Dollar, Clackmannanshire

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Dollar
Dollar - geograph.org.uk - 294410.jpg
Clackmannanshire UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Dollar
Location within Clackmannanshire
Population2,840 (2022) [1]
OS grid reference NS964978
Council area
Lieutenancy area
  • Clackmannanshire
Country Scotland
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town Dollar
Postcode district FK14
Dialling code 01259
Police Scotland
Fire Scottish
Ambulance Scottish
UK Parliament
Scottish Parliament
List of places
UK
Scotland
56°09′43″N3°40′26″W / 56.162°N 3.674°W / 56.162; -3.674

Dollar (Scottish Gaelic : Dolair) is a small town with a population of 2,800 people in Clackmannanshire, Scotland. It is 12 miles (19 kilometres) east of Stirling.

Contents

Toponymy

The name is unrelated to the dollar currency name. Possible interpretations are that Dollar is derived from Doilleir, an Irish and Scots Gaelic word meaning dark and gloomy, or from various words in Pictish: 'Dol' (field) + 'Ar' (arable) or Dol (valley) + Ar (high). [2] Another derivation is from Dolar, 'haugh place' (cf Welsh dôl 'meadow'. This word was borrowed from British or Pictish into Scottish Gaelic as dail 'water-meadow, haugh'). [3] John Everett-Heath derives it as 'Place of the Water Meadow' from the Celtic dôl 'water meadow' and ar 'place'. [4]

History

A photochrom of Castle Campbell, Dollar, Scotland (Castle Campbell, Dollar, Scotland) (LOC) (3450349000).jpg
A photochrom of Castle Campbell, Dollar, Scotland
Old houses in Dollar Old houses in Dollar.jpg
Old houses in Dollar

The 500-year-old Castle Campbell stands overlooking the town, sitting on a forward projection of rock on the south side of the Ochil Hills. The castle was the lowland seat of the Duke of Argyll, where Mary, Queen of Scots once stayed in the 16th century.

The original town (of which parts still survive) stands on the sloping ground beneath the castle, in what is now the northeast section of the town. Buildings here are generally stone built and two stories high. The oldest buildings date from the mid-17th century and several 18th-century buildings exist. Development spread to the west and south through the 19th century.

Around 1840 the construction of a new road to Muckhart on the lower ground south of the original route, created the current main east–west street. This quickly became the new "town centre" and the focus of shops and public activity.

A map of Dollar from 1945 Dollarmap1945.png
A map of Dollar from 1945

The town has two war memorials, one for each world war. In the grounds of Dollar Academy, a bronze figure with outstretched hands by George Henry Paulin faces westwards and commemorates the fallen of the First World War. This also has names added for Northern Ireland. [5]

A small museum run by volunteers contains a collection of local items, and much information about the former Devon Valley Railway, which closed to passengers in 1964. The town is now largely a dormitory community for people who work in Stirling and further afield (e.g. Glasgow and Edinburgh).

Location and transport

It is one of the Hillfoots Villages, situated between the Ochil Hills range to the north and the River Devon to the south. Dollar is 12 miles (19 kilometres) east of Stirling on the A91 road to St Andrews. The Devon Valley Railway linking Alloa and Kinross closed to passengers in 1964 and to freight in 1973.

Economy

Attempts were made to mine lead and copper in Dollar Glen from the 18th century and possibly earlier, but these were of no economic significance. Coal mining in the area began around the same time and, until 1973, supplied the Kincardine Power Station, and later, the Longannet Power Station with coal from the Upper Hirst seam. A tiny private non-NCB coal mine operated from the Harviestoun estate from the mid-1970s, partly filling the gap that the closed NCB left, whilst there was still local demand for coal.

In common with the other Hillfoots Villages, the textiles industry played an important part in the town's development. The Harviestoun Brewery was established west of Dollar in 1985, before its move to Alva.

