Keith, Moray
 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification.(September 2009) |
Keith
| |
|---|---|
  Keith Location withinMoray | |
| Population | 4,610 (2022)[1] |
| OS grid reference | NJ430506 |
| •Edinburgh | 110 mi (177 km)S |
| •London | 432 mi (695 km)SSE |
| Council area | |
| Lieutenancy area | |
| Country | Scotland |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | KEITH |
| Postcode district | AB55 |
| Dialling code | 01542 |
| Police | Scotland |
| Fire | Scottish |
| Ambulance | Scottish |
| UK Parliament | |
| Scottish Parliament | |
Keith(Scottish Gaelic:Baile Chèith,orCèith Mhaol Rubha(archaic)) is a small town in theMoraycouncil areain north eastScotland.It has a population of 4,734.
Keith is historically inBanffshire,a name which persists in common usage and historical references. Keith has three distinct sections: Old Town, where the original settlement was first established; Keith which is the main commercial centre and Fife Keith which was originally a separate town built in competition by the Earl of Fife but which, having proved less economically successful, was eventually joined to form one homogeneous settlement separated now only by the river.
The oldest part of Keith dates to around 1180[2]where the Old Town still remains, now almost indistinguishable from the rest of the town. It developed around the old bridge which was built there by two mourning parents as a permanent memorial to their dear child who drowned in the river at that crossing point in the hope that none should suffer similar loss.[citation needed]The main part of the town is on higher ground above the river, laid out around 1750 by theEarl of Findlater.[3]It is located at the crossing of theA95andA96roads. Local services include a health centre, dentist, optician and multiple hairdressing salons. The town has three schools:Keith Grammar School,Keith Primary School and St Thomas RC Primary School.
The annual Keith Country Show, held at Seafield Park, is an event in the farming calendar of north-east Scotland.[citation needed]
Newmillis a village approximatelytwo kilometres (1+1⁄4miles) north of Keith.
History and culture
[edit]The name appears to come from aBrythonicword meaning "wood" (cf.Welshcoed), but it may also be related to thePictishterritorial division in this area, which was known asCé.[4]
The Chronicles of Keith,[5]compiled in the 19th century, provide an unusually comprehensive view of the area's history. According to them Keith was originally known as "Kethmalruff", a dedication toSaint Maol Rubha(d. 722), also Latinised as "St Rufus". This dedication to an early medieval saint may imply a Dark Age origin for the first church at Keith (still marked by an ancient graveyard, though theparish churchwas rebuilt on another site in the early nineteenth century), though no archaeological evidence for this has been identified.
During theJacobite rising of 1745,the Jacobite army won a skirmish at Keith on 21 March 1746. A Jacobite party under Major Nicholas Glasgow and Captain Robert Stewart surprised and defeated a Government force, killing over 20 of them.[6]This victory at Keith is an interesting reminder that the Jacobites were continuing to take the initiative in many parts of northern Scotland right up until theBattle of Culloden.
The language spoken indigenously round Keith isDoric,which superseded Scottish Gaelic (see language section atMoray).
The town is home of psych/folk/country band, the Carousels, whose track 'Marianne' was used on an advertising campaign forIrn-Bru.
The first Keith Golf Club (now defunct) was founded in 1901. TheSecond World Warsaw the demise of the club and the course reverted to farmland.[7]
TheUnion Street drill hallwas completed in around 1908.[8]
Climate
[edit]Keith has anoceanic climate(Köppen:Cfb).
| Climate data for Keith (142 m or 466 ft asl, averages 1991–2020) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 6.1 (43.0) |
6.9 (44.4) |
8.8 (47.8) |
11.5 (52.7) |
14.2 (57.6) |
16.3 (61.3) |
18.7 (65.7) |
18.3 (64.9) |
16.1 (61.0) |
12.3 (54.1) |
8.6 (47.5) |
6.1 (43.0) |
12.0 (53.6) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 2.9 (37.2) |
3.3 (37.9) |
4.8 (40.6) |
7.2 (45.0) |
9.6 (49.3) |
12.2 (54.0) |
14.3 (57.7) |
13.9 (57.0) |
11.9 (53.4) |
8.5 (47.3) |
5.2 (41.4) |
2.7 (36.9) |
8.1 (46.6) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −0.3 (31.5) |
−0.3 (31.5) |
0.7 (33.3) |
2.9 (37.2) |
5.1 (41.2) |
8.0 (46.4) |
9.9 (49.8) |
9.5 (49.1) |
7.6 (45.7) |
4.8 (40.6) |
1.8 (35.2) |
−0.7 (30.7) |
4.1 (39.4) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 62.6 (2.46) |
55.9 (2.20) |
54.9 (2.16) |
59.9 (2.36) |
61.6 (2.43) |
91.6 (3.61) |
73.2 (2.88) |
81.2 (3.20) |
83.6 (3.29) |
109.5 (4.31) |
89.7 (3.53) |
65.2 (2.57) |
888.9 (35) |
| Average rainy days(≥ 1 mm) | 14.3 | 12.1 | 12.4 | 11.6 | 11.5 | 13.5 | 13.4 | 14.0 | 12.3 | 15.8 | 15.7 | 14.0 | 160.6 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 49.6 | 83.0 | 114.4 | 150.1 | 199.6 | 149.8 | 155.4 | 145.4 | 120.0 | 87.8 | 58.5 | 36.9 | 1,350.5 |
| Source:Met Office[9] | |||||||||||||
Tourist attractions
[edit]The town is at the start ofScotland's Malt Whisky Trail,and has threedistilleries:Strathmill, Glenkeith andStrathisla distillery,one of the oldest in theHighlandsand since 1950 headquarters of Chivas Brothers, producers ofChivas Regal.[10]Within the town's immediate environs there may also be foundAuchroisk,Aultmore andGlentauchers.TheKeith and Dufftown Railwayis an 11-mile (18-kilometre)heritage railwayrunning toDufftown.
