Tour Scotland wee video of old photographs of Thornton in Fife. This Scottish village is located between Kirkcaldy and Glenrothes, and stands between the River Ore and Lochty Burn, which are at opposite ends of the main street. In 1957 the Rothes Pit was opened to mine the coal in the rural hinterland surrounding the village. This coal mine was tied very closely to the development of the new town of Glenrothes to the North. The planned long term benefits were to be huge, and were to be the driver for economic regeneration in central Fife. In 1961, 4 years after opening, the huge investment was written off and the mine run down because of unstoppable flooding. Ironically, miners who had worked in older deep pits in the area had forewarned against the development of the Rothes Pit for this very reason. During the first part of the 20th century, Thornton railway station was situated on the Aberdeen to London, England, main line to the east of the village, at the end of Station Road. To the west, alongside the Dunfermline line, was built the largest railway marshalling yard in Scotland during the 1950s. Though much reduced, this yard is still in use for rail freight services. Thornton Parish Church was built in 1834 as a chapel of ease for Markinch Parish Church.
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
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