, a Welsh utopian socialist and philanthropist, New Lanark became a successful business and an early example of a planned settlement and so an important milestone in the historical development of urban planning.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Menteith</span>

Menteith or Monteith, a district of south Perthshire, Scotland, roughly comprises the territory between the Teith and the Forth. Earlier forms of its name include Meneted, Maneteth and Meneteth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stirling (council area)</span> Council area of Scotland

The Stirling council area is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, and has a population of about 93,470. It was created in 1975 as a lower-tier district within the Central region. The district covered parts of the historic counties of Stirlingshire and Perthshire, which were abolished for local government purposes. In 1996 the Central region was abolished and Stirling Council took over all local government functions within the area.

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Doune Castle is a medieval stronghold near the village of Doune, in the Stirling council area of central Scotland and the historic county of Perthshire. The castle is sited on a wooded bend where the Ardoch Burn flows into the River Teith. It lies 8 miles northwest of Stirling, where the Teith flows into the River Forth. Upstream, 8 miles further northwest, the town of Callander lies at the edge of the Trossachs, on the fringe of the Scottish Highlands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stirling (Scottish Parliament constituency)</span> Region or constituency of the Scottish Parliament

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">River Teith</span> River in Scotland

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blair Drummond</span> Human settlement in Scotland

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The Dunblane, Doune and Callander Railway was opened in 1858 to connect Callander and Doune with the Scottish railway network. When promoters wished to make a connection to Oban, Callander was an obvious place to start, and from 1880 Callander was on the main line to Oban. The railway network was reduced in the 1960s and the line closed in 1965. Oban is now served by a different route.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kilmadock</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Kilmadock parish, named for Saint Cadoc, containing the settlements of Doune, Deanston, Buchany, Argaty, Hill of Row, Drumvaich, and Delvorich, is situated in Stirling council area, Scotland, and is on the southern border of the former county of Perthshire. Its length is 10 miles, its breadth from 2–8 mi (3–13 km), and with an area of 24,521 acres.

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Ashfield is a small village in the Registration county of Perth and the local government district of Stirling, Scotland. It lies between the Allan Water and the Stirling-Perth Railway line. It is two miles north of Dunblane, and was designated a conservation village in 1976. It was originally built to house workers at a nearby silk-dyeing mill. Prior to this, a mill, Millash or Mill of Ash, existed, as did an extensive house or farm. Ashfield has four residential streets, a residential block and also a square, named after the former prime minister William Gladstone, called Gladstone Square.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deanston distillery</span>

Deanston distillery is a Single Malt Scotch whisky distillery located on the banks of the River Teith, eight miles from the historic town of Stirling, at the gateway to the dramatic Loch Lomond & Trossachs National Park. It is the largest distillery owned by Scotch whisky producer Distell Group Limited, who also own Bunnahabhain Distillery on the Isle of Islay and Tobermory distillery on the Isle of Mull.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ardoch Burn</span> Human settlement in Scotland

The Ardoch Burn is a stream in Stirling council area, Scotland, which flows from the Braes Of Doune into the River Teith at Inverardoch, just behind Doune Castle.

Kincardine is a civil parish in the Scottish council area of Stirling and the former county of Perthshire in the historic district of Menteith.

Vale of Teith Football Club was an association football club from Doune in Perthshire, Scotland.

References

  1. MacKay, Moray S.(1953). Doune Historical Notes, p. 44. Forth Naturalist and Historian Board ISBN   0950696250.
  2. "Deanston: Overview". Gazetteer for Scotland. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
  3. Happer, Richard; Steward, Mark (15 October 2015). River Forth: From Source to Sea. Amberley Publishing Limited. ISBN   9781445648859 . Retrieved 19 February 2020.
  4. Stirling Council Conservation Areas. "Stirling Council". Stirling Council.
  5. Historic Environment Scotland, Listed Buildings. "HES Listed Buildings Search". Search page - enter 'Deanston'.
  6. Linskaill, Sonya (on behalf of Stirling Council) (2015). Deanston: Conservation Area Character Appraisal. Stirling, Scotland: Stirling Council Planning Department. p. 30.
  7. Stirling Council Archives. "Images of Deanston Mill, including the large waterwheels". Stirling Council Archives.
  8. Watson, Mark, Historic Environment Scotland, in Sonya Linskaill, 'Deanston: Conservation Area Character Appraisal' (2015). Appendix C: Short statement giving Deanston a context in the [Scottish] national picture of mill villages. Stirling, Scotland.: Stirling Council Planning Department. pp. 56, 57.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

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