Governance

From 1891 to 1975 the town had its own council. [6] It is now within Clackmannanshire council area. It forms part of the Clackmannanshire East ward which includes Clackmannan, Comely Bank, Dollar & Muckhart. In the 2017 local elections, residents of the ward elected three councillors—one each from the Scottish National Party, the Labour Party and the Conservative Party. [7]

Provosts

Dollar had a provost from 1891 to 1975. The provosts were: [6]

Notable people

A sketch of the town in the 19th century by Wang Tao Dolllartown.jpg
A sketch of the town in the 19th century by Wang Tao
A sketch of the Mill Green in the 19th century by Wang Tao RumblingPark.jpg
A sketch of the Mill Green in the 19th century by Wang Tao

Sport

Dollar is home to the Dollar Glen Football Club, the Dollar Golf Club—a 9-hole golf course (formarly 18 but was closed and reopended as 9 holes just before lockdown[ citation needed ]) notable for its steep inclines and lack of bunkers (a decision made by Ben Sayers), [12] a tennis club, a squash club, a bowling club, and a cricket club. The Ochil Hills that overlook Dollar provide opportunities for mountain biking.

Religion

The ruins of Old Dollar Parish Church The ruins of Old Dollar Parish Church.jpg
The ruins of Old Dollar Parish Church

There are three churches, one Church of Scotland, one Scottish Episcopal Church and Ochil Hills Community Church which meets in the Civic Centre.

Twin towns

Dollar is twinned with the French town of La Ville-aux-Dames, which lies just outside Tours in the Loire Valley.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Perthshire</span> Historic administrative division in Scotland

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clackmannanshire</span> Historic county and council area of Scotland

Clackmannanshire, or the County of Clackmannan, is a historic county, council area, registration county and lieutenancy area in Scotland, bordering the council areas of Stirling, Fife, and Perth and Kinross. In terms of historic counties it borders Perthshire, Stirlingshire and Fife.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fife</span> Council area of Scotland

Fife is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire. By custom it is widely held to have been one of the major Pictish kingdoms, known as Fib, and is still commonly known as the Kingdom of Fife within Scotland. A person from Fife is known as a Fifer. In older documents the county was very occasionally known by the anglicisation Fifeshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tillicoultry</span> Town in Clackmannanshire, Scotland

Tillicoultry is a town in Clackmannanshire, Scotland. Tillicoultry is usually referred to as Tilly by the locals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ochil Hills</span> Range of hills in Scotland, UK

The Ochil Hills is a range of hills in Scotland north of the Forth valley bordered by the cities of Stirling, Perth and the towns of Alloa, Kinross, and Auchterarder. The only major roads crossing the hills pass through Glen Devon/Glen Eagles and Glenfarg, the latter now largely replaced except for local traffic by the M90 Edinburgh-Perth motorway cutting through the eastern foothills. The hills are part of a Devonian lava extrusion whose appearance today is largely due to the Ochil Fault which results in the southern face of the hills forming an escarpment. The plateau is undulating with no prominent peak, the highest point being Ben Cleuch at 721 m (2,365 ft). The south-flowing burns have cut deep ravines including Dollar Glen, Silver Glen and Alva Glen, often only passable with the aid of wooden walkways.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ochil and South Perthshire (UK Parliament constituency)</span> Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 2005-2024

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

Menstrie is a village in the county of Clackmannanshire in Scotland. It is about five miles east-northeast of Stirling and is one of a string of towns that, because of their location at the foothill base of the Ochil Hills, are collectively referred to as the Hillfoots Villages or simply The Hillfoots.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dollar Academy</span> Day and boarding school in Scotland

Dollar Academy is a private co-educational day and boarding school in Scotland. The open campus occupies a 70-acre (28 ha) site in the centre of Dollar, Clackmannanshire, at the foot of the Ochil Hills.

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

Alva is a small town in Clackmannanshire, set in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. It is one of a number of towns situated immediately to the south of the Ochil Hills, collectively referred to as the Hillfoots Villages or simply The Hillfoots. It is located between Tillicoultry and Menstrie. Alva had a resident population of 5,181 at the 2001 census but this has since been revised to 4,600 in 2016. It boasts many features such as a park with an event hall and a newly opened outdoor gym, and is the home of Alva Academy.

