Longforgan | |
---|---|
Location within Perth and Kinross | |
Population | 1,090 (2022) [1] |
Council area | |
Country | Scotland |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | DUNDEE |
Postcode district | DD2 |
Police | Scotland |
Fire | Scottish |
Ambulance | Scottish |
Longforgan is a village and parish in the Carse of Gowrie, in Perth and Kinross, Scotland. It lies 5 miles (8 kilometres) west of Dundee on the main A90 road.
A record survives of Sir Patrick Gray, as Baron of Longforgan, holding a baronial court here in 1385 on the Longforgan or Hund Hill; a moot hill. The officials present were the same as those at of the sovereign's courts. [2] The village was created a burgh of barony in 1672. [3] Castle Huntly, established in the 14th century and developed in the 17th and 18th centuries, is located 1⁄2 mile (800 metres) south-west of the village. [4] It is now an open prison. A woodland, Huntly Woods, is situated 3⁄4 mi (1.2 km) away from the village. There is evidence that a Roman Camp was built in Huntly woods.[ citation needed ]
St Modwenna, who died in 521, is said to have founded a church at Longforgan. The present church, which probably stands on its site, was practically rebuilt in 1794, but during renovation about 1900, 15th century mouldings were discovered. A probably 13th century cross and a tombstone dated 1400, from the churchyard are preserved in the church.
The present church is still in use and no trace of an earlier building can be seen. A restored panel in the tower reads "Founded in 1690". Two stones bearing incised crosses stand against the wall of the vestibule within the church. The tombstone dated 1400 is fixed to the interior of the north wall of the church. Beneath it is a stone with the following inscription: "Found under floor at supposed east end of pre-Reformation church while altering present church 1899". This stone bears the full length effigies of a knight in armour, his lady in the costume of the period and a small figure of a youth in armour, either a son or an attendant squire. Around the edge of the stone a ribbon is carried which the following (Latin) inscription is incised in Gothic letters. A translation reads : here lies John de Galychtly, late Laird of Ebrokis. The date for death was not carved and the incised writing is relatively clear indicating the stone may not have been used as a grave marker. The lands of Ebrokis (Ebrukis, Ebrux) appear in the Great Seal Register 1508/9 within the barony of Longforgan. In a letter dated 1650 between Sir Patrick Ogilvie of Inchmartine and Thomas Ogilvie, the lands of Ebrokis are mentioned as 'Ebrux alias Broomhall'. Broomhall is located at the south west corner of Longforgan parish.
Two grave slabs, one to James Fife, d.1588 and the other to Jean Fledger, d.1660, have been removed from the graveyard, conserved and are now displayed within the church lobby. A tombstone to the 17th century painter Apollonia Kickius is in the graveyard.
William Wallace is said to have stopped here to rest after escaping from Dundee where he had killed the English governor's son. The knocking stone upon which he sat is preserved in the Dundee Museum. [5]
The name Longforgan may be derived from Scottish Gaelic lann, meaning "enclosure" or "church", or lòn, meaning "marsh", coupled with fothir grund, meaning a fertile field. Its form in modern Scottish Gaelic is Forgrann. [6]
Main Street is one of the oldest parts of the village. It contains the oldest cottages in the village and the bowling club, police station, Architects Office, primary school, Coaching Inn, church and general store. The 17th-century mercat cross is protected as a category A listed building. [7] Castle Road is another of the oldest streets in Longforgan, and as the name suggests, was the main road from the church down to Castle Huntly. Many of the houses are original whitewashed cottar houses used in the past by land workers on the estate. This 'bonny' road down to the Carse of Gowrie is now closed to through vehicle traffic. The primary school in the village can accommodate around 100 pupils in total. The Headteacher is Lauren Budd.
The Eastbank area was developed in the 1960s, and Paterson was built in the 1970s, to accommodate the village's growing population, it is situated in the north of the village. Dorward Place was re-developed (completion 1997) from an old Farm Site (An Aerial photograph of the original site is hung in the housing complex) and consists only of sheltered servite housing. Westbank was originally farms but was transformed into houses in 2001. Rosamunde Pilcher Drive is located in this estate, and is named after the bestselling author Rosamunde Pilcher who lived in Longforgan. [3] Built in the 2000s, Mary Findlay Drive is the largest modern housing estate in Longforgan with 42 houses and its own park. Worbey Place is situated next to Helen McGregor Park in the east end of Longforgan. The park includes run down tennis courts, a football pitch and a play area.
The only church is situated on the Main Street and is run by the Church of Scotland with the minister being the Rev. Dr. Marjory MacLean. Memorial panels to the Paterson family in the church were designed by Robert Lorimer in 1900. [8]
The village had a railway station, Longforgan, which was open between 1849 and 1956. It was situated about 1 mile (1.6 km) south of the village on what is now the Glasgow–Dundee line. The village was bypassed to the north in 1952 by what is now the A90. [9]
Stagecoach East Scotland provides bus services 39, 39A and 39B, connecting Longforgan Main Street to Dundee, Perth City Centre and PRI. These services, collectively, run hourly throughout the week. [10] From the A90 Westbound Slip Road Roundabout bus stop, Scottish bus operator Ember operates services E1 to Edinburgh [11] and E3 to Glasgow. [12] The services from the westbond roundabout bus stop operate in the opposite direction to Dundee. [13]
Drimmie was an estate in the west of Longforgan parish. A sharp drop-off of 177 feet (54 m) known as the Snabs of Drimmie, "extend[s] north-westward from the bold rocky point of Kingoodie". [14] [15] [16]
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.
