The name Preston means "priest town", and the monks of Holyrood Abbey and Newbattle Abbey owned land there. The village was noted for St Jerome's Fair, held on the second Thursday of October. The chapmen of the area had formed themselves into a guild and elected their office bearers at the fair.
Two of Preston's most important structures were Preston Tower and Preston mercat cross. The mercat cross which dates from 1617, is unique both in its integrity and in that it is the only such structure in Scotland still in its original location and form. It has eight compartments, two doorways, six alcoves with semi-circular mouldings of scallop shells. The latter are said to be an allusion to the pilgrim traffic between North Berwick and St Andrews.
East Lothian is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, as well as a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area. The county was called Haddingtonshire until 1921.
The Firth of Forth is the estuary, or firth, of several Scottish rivers including the River Forth. It meets the North Sea with Fife on the north coast and Lothian on the south.
Prestonpans is a small mining town, situated approximately eight miles east of Edinburgh, Scotland, in the Council area of East Lothian. The population as of 2020 is 10,460. It is near the site of the 1745 Battle of Prestonpans. Prestonpans is "Scotland's Mural Town", with many murals depicting local history.
A mercat cross is the Scots name for the market cross found frequently in Scottish cities, towns and villages where historically the right to hold a regular market or fair was granted by the monarch, a bishop or a baron. It therefore served a secular purpose as a symbol of authority, and was an indication of a burgh's relative prosperity. Historically, the term dates from the period before 1707, when the Kingdom of Scotland was an independent state, but it has been applied loosely to later structures built in the traditional architectural style of crosses or structures fulfilling the function of marking a settlement's focal point. Historical documents often refer simply to "the cross" of whichever town or village is mentioned. Today, there are around 126 known examples of extant crosses in Scotland, though the number rises if later imitations are added.
Preston Tower is a ruined L-plan keep in the ancient Scottish village of Prestonpans. It is situated within a few metres of two other historic houses, Hamilton House and Northfield House.
Hamilton House, also known as Magdalen's House, is a 17th-century "Laird's House" in the town of Prestonpans in East Lothian, Scotland. It is an exemplar of this type of architecture and has retained its crow-stepped gables and corner towers. It is owned by the National Trust for Scotland and is a Category A Listed Building.
Prestongrange Museum is an industrial heritage museum at Prestongrange between Musselburgh and Prestonpans on the B1348 on the East Lothian coast, Scotland. Founded as the original site of the National Mining Museum, its operation reverted to East Lothian Council Museum Service in 1992.
Prestongrange is a place in East Lothian, Scotland, United Kingdom, situated between Musselburgh to the west, and Prestonpans to the east.
Prestongrange House is a historic house at Prestongrange near Prestonpans, East Lothian, Scotland, UK. It is situated near to two other historic houses, Hamilton House and Northfield House.
The Royal Musselburgh Golf Club is a golf club at Prestongrange House, Prestongrange near Prestonpans, East Lothian, Scotland, on the B1361.
Morrison's Haven is a harbour at Prestongrange, East Lothian, Scotland, UK, on the B1348, close to Levenhall Links, Prestongrange Industrial Heritage Museum, Prestonpans, and Prestongrange House.
Northfield House is a seventeenth-century historic house at Preston, East Lothian, Scotland, UK. It is situated very close to Hamilton House and Preston Tower, and one mile east to Prestongrange House and the Royal Musselburgh Golf Club. It is a Category A listed building.
Prestongrange Parish Church is a Church of Scotland kirk situated in the small, former mining town of Prestonpans in East Lothian. The church was built in 1596, one of the first churches to be built in Scotland following the Scottish Reformation in 1560. In 1606, Prestonpans was created a parish in its own right following centuries of being part of the parish of Tranent.
Winton Castle is a historic building set in a large estate between Pencaitland and Tranent in East Lothian, Scotland. The castle is situated off the B6355 road approximately 0.5 miles (0.80 km) north of Pencaitland at grid reference NT437694.
Bankton House is a late 17th-century house situated south of Prestonpans in East Lothian, Scotland. The house is located between the A1 road and the East Coast Main Line railway at grid reference NT394736.
Pennypit Park is a sports complex located in the town of Prestonpans, East Lothian in Scotland. It consists of two sports fields, one for association football and the other rugby union. It is the home of East of Scotland Football League club Preston Athletic F.C. and rugby union club Preston Lodge RFC. It has a capacity of 1,500 with 313 seats.
The Barony of Preston and Prestonpans is a Scottish feudal barony in East Lothian. Once a title attached to land ownership, Scottish feudal baronies are deemed properties in their own right and can now be transferred independent of the land. For most of its history it was referred to as the Barony of Preston and Prestonpans, but as of 1663 the names were unified into one free barony, the Barony of Preston.
John Hamilton, Lord Magdalens (1561–1632) was a 16th/17th century Scottish judge and Senator of the College of Justice.
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