At the 2011 census, Fort William had a population of 15,757, making it the second-largest settlement both in the Highland council area and in the whole of the Scottish Highlands; only the city of Inverness has a larger population.[6]
Fort William is a major tourist centre with Glen Coe just to the south, Ben Nevis and Aonach Mòr to the east, and Glenfinnan to the west. It is the start and end of the Road to the Isles. It is a huge centre for hillwalking and climbing due to its proximity to Ben Nevis, the largest mountain in Scotland and the United Kingdom, and many other Munros. It is also known for its nearby downhill mountain bike track.
There have been various suggestions over the years to rename the town (for example, to Invernevis).[12]
The origin of the Gaelic name for Fort William, An Gearasdan, is not recorded but could be a loanword from the English garrison, having entered common usage some time after the royal garrison was established during the reign of William of Orange, or perhaps after the earlier Cromwellian fort.[13]
During the 1745 Jacobite Rising, known as the Forty-Five, Fort William was besieged for two weeks by the Jacobite forces, from 20 March to 3 April 1746. However, although the Jacobites had captured both of the other forts in the chain of three Great Glen fortifications (Fort Augustus and the original Fort George), they failed to take Fort William.[17]Fort William Sheriff Court held its first hearing in 1794.[18][19]
Fort William Town Hall, which started life as an 18th-century church, was converted for municipal use in 1881. It was burnt down in 1975.[22][23]
Proposed development
A "waterfront" development was proposed by the council in 2007, but failed due to lack of public support.[24] The development would have included a hotel, shops, and housing. The proposed development was slated to take 7 years by the local council, but opponents of the project said that it was unlikely to be completed before 2020.[25] It was announced in April 2010 that the project had been abandoned.[26]
Geography
Fort William viewed from CorpachFort William Parade and Duncansburgh MacIntosh Parish Church
The town lies at the southern end of the Great Glen. Fort William lies near the head of Loch Linnhe, one of Scotland's longest sea lochs, beside the mouth of the rivers Nevis and Lochy. They join in the intertidal zone and briefly become one river before discharging to the sea. The town and its suburbs are surrounded by mountains. Its suburbs of Lochyside, Caol and Corpach are on the shore of Loch Eil. It is close to Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in the British Isles, Glen Nevis, and the settlement of Achnaphubuil, which is on the opposite shore of the loch. The original railway station, which was at the south end of the town, was opened on 7 August 1894.[27]
Countryside just outside of Fort William
The town is centred on the High Street, which was pedestrianised in the 1990s. Off this, there are several squares: Monzie Square (named after the Cameron Campbells of Monzie, Perthshire, former landowners in the town); Station Square, where the long-since demolished railway station used to be; Gordon Square (named after the Gordons, who in the late 18th century owned land where the town now stands, when the town was named Gordonsburgh); and Cameron Square—formerly known as Town Hall Square. There is also Fraser Square, which is not so square-like, since it now opens out into Middle Street, but which still houses the Imperial Hotel.
The main residential areas of the town are unseen from the High Street and the A82 main road. Upper Achintore and the Plantation spread steeply uphill from above the high street.
Inverlochy, aluminium plant, Corpach and Loch Eil
Inverlochy, Claggan, An-Aird, Lochyside, Caol, Banavie and Corpach outwith (i.e. outside) the town are the other main residential areas. These areas are built on much flatter land than the town.
Fort William is the northern end of the West Highland Way, a long-distance route which runs 95 miles (153 kilometres) through the Scottish Highlands to Milngavie, on the outskirts of Glasgow, and the start/end point of the Great Glen Way, which runs between Fort William and Inverness.
Glenfinnan, 17 miles (27 kilometres) away, is home of the Glenfinnan Monument (Jacobite era) and the famous Glenfinnan Viaduct (as seen on a Bank Of Scotland £10 note[28]). The viaduct has become known to millions in recent years as the "Harry Potter Bridge" after it featured in the films of the books by J.K. Rowling, specifically Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Glenfinnan has also been used in Charlotte Gray and Highlander.
Climate
Fort William has an oceanic climate (Cfb) with moderate, but generally cool, temperatures and abundant precipitation.[29] In the towns immediate vicinity, there are significant variations in elevation, which leads to some uninhabited areas near the town having a subpolar oceanic climate (Cfc), or, at the absolute highest elevations such as Ben Nevis, a tundra climate (ET). Fort William does not have an official Met Office weather station; as such, the values in the table below are simulated, and the record high and low temperatures are not available.[30][31]
On 3 April 2021, it came to light during Gupta's financial troubles involving Greensill Capital that the Jahama Highland Estates (formerly the "Alcan Estate") had been purchased in 2016 as part of the Rio Tinto Mines deal for the Lochaber aluminium plant, because the furnace requires so much power that the smelter is located near a hydroelectric plant, which drains the basin of the 114,000-acre (46,000-hectare) Estate.