TheKeith Heritage Grouphave published a number of maps that lead visitors on walking tours through the town and surrounding countryside.
Two annual events attract tourists to Keith. The first of these, the TMSA Keith Festival,[11]falls on the second weekend of June and celebrates the traditional (and not so traditional) music of the area, providing entertainment in the form of concerts,ceilidhs,competitions and sessions. On the second weekend of August the town hosts the Keith Country Show. The show was founded in 1872 and every year promises days of prize-winning livestock and family fun.[12]
The Seabury Chair, the chair on whichRobert Kilgour,Bishop of Aberdeen andPrimus of Scotlandsat when he consecratedSamuel Seabury,the firstEpiscopalbishopin the Americas, is preserved in Holy Trinity Episcopal Church.[13]
Education
[edit]The town is served byKeith Grammar School,Keith Primary School and St Thomas' School.
Industry
[edit]The nearbyBlackhillockelectrical substationis the landing point for a 1200 MWhigh-voltage direct currentCaithness - Moray Link.[14][15][16]Another cable, the 550 MWShetland HVDC Connectionwas planned to reach Blackhillock,[17]but was moved to Spittal instead.[18]
Sports facilities
[edit]Keith has an 18-holegolf course,threetennis courts,a bowling club, skate park and a large sports hall. The swimming pool has been refurbished with a gym and sauna room added to the facilities. Keith Cricket Club play their home games at Fife Park. Keith also has multiple football pitches in the area. One official pitch,Kynoch Park,which is home toKeith F.C.,Simpson Park which is owned by Keith & District Sports Trust is whereIslavale F.C.play their home games.
Famous residents
[edit]- Brian Adam,former Member of the Scottish Parliament
- James Gordon Bennett, Sr.,founder and publisher of theNew York Herald
- George Foulkes,former Member of the Scottish Parliament
- Colin Hendry,footballer
- Irvine Laidlaw,businessman and life peer
- William Macmillan,1991Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland
- James Naughtie,BBC Radio broadcaster
- John Ogilvie,post-Reformation saint
- John Ripley,recipient of theVictoria Cross
- George Sellar,recipient of the Victoria Cross
Transport
[edit]Keith railway stationprovides connections toInvernessandAberdeenand the localrailwayprovides travel toDufftownas part ofScotland's Malt Whisky Trail.Stagecoach Bluebirdoperate bus services which provide hourly transport toInvernesscity centre &AberdeenUnion Squarebus station including local towns along theA96.
References
[edit]- ^"Mid-2020 Population Estimates for Settlements and Localities in Scotland".National Records of Scotland.31 March 2022.Retrieved31 March2022.
- ^"Keith".Undiscovered Scotland.Retrieved28 December2022.
- ^Grant, John; Leslie, William (1798).A Survey of the Province of Moray: historical, geographical, and political.p. 301.
- ^Scottish Parliament website – Placenames collected by Iain Mac an TailleirArchived2011-09-26 at theWayback Machine
- ^Gordon, James Frederick Skinner (1880).The Book of the Chronicles of Keith, Grange, Ruthven, Cairney, and Botriphbie: Events, Places...University of Michigan. R. Forrester.
- ^C. Duffy,The 45,pp. 483 – 485, 487
- ^"Keith Golf Club".Golf's Missing Links.
- ^"Keith, 9-11 Union Street, TA Centre".Canmore.Retrieved26 June2017.(The 1:2500, 2nd edition, Ordnance Survey Plan, published in 1904–1905, does not show the drill hall)
- ^"Keith (Moray) UK climate averages".Met Office. Archived fromthe originalon 7 November 2023.Retrieved7 November2023.
- ^Strathisla on the Whisky GuideArchived2011-07-17 at theWayback Machine
- ^"Keith Festival 2007".Archived fromthe originalon 29 July 2007.
- ^Keith Country Show website
- ^Isla Deveron Churches; the chair
- ^"£500m subsea power cable to connect Scottish renewables - e & T Magazine".Archived fromthe originalon 29 August 2016.Retrieved20 July2016.
- ^"Caithness Moray HVDC".Caithness Moray.SSE Power Distribution. Archived fromthe originalon 20 January 2016.Retrieved3 January2016.
- ^"ABB information".Caithness Moray HVDC Link.ABB.Retrieved3 January2016.
- ^ "Viking interconnector by April 2016".Shetland News.16 November 2011.Retrieved9 April2012.
- ^"Caithness HVDC".Archived fromthe originalon 20 January 2016.
External links
[edit]
Media related toKeith, Morayat Wikimedia Commons- InKeith– Official website of Keith
- The map of Keithon streetmap.co.uk
- A Tour of Keith in Words and Pictures
- Keith Heritage in Focus
- Keith Community Radio broadcasting as 'KCR 107.7'(FM 107.7 and online at kcr.fm)
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