Collieston
Collieston is a small former
.History
The earliest recorded history of Collieston is of the arrival of
. There is, however, evidence that people lived here during much earlier times.Collieston was established as a fishing village by the 16th century, and it provides the first safe harbour in over fifteen miles of
drift netting developed during the mid 19th century, the fishing began to decline and the focus of the industry shifted to places like Peterhead
because the harbour at Collieston was too small to safely accommodate the larger boats needed.
The numerous sea
spirits were being illegally landed in the area every month. In 1798, the notorious village smuggler, Phillip Kennedy, was killed by a blow from an exciseman's cutlass. His grave and tombstone still stands in the village graveyard
.
A ship from the
James VI blew up the Earl's castle which stood on the cliffs, a mile north of Collieston. The Earl went on to rebuild Slains Castle
, six miles further up the coast, in 1597.
Collieston is now mainly a commuter village serving Aberdeen, and is largely given over to tourists during the summer months.
Trivia
In September 1930, T. E. Lawrence, better known as Lawrence of Arabia, rented a cottage in the village while on leave from the RAF. He referred to the cottage in his writings as "the nearest hovel to the high-tide mark". This cottage still exists, although it has since been modernised and extensively rebuilt.
References
- AA Touring Guide to Scotland (1978)
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Collieston.
Settlements and places of interest in Formartine, Aberdeenshire | ||
|---|---|---|
| Primary settlements |  | |
| Other settlements | ||
| Places of interest | ||
Areas and primary settlements in Aberdeenshire (see also: Aberdeen City) | ||
|---|---|---|
| in Banff and Buchan |  | |
| in Buchan | ||
| in Formartine | ||
| in Garioch | ||
| in Kincardine and Mearns | ||
| in Marr | ||