The Estate includes the north face of Ben Nevis. According to reports, the Scottish National Party mandated that the Estate never be split from the hydro plant and aluminium smelter, but Gupta ignored them and placed ownership of the Estate in a company that is domiciled on the Isle of Man. The 2016 deal was worth £330 million and was guaranteed by the UK Chancellor of the Exchequer. Conservative finance spokesperson Murdo Fraser was critical of the alleged breach of the SNP agreement and urged the SNP to "take whatever steps are necessary to protect public funds".[35]
Transport
Arrival at Fort William of the overnight sleeper train from London Euston.
Trains - The West Highland Line passes through Fort William. Owing to the difficult terrain in the area, the line from Glasgow to the south enters from the north-east. Trains from Glasgow to Mallaig, the terminus of the line, have to reverse at Fort William railway station.[36] An overnight train between Fort William and London is also ran by the Caledonian Sleeper, this service is known colloquially as "The Deerstalker".[37]
Bus and Coach Connections - There are Scottish Citylink busses linking Fort William Bus Station with Glasgow, Oban, the Isle of Skye, and Inverness as well as various smaller connections to nearby places such as Mallaig and Glen Nevis. The stands for buses and express coaches are on MacFarlane Way adjacent to the railway station.[38]
Fort William is located on the A82. The closest motorway access is the junction after Erskine bridge (just off the A82) of the M898 near Erskine in Renfrewshire, 98 miles to the south west, joining onto the M8 motorway and the south.[relevant?]
In 2023 exploratory work began to replace the hospital, with construction expected to begin in the Blar Mhor area near Caol in 2025, with an estimated completion date of 2028.[42] In 2024 funding issues resulted in a potential delay to the construction of the new hospital with protests taking place in Fort William.[43][44]
Education
Lochaber High School is the local high school and serves a large catchment area which includes the surrounding villages.
Just outside the town, parallel to the Nevis RangeGondola, there is a large downhill mountain bike track which attracts thousands of visitors every year, including international competitors and fans.
Fort William has hosted the World Endurance Mountain Bike Organisation (WEMBO) solo 24-hour championship in 2014 and again in 2018. The event consists of riders racing for a full 24 hours and is won by the rider who has completed the greater number of laps.
Motorcycle trials
Fort William is the home of the Scottish Six Day Motorcycle Trial (SSDT), which is held annually in the first full week of May. It attracts many competitors from all across the globe and, in 2011, the event celebrated its centenary year.
Others
Fort William has two major shinty teams: Fort William Shinty Club and Kilmallie Shinty Club. It also has a football team, Fort William F.C., that competes in the Scottish North Caledonian League and plays home games at Claggan Park. There is also a cricket club at Fort William that participates in the North of Scotland Cricket Association league (NoSCA).
In addition, the town is home to Lochaber Rugby Club and to the Lochaber Yacht Club, a Community Amateur Sports Club that was founded in 1954. The town also has one golf club, called Fort William Golf Club, which has eighteen holes and is open year-round; it also hosts weekly competitions.
Festivals
In a celebration of mountains and the culture that surrounds them, and in recognition of the importance of climbing and walking tourism to the town, the Fort William Mountain Festival is held there each year. For a number of years,[when?] this volunteer-led festival has concentrated mostly around film but, starting in the Year of Highland Culture – Highland 2007, its scope was widened, and it dropped the word 'film' from its title.[45]
The Highlands is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Scots language replaced Scottish Gaelic throughout most of the Lowlands. The term is also used for the area north and west of the Highland Boundary Fault, although the exact boundaries are not clearly defined, particularly to the east. The Great Glen divides the Grampian Mountains to the southeast from the Northwest Highlands. The Scottish Gaelic name of A' Ghàidhealtachd literally means "the place of the Gaels" and traditionally, from a Gaelic-speaking point of view, includes both the Western Isles and the Highlands.
Fort Augustus is a settlement in the parish of Boleskine and Abertarff, at the south-west end of Loch Ness, Scottish Highlands. The village has a population of around 646 (2001). Its economy is heavily reliant on tourism.
Highland is a council area in the Scottish Highlands and is the largest local government area in the United Kingdom. It was the 7th most populous council area in Scotland at the 2011 census. It has land borders with the council areas of Aberdeenshire, Argyll and Bute, Moray and Perth and Kinross. The wider upland area of the Scottish Highlands after which the council area is named extends beyond the Highland council area into all the neighbouring council areas plus Angus and Stirling.