The Hillfoots Villages are the villages and small towns which lie at the base of the southern scarp face of the Ochil Hills, formed by the Ochil Fault, in Stirlingshire and Clackmannanshire in central Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">River Devon, Clackmannanshire</span> Tributary of the River Forth, Scotland, UK

The River Devon is a tributary of the River Forth in Clackmannanshire and Perth & Kinross, Scotland.

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

Harviestoun is an estate in Tillicoultry parish, Clackmannanshire, central Scotland. It lies at the base of the Ochil Hills, around 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) east of Tillicoultry and 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) west of Dollar.

Muckhart commonly refers to two small villages in Clackmannanshire, Scotland, Pool of Muckhart and Yetts o' Muckhart. Muckhart is one of the Hillfoots Villages, situated on the A91 around 3 miles northeast of Dollar. The Gaelic name, Muc-àird, comes from muc ("pig") + àird ("height"), and may derive from the fact that the surrounding fields may once have been used for pig farming.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tullibody</span> Village in Clackmannanshire, Central Lowlands, Scotland

Tullibody is a village set in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies north of the River Forth near to the foot of the Ochil Hills within the Forth Valley. The village is 1.8 miles (2.9 km) south-west of Alva, 1.8 miles (2.9 km) north-west of Alloa and 4.0 miles (6.4 km) east-northeast of Stirling. The village is part of the Clackmannanshire council area.

Kincardine or Kincardine-on-Forth is a town on the north shore of the Firth of Forth, in Fife, Scotland. The town was given the status of a burgh of barony in 1663. It was at one time a reasonably prosperous minor port. The townscape retains many good examples of Scottish vernacular buildings from the 17th, 18th and early 19th centuries, although it was greatly altered during the construction of Kincardine Bridge in 1932–1936. It is in the civil parish of Tulliallan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A91 road</span> Road in Scotland

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Castle Campbell</span> Medieval castle in Clackmannanshire, Scotland

Castle Campbell is a medieval castle situated above the town of Dollar, Clackmannanshire, in central Scotland. It was the lowland seat of the earls and dukes of Argyll, chiefs of Clan Campbell, from the 15th to the 19th century, and was visited by Mary, Queen of Scots, in the 16th century. Mary was impressed by this and said "this reminds me of home".

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

Devon Way is a pathway in Clackmannanshire, Central Scotland. It lies on the southern section of the former Devon Valley Railway from Dollar to Tillicoultry a distance of 3+14 miles (5.2 km). It is used by for walkers, cyclists and horse riders and forms part of Route 767 on the National Cycle Network.

Crauford Tait WS was a 17th/18th century Scottish lawyer, improver and landowner and also a contemporary and friend of Robert Burns.

References

  1. "Mid-2020 Population Estimates for Settlements and Localities in Scotland". National Records of Scotland. 31 March 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
  2. Baillie, Bruce (19 August 2024). "Derivation of 'Dollar'". Dollar Museum. Archived from the original on 18 September 2012.
  3. "Iain Mac an Tàilleir: Scottish placenames, 2003" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 March 2007.
  4. "Dollar". The Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names (2 ed.). Oxford University Press. 2012. ISBN   9780199580897 . Retrieved 6 May 2024.
  5. Inscription on Dollar War Memorial
  6. 1 2 "Dollar Town Council". DollarCommunity.org.uk. Archived from the original on 20 January 2019.
  7. "Clackmananshire Council Elections 2017" . Retrieved 6 May 2024.
  8. Wong, Y. T. (1974). "Reviewed Work: Between Tradition and Modernity: Wang T'ao and Reform in Late-Ch'ing China. Harvard East Asian Series, No. 77 by Paul A. Cohen" . Monumenta Serica. 31: 619–620. JSTOR   40726188.
  9. Lee, Sidney, ed. (1898). "Syme, Patrick"  . Dictionary of National Biography . Vol. 55. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
  10. Morris, Hugh (26 July 2022). "Fergus McCreadie Interview: 'Jazz is kind of a folk music in itself'" . Jazzwise. Retrieved 20 November 2022.
  11. "Fergus McCreadie: I'm not even dreaming about Mercury Prize win". BBC. 27 July 2022. Retrieved 4 May 2024.
  12. "Dollar Golf Club". ScottishGolfCourses.com. PSP Media Group. Archived from the original on 24 May 2023.