Ellon (Scottish Gaelic: Eilean) is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, approximately 16 miles (26 kilometres) north of Aberdeen, lying on the River Ythan, which has one of the few undeveloped river estuaries on the eastern coast of Scotland. It is in the ancient region of Formartine. Its name is believed to derive from the Gaelic term Eilean, meaning island, reflecting the town’s historical position at a ford on the River Ythan.[2] In 1707 it was made a burgh of barony for the Earl of Buchan. It is twinned with the city of Chièvres in Hainaut Province, Belgium.[3]
Places of interest within the town include Ellon Castle Gardens, a historic garden complex restored by volunteers and open to the public. The gardens contain a collection of ancient English yew trees thought to be at least 500 years old, along with the ruins of the old Ellon Castle.[4] Ellon also has Auld Brig, the Old Bridge of Ellon, a Category A listed bridge across the River Ythan, built in 1793 and no longer carrying vehicular traffic.[5]
The Riverside Park offers walkways alongside the Ythan, from which herons, salmon, trout and otters may be observed.[6]
In 2013, BrewDog built a 5+1⁄2-acre (2.2-hectare) brewery at a cost of £7.8 million in a greenfield site just outside of Ellon.[7] The brewery is designed to minimise carbon emissions with the use of treatment plants, biogas technology and since 2021, an anerobic digestion plant.[8][9] In 2016, the brewery was expanded at a cost of £5 million including the addition of a new 300-hectolitre (hL) brew house.[10][11]
The ruins of the Kinmuck Castle are located about 4.0 miles (6.4km) north-east of Ellon. That castle was dismantled in 1413 to build the old Ellon Castle.[12]
These schools feed into Ellon Academy, the local secondary school. A new purpose-built Ellon Academy Community Campus opened to pupils in August 2015 on the outskirts of the town.[16]
The Ythan Centre was formerly used by Aberdeenshire Council’s community learning and development service and had been vacant since February 2016. In January 2019, Ellon Baptist Church began using the council-owned building under a five-year lease as a community and religious hub.[18][19]
The Meadows sports centre,[20] located on the outskirts of Ellon, has many sporting facilities and clubs, including football and rugby pitches, an astroturf pitch for hockey, a gym, and a multi-use sports hall. The Meadows is also home to Ellon United football team, the Ellon Rugby Club and Ellon Hockey Club.
Ellon has benefited from the North Sea oil demand, and is one of the main dormitory towns for Aberdeen. It is part of the proposed Energetica corridor of development.[21]
The former railway line is now part of the Formartine and Buchan Way, a long-distance walking and cycling route that follows the track of the disused Formartine and Buchan Railway through Aberdeenshire.[24]
Due to the population expansion since the North Sea Oil boom, the A90 has become overloaded between Aberdeen, Ellon and Peterhead. The Aberdeen Crossrail project has looked at reopening sections of the former railway, however as of March 2009 this is still unlikely.
Notable people
Patrick Gordon of Auchleuchries (1635–1699), general and rear admiral in Russia, chief advisor to Tsar Peter the Great
Rev James Robertson (1803–1860) later Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland and first person in Britain to use bone meal as a fertiliser (on the church glebe)
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