The Caledonian Canal connects the Scottish east coast at Inverness with the west coast at Corpach near Fort William in Scotland. The canal was constructed in the early nineteenth century by Scottish engineer Thomas Telford.
Kinlochleven is a coastal village located in Lochaber, in the Scottish Highlands and lies at the eastern end of Loch Leven. To the north lie the Mamores ridge; to the south lie the mountains flanking Glen Coe.
The A82 is a major road in Scotland that runs from Glasgow to Inverness via Fort William. It is one of the principal north-south routes in Scotland and is mostly a trunk road managed by Transport Scotland, who view it as an important link from the Central Belt to the Scottish Highlands and beyond. The road passes close to numerous landmarks, including Loch Lomond, Rannoch Moor, Glen Coe, the Ballachulish Bridge, Ben Nevis, the Commando Memorial, Loch Ness, and Urquhart Castle. Along with the A9 and the A90 it is one of the three major north–south trunk roads connecting the Central Belt to the North.
Lochaber is a name applied to a part of the Scottish Highlands. Historically, it was a provincial lordship consisting of the parishes of Kilmallie and Kilmonivaig. Lochaber once extended from the Northern shore of Loch Leven, a district called Nether Lochaber, to beyond Spean Bridge and Roybridge, which area is known as Brae Lochaber or Braigh Loch Abar in Gaelic. For local government purposes, the name was used for one of the landward districts of Inverness-shire from 1930 to 1975, and then for one of the districts of the Highland region from 1975 to 1996. Since 1996 the Highland Council has had a Lochaber area committee.
The Great Glen, also known as Glen Albyn or Glen More, is a glen in Scotland running for 62 miles (100 km) from Inverness on the edge of the Moray Firth, in an approximately straight line to Fort William at the head of Loch Linnhe. It follows a geological fault known as the Great Glen Fault, and bisects the Scottish Highlands into the Grampian Mountains to the southeast and the Northwest Highlands to the northwest.
Loch Leven is a sea loch located onto the west coast of Scotland. It is spelled Loch Lyon in Timothy Pont's map of the area and is pronounced Li' un. However, the local Gaelic pronunciation is Lee' oon
The A830, also known as the Road to the Isles is a major road in Lochaber, Scottish Highlands. It connects the town of Fort William to the port of Mallaig.
Clan Cameron is a West Highland Scottish clan, with one main branch Lochiel, and numerous cadet branches. The Clan Cameron lands are in Lochaber, and within their lands lies Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in the British Isles. The Chief of the clan is customarily referred to as simply "Lochiel".
Lochaber High School is a six-year comprehensive secondary school located in the town of Fort William, Lochaber, in the Highland region of Scotland.
Achaphubuil is a small settlement to the north of Ardgour in Lochaber, in the Highlands of Scotland. Achaphubuil lies to the south of The Narrows, which link Loch Linnhe to Loch Eil. The village of Corpach is on the opposite shore, with Fort William across Loch Linnhe to the north-east.
Spean Bridge is a village in the parish of Kilmonivaig, in Lochaber in the Highland region of Scotland.
National Cycle Route 78 runs from Campbeltown to Inverness. It was officially launched as the Caledonia Way in 2016 as part of the wider redevelopment of Scotland's cycle network. It runs from the Kintyre peninsula to the Great Glen and the route varies from on road to traffic-free forest trails and canal paths.
Inverness-shire or the County of Inverness, is a historic county in Scotland. It is named after Inverness, its largest settlement, which was also the county town. Covering much of the Highlands and some of the Hebrides, it is Scotland's largest county by land area. It is generally rural and sparsely populated, containing only three towns which held burgh status, being Inverness, Fort William and Kingussie. The county is crossed by the Great Glen, which contains Loch Ness and separates the Grampian Mountains to the south-east from the Northwest Highlands. The county also includes Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in both Scotland and the United Kingdom.
Inverlochy is a village north of Fort William, Highland, Scotland. Inverlochy is part of the Great Glen Way, a popular hiking and cycling route from Fort William to Inverness.
The River Nevis flows from the mountains east of Ben Nevis to its mouth near the town of Fort William in Scotland.
Ben Nevis and Glen Coe is a national scenic area (NSA) covering part of the Highlands of Scotland surrounding Ben Nevis and Glen Coe, in which certain forms of development are restricted. It is one of 40 such areas in Scotland, which are defined so as to identify areas of exceptional scenery and to ensure their protection from inappropriate development. The Ben Nevis and Glen Coe NSA covers 903 km2 (349 sq mi) of land, lying within the Highland, Argyll and Bute and Perth and Kinross council areas. A further 19 km2 (7.3 sq mi) of the NSA are marine, covering the sea loch of Loch Leven.
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