Portlethen (; gd, Port Leathain) is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an o ...

located approximately 7 miles south of

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), a ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

along the A92. The population according to the 2011 census was 7,130 making it the seventh most populous settlement within Aberdeenshire. To the east of Portlethen lie three fishing villages: Findon,

Downies Downies is a cliff-top village in Aberdeenshire, Scotland situated on Cammachmore Bay. Historically Downies was a fishing village, until much of the local North Sea fishery collapsed from overfishing; presently Downies is chiefly a residential ...

and

Portlethen Village Portlethen Village is a settlement along the North Sea coast in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The village is also known as Old Portlethen. The skerry of Craigmaroinn is situated just off the coastline near Portlethen Village. History Portlethen Vi ...

(now often referred to as ''Old Portlethen''). Although Portlethen has been granted official town status, it resembles a residential

suburb A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separ ...

without a clear 'town centre' or focal point.

Geography

Portlethen is a coastal town lying along the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian ...

coast. A small island May Craig is situated off shore from Portlethen. Portlethen is located in the historic county of Kincardineshire.

History

Portlethen was originally a small fishing village. The harbour is located in what is now Old Portlethen, the original village on the coast about a half a mile east from Portlethen Parish Church. Portlethenharbour richard slessor

Portlethen lies about two kilometres east of the ancient

Causey Mounth The Causey Mounth is an ancient drovers' road over the coastal fringe of the Grampian Mountains in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. This route was developed as the main highway between Stonehaven and Aberdeen around the 12th century AD and it conti ...

road, the latter built on high ground to make it passable and the only available

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

route from

coast The coast, also known as the coastline or seashore, is defined as the area where land meets the ocean, or as a line that forms the boundary between the land and the coastline. The Earth has around of coastline. Coasts are important zones in n ...

al points south to Aberdeen. This ancient passage specifically connected the

Bridge of Dee The Bridge of Dee or Brig o Dee ( gd, Drochaid Dhè) is a road bridge over the River Dee in Aberdeen, Scotland. The term is also used for the surrounding area of the city. Dating from 1527,Richards, J.M., ''The National Trust Book of Bridge ...

with

Muchalls Castle Muchalls Castle stands overlooking the North Sea in the countryside of Kincardine and Mearns, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The lower course is a well-preserved Romanesque, double-groined 13th-century tower house structure, built by the Frasers o ...

and

Stonehaven Stonehaven ( , ) is a town in Scotland. It lies on Scotland's northeast coast and had a population of 11,602 at the 2011 Census. After the demise of the town of Kincardine, which was gradually abandoned after the destruction of its royal cast ...

to the south. The route was that taken by the

William Keith, 7th Earl Marischal William Keith, 7th Earl Marischal (16101670 or 1671) was a Scottish nobleman and Covenanter. He was the eldest son of William Keith, 6th Earl Marischal. Life During the English Civil War, the 7th Earl Marischal joined James Graham, 1st Marques ...

and

James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose (1612 – 21 May 1650) was a Scottish nobleman, poet and soldier, lord lieutenant and later viceroy and captain general of Scotland. Montrose initially joined the Covenanters in the Wars of the Three ...

when they led a

Covenanter Covenanters ( gd, Cùmhnantaich) were members of a 17th-century Scottish religious and political movement, who supported a Presbyterian Church of Scotland, and the primacy of its leaders in religious affairs. The name is derived from '' Covena ...

army of 9000 men in the first battle of the Civil War in 1639. Battle of Portlethen. In November 1780 during the wars with

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

the British army used

fencible The Fencibles (from the word ''defencible'') were British regiments raised in the United Kingdom, Isle of Man and in the colonies for defence against the threat of invasion during the Seven Years' War, the American War of Independence, the Frenc ...

regiments for home defence. The Sutherland Fencibles armed with muskets engaged in action with the crew of armed with muskets and

Swivel guns The term swivel gun (or simply swivel) usually refers to a small cannon, mounted on a swiveling stand or fork which allows a very wide arc of movement. Another type of firearm referred to as a swivel gun was an early flintlock combination gun wit ...

of a

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

privateer A privateer is a private person or ship that engages in maritime warfare under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign or deleg ...

. The engagement was reported in the newspapers of the period. On 2 September 1799 George Auldjo of Portlethen offered for safe at the New Inn, Aberdeen 'LOT 1. Is to consist of the Lands and

Barony Barony may refer to: * Barony, the peerage, office of, or territory held by a baron * Barony, the title and land held in fealty by a feudal baron * Barony (county division), a type of administrative or geographical division in parts of the British ...

of PORTLETHEN, Mill, Mill-lands, Multures and sequels, Sea-port, Haven and Harbour of Portlethen, with the tolls, duties, customs, and anchorages thereof, and White-fishing in the sea adjacent to said lands.' Portlethen has expanded very rapidly. In the 1980s a new retail park was constructed. Portlethen is still continuing to expand into a sizable town.