The Carse of Gowrie is a stretch of low-lying country in the southern part of Gowrie, Perth and Kinross, Scotland. It stretches for about 20 miles along the north shore of the Firth of Tay between Perth and Dundee. The area offers high-quality agricultural land and is well known as a major area for strawberry, raspberry and general fruit growing. Fruit is easy to cultivate in the area because of its southerly aspect and low rainfall. It has been suggested that monks brought new varieties of apples and pears to the area in the Middle Ages and there may have been vineyards growing on slopes near the River Tay.
Errol is a village in Perth and Kinross, Scotland, about halfway between Dundee and Perth. It is one of the principal settlements of the Carse of Gowrie. It lies just north of the River Tay. The 2016 population of Errol was estimated to be 1,500 persons, compared to 1,070 in the 2001 Census.
Kingoodie is a hamlet about 4 miles (6.4 km) south west of Dundee, but in the region of Perth and Kinross, Scotland. The shore is easily accessible and close to the Firth of Tay.
Castle Huntly is a castle in Scotland, now used as a prison under the name HMP Castle Huntly. It is located approximately 7 miles (11 km) west of Dundee in the Carse of Gowrie, Perth and Kinross, close to the shore of the Firth of Tay, and can be seen from the main road linking Dundee and Perth. The castle sits on top of a rocky outcrop surrounded by what is now farmland. In ancient times this land was marshy wilderness and the decision to locate the castle on the rock may have been taken with a view to the castle's defensive position in mind.
Invergowrie is a village on the northwest bank of the Firth of Tay to the west of Dundee. Historically part of Perthshire, it was formerly incorporated as part of the city of Dundee, but is now administered as part of Perth and Kinross.
Lecropt is a rural parish lying to the west of Bridge of Allan, Scotland.
Fingask Castle is a country house in Perth and Kinross, Scotland. It is perched 200 feet (61 m) above Rait, three miles (5 km) north-east of Errol, in the Braes of the Carse, on the fringes of the Sidlaw Hills. Thus it overlooks both the Carse of Gowrie and the Firth of Tay and beyond into the Kingdom of Fife. The name derives from Gaelic fionn-gasg: a white or light-coloured appendage.
Inchture is a village in Scotland between Dundee and Perth on the northern side of the Firth of Tay. It is approximately nine miles (14 km) from Dundee city centre and 13 miles (21 km) from Perth. The village is bypassed by on the A90 trunk road and benefits from a flyover (grade-separated) junction onto the road making it popular with commuters working in Dundee and further afield.
Gowrie is a region in central Scotland and one of the original provinces of the Kingdom of Alba. It covered the eastern part of what became Perthshire. It was located to the immediate east of Atholl, and originally included the area around Perth, though that was later detached as Perthia.
St. Madoes is a village in the Carse of Gowrie, Scotland. It was developed near Pitfour Castle. It is believed that there have been settlements since around 1000 C.E based on discoveries of several standing stones and the St. Madoes stone, a well-preserved Pictish cross.
Rait is a small village in Perth and Kinross, Scotland. It lies 2+1⁄2 miles northwest of Errol, in the Gowrie area west of Dundee, on a minor road crossing the Sidlaw Hills through the Glen of Rait. The village is mainly residential with stone cottages, some modern developments and also features some single storey thatched cottages dating back to the 1700s or early 1800s which form a fermtoun. The former parish church, now ruined, was built in the Middle Ages, and abandoned in the 17th century when the parish of Rait was merged with Kilspindie. The remains of a prehistoric promontory fort lie to the east of the village. The 16th-century Fingask Castle is located to the north of the village, on the south-facing slopes of the Sidlaw Hills.
Kingskettle or often simply Kettle is a village and parish in Fife, Scotland. Encompassed by the Howe of Fife, the village is approximately 5.5 miles (9 km) southwest of the nearest town, Cupar, and 22 miles (35 km) north of Edinburgh. According to the 2011 Census for Scotland, the Kettle parish had a population of 1,645, of which 1,002 lived in the village.
Inchyra is a hamlet in the Carse of Gowrie in Scotland. It lies on the northern bank of the River Tay near Perth and is notable particularly for a number of archaeological finds made in the immediate vicinity.
Collace is a parish in Perthshire, Scotland, 8 miles northeast of Perth, in the Carse of Gowrie district. The parish boundary includes the neighbouring villages of Kinrossie and Saucher.
Rossie Priory is a category B listed country house and estate to the north of Inchture, near the hamlets of Baledgarno and Knapp, Perthshire, Scotland. It lies 9.6 miles (15.4 km) by road west of the city centre of Dundee. The large estate is roughly 2000 acres.
Adam Philip was a Scottish minister and author, who served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the United Free Church of Scotland in 1921.
Pitmiddle was a village in the Gowrie region of Perthshire, Scotland. It is now deserted, the last resident having left in 1938, with little evidence of its previous habitation. Its history dates back to the 12th century, and it is now a scheduled monument.
Kinfauns is a village in Perth and Kinross, Scotland, at the western end of the Carse of Gowrie, 3 miles (4.8 km) east of Perth.
Ember is a coach operator based in Edinburgh, Scotland. It operates the first electric intercity coach services in Scotland.