Old Travel Blog Photograph Harbour Cockenzie Scotland

Old travel Blog photograph of the harbour in Cockenzie, East Lothian, Scotland. A small harbour at the West side of Cockenzie at a natural basin. The harbour was begun by the 3rd Earl of Winton, about 1630, in connection with his salt pans. The York Buildings Company renovated and enlarged the harbour in 1722, and built a railway from it to the Tranent colliery. Colliery and harbour were bought by John Caddell in 1774, and the harbour was rebuilt by Messrs Caddell to plans by Robert Stevenson and Sons, being completed in 1833. The burgh of Cockenzie was created in 1591 by King James VI of Scotland. It was originally a small fishing village. Cockenzie power station, a large coal fired power station was a major employer from the 1960s until it closed in 2013. Robert Cadell was born on 16 December 1788 in Cockenzie, he was a bookseller and publisher closely associated with the author Sir Walter Scott. He died at the family home in Cockenzie on 20 January 1860 and is buried in Greyfriars Kirkyard in central Edinburgh. Of interest to folks with ancestry, genealogy or Scottish Family Roots in Scotland who may wish to visit one day.



All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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Old Travel Blog Photograph Bandstand Brechin Scotland

Old travel Blog photograph of the Bandstand in the Public Park in Brechin, Angus, Scotland. At the heart of the town, an ornate cast iron lamp standard by George Smith of Sun Foundry, Glasgow and in the park a good example of a drinking fountain and one of the larger bandstands supplied by Walter MacFarlane and Co, Saracen Ironworks, Glasgow. The roof shape was the main way that variation could be made, compared to the examples in Magdalen Greenin Dundee, and in Dunfermline, Fife.



All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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Old Travel Blog Photograph Puffers Troon Scotland

Old travel Blog photograph of three Clyde Puffers in the harbour in Troon, Ayrshire, Scotland. The Clyde puffer is essentially a type of small steamboat which provided a vital supply link around the west coast and Hebrides islands of Scotland, stumpy little cargo ships that have achieved almost mythical status thanks largely to the short stories Neil Munro wrote about the Vital Spark and her captain Para Handy. Troon is famous for its Royal Troon golf course, one of the hosts to the Open Golf Championship. Troon Harbour played a notable part in the development of the town for many years. It was home to the Ailsa Shipbuilding Company. Troon old railway station was one of the first passenger stations in Scotland as part of the Kilmarnock and Troon Railway. The Grey Lady of Troon. The Grey Lady is a tale or fable that has surrounded Troon for years. She was first sighted by Jason Grant, a local farmer, in 1873. I hope these might be of interest to folks with Scottish ancestry.



All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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Tour Scotland Travel Video Easter Saturday Drive Through Outlander Location Falkland Village Fife

Tour Scotland travel video of an Easter Saturday road trip drive through Falkland village on ancestry visit to Fife, Scotland. Easter Saturday is day following Good Friday. One of the first scenes for Outlander was filmed in the picturesque town of Falkland, which substituted for 1940s Inverness in the Highlands, Falkland is where Claire and Frank stay on their second honeymoon. The Covenanter Hotel feature as Mrs Baird's guesthouse; the Bruce Fountain, where the ghost of Jamie looks up at Claire's room; Lomond Pharmacy which doubles as Campbell's Coffee Shop; and Fayre Earth Gift Shop as Farrell's Hardware and Furniture Store, where Claire stops to look at a vase in the window. Falkland Palace is a royal palace of the Scottish Kings.

All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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Tour Scotland Travel Video Drive A93 Road To Blairgowrie Perthshire

Tour Scotland travel video of a road trip drive North on the A93 road on ancestry visit to Perth Street in Blairgowrie, Perthshire, Scotland. Blairgowrie was made a barony in favour of George Drummond of Blair in 1634 by a royal charter of King Charles I, and became a free burgh in 1809. In 1724 the military road from Coupar Angus to Fort George which passes through the town on the line of the A923 and A93 was completed. The town expanded hugely in the 19th century thanks to the employment provided by the many textile mills which were built along the River Ericht, all now closed.

All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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