Nature Reserve

Much of modern-day Portlethen has been built over the Portlethen Moss Nature Reserve, formerly home to the

great crested newt The northern crested newt, great crested newt or warty newt (''Triturus cristatus'') is a newt species native to Great Britain, northern and central continental Europe and parts of Western Siberia. It is a large newt, with females growing up to ...

. The remainder of Portlethen Moss is approximately one quarter of the size it was twenty years ago. Groups such as the Portlethen Moss Conservation Group were created specifically to maintain the area for the use of future generations.

Amenities

Retail

Portlethen has four main shopping areas: Portlethen Retail Park, The Green, Muirend Court and Rowanbank Court. There is an

Asda Asda Stores Ltd. () (often styled as ASDA) is a British supermarket chain. It is headquartered in Leeds, England. The company was founded in 1949 when the Asquith family merged their retail business with the Associated Dairies company of Yorks ...

superstore in Portlethen Retail Park along with an

Aldi Aldi (stylised as ALDI) is the common company brand name of two German multinational family-owned discount supermarket chains operating over 10,000 stores in 20 countries. The chain was founded by brothers Karl and Theo Albrecht in 1946, when ...

and two

McColl's McColl's Retail Group is a British convenience shop and newsagent operator, trading under the trading names Morrisons Daily and McColl's (for convenience stores), Martin's (newsagents and pound shops) and RS McColl for some stores in Scotlan ...

convenience stores located at The Green and Rowanbank Court. Other outlets in the town include Argos,

Matalan Matalan is a British fashion and homeware retailer based in Knowsley, Merseyside. It was established by John Hargreaves in 1985, and is still owned by the Hargreaves family. , the company employed over 13,000, and had 230 stores in the United K ...

Food & drink

There are a variety of take-away and restaurant outlets in Portlethen, most of these are located within the main shopping areas. There is also a

Brewers Fayre Brewers Fayre is a licensed pub restaurant chain, with 161 locations across the UK as of August 2018. Owned by Whitbread, Brewers Fayre restaurants are known for serving traditional British pub food and for their Sunday Carvery. History The f ...

pub restaurant next to the A92 dual carriageway near Badentoy Park called The Mains of Balquharn. There are four pubs in Portlethen; the Mains of Balquharn, The Paddock (at The Green), The Leathan and The Neuk (in Portlethen Village). Portlethen Golf Club also has a bar open to the public. In addition to the Brewers Fayre restaurant, there is a

Premier Inn Premier Inn is a British limited service hotel chain and the UK's largest hotel brand, with more than 72,000 rooms and 800 hotels. It operates hotels in a variety of locations including city centres, suburbs and airports competing with the like ...

hotel at the Mains of Balquharn that serves deep fried mars bars to order. Dolphins south east of Old Portlethen - geograph

Sport

Portlethen has two all-weather concrete tennis courts, a bowling green with public and private sessions, a swimming pool and a private members' golf club. It is also home to th
Lethen Archers
club.

Swimming pool

The pool is 25 metres long and was opened on 29 June 1991 by Olympic swimmer Ian Black. Portlethen swimming pool is the regular meeting place of the Reef Rats underwater hockey club.

Portlethen Golf Club

Portlethen

Golf Club A golf club is a club used to hit a golf ball in a game of golf. Each club is composed of a shaft with a grip and a club head. Woods are mainly used for long-distance fairway or tee shots; irons, the most versatile class, are used for a variet ...

was founded in 1981, and a championship course designed by Donald Steel opened for play in 1989. The club is owned by its members. The club's first professional player was Muriel Thomson who, when she was appointed in 1990, was the first female golf professional in Scotland. In December 2014 she was succeeded by Stuart Wilson. The course is a 6,663 yards par 72 with two par 3s and two par 5s in each half (providing a par 3 and a par 5 facing each of north, south, east and west) to complement five par 4s in each half. The club has an extensive clubhouse and practice facilities, including a covered driving range, practice bunkers, short-game area and putting green. In 2011, Portlethen won the Aberdeen and District Pennant League for the first time. The 2012 Club Champion was Keith Horne, who went on to win the North East Champion of Champions Trophy. Club Champion in both 2013 and 2014 was Clark Brechin and the championship was won by Kevin Daglish in 2015. In 2016 and 2017, Clark Brechin won the championship again, totalling eight victories.

Other amenities

A Youth drop-in centre was opened in April 2007, in the old library building. There also various youth groups running regularly at Portlethen Parish Church and Jubilee Hall. There are two main parks in Portlethen: Bourtree Park and Nicol Park. Nicol Park has a toddlers park, a

skate Skate or Skates may refer to: Fish * Skate (fish), several genera of fish belonging to the family Rajidae * Pygmy skates, several genera of fish belonging to the family Gurgesiellidae * Smooth skates or leg skates, several genera of fish belongi ...

park and two basketball courts. Bourtree Park has a football pitch and a few swings and climbing frames. There are currently plans to create a new "green area"/park in the north end of Portlethen. There are also several small parks containing swings and climbing frames throughout Portlethen. There is an integrated community library and community centre located within Portlethen Academy. The Social Work offices of

Aberdeenshire Council Aberdeenshire ( sco, Aiberdeenshire; gd, Siorrachd Obar Dheathain) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It takes its name from the County of Aberdeen which has substantially different boundaries. The Aberdeenshire Council area inclu ...

for the local area are located within Portlethen.

Education

There has been a school in Portlethen since the nineteenth century. The original school building is still in use today as the local police station. The school was then moved to new buildings on Cookston Road in 1860. In 1962, a new school block was opened directly across from the old buildings on Cookston Road. This is now Portlethen Primary School. There are currently plans to refurbish the Portlethen Primary School building. In 1987,

Portlethen Academy Portlethen Academy is a six-year comprehensive secondary school in Portlethen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. History With the expansion of the communities of Portlethen and Newtonhill in the 1980s, the Education Committee of Grampian Regional Council ...

was opened. The academy moved to its current new building, adjacent to the original building, in 2006. In 1989, Fishermoss School, the second primary school in Portlethen, opened its doors. Construction of a third school for Portlethen, Hillside Primary School, started in spring 2016 and the new school opened in March 2017; Which is to be extended as it is already at capacity

Transportation

Portlethen was bypassed to the west by the A92, formerly the A90, in 1981.

Train

There is an hourly stopping service between Montrose and

Inverurie Inverurie (Scottish Gaelic: ''Inbhir Uraidh'' or ''Inbhir Uaraidh'', 'mouth of the River Ury') is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland at the confluence of the rivers Ury and Don, about north-west of Aberdeen. Geography Inverurie is in the va ...

. At peak times, some services operate to and from further away destinations.

Bus

Portlethen is connected by direct bus routes to

in the north, and

Newtonhill Newtonhill is a commuter town in Kincardineshire, Scotland. It is popular due to its location, just six miles south of Aberdeen with easy reach of Stonehaven and with views over the North Sea. History The town was originally called Skateraw. Sk ...

and

in the south. Buses are operated by

Stagecoach Bluebird Stagecoach Bluebird (also known by its legal operating name Bluebird Buses Ltd, and formerly Northern Scottish Omnibuses Ltd) is a Scottish bus company which operates bus services in the areas of Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire and Moray. It is a su ...

. The

X7 Coastrider The X7 Coastrider is an hourly bus route between Perth and Aberdeen via Dundee operated by Stagecoach East Scotland. The service runs seven days per week. History The route was introduced on 12 September 2011 and was initially operated by a fle ...

only stops on the A92 while other services call at various stops within Portlethen.

Community Council

The Portlethen & District Community Council (PDCC) was officially reformed on 30 November 2007. It meets monthly in Portlethen Academy, normally on the fourth Tuesday of each month and considers many issues including development proposals and transport. Meetings are open to the public and offer an opportunity to raise topics of relevance to the local community. The community council is currently in abeyance due to a lack of volunteers. Portlethen Gala is a social and community event held every summer on the last Saturday in August.

Notable people

* Barry Jones, a magician featured on the 2010 TV Series The Magicians, is originally from Portlethen. *Lesley McKay, a drama teacher at

, was a in-vision continuity announcer on

Grampian TV Grampian Television was the original name of the Channel 3 service for the north of Scotland founded in 1961 and now named STV. The northern region's coverage area includes the Northern Isles, Western Isles, Highlands (except Fort William and ...

in the 1980s and 90s under the name Kay Duncan.

Gallery

File:Findon to Portlethen - geograph.org.uk - 955123.jpg, Looking towards to Portlethen from the coasts of Findon Ness File:Portlethen Harbour and the North Sea - geograph.org.uk - 115731.jpg, Portlethen Harbour and the

File:Craigmaroinn - geograph.org.uk - 1361582.jpg,

Skerry A skerry is a small rocky island, or islet, usually too small for human habitation. It may simply be a rocky reef. A skerry can also be called a low sea stack. A skerry may have vegetative life such as moss and small, hardy grasses. They ar ...

File:Mains of Portlethen - geograph.org.uk - 1409988.jpg, Mains of Portlethen Gated entrance File:Down Craigmarn Road - geograph.org.uk - 1409926.jpg, Craigmarn Road Street File:Pig Asleep in Old Portlethen Village - geograph.org.uk - 152453.jpg, A pig of Old Portlethen

References

External links

Portlethen & District Community Council Website
{{Authority control Towns in Aberdeenshire