Fochabers
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Fochabers (; ) is a village in the Parish of
Bellie Bellie is a locality in Moray, Scotland. Little survives of the old parish church at Bellie, located 2 miles north of Fochabers, although its graveyard is preserved. There is a Bellie Kirk in Fochabers, which replaced the old church in 1798. ...
, in
Moray Moray ( ; or ) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It lies in the north-east of the country, with a coastline on the Moray Firth, and borders the council areas of Aberdeenshire and Highland. Its council is based in Elgin, the area' ...
, Scotland, east of the cathedral city of
Elgin Elgin may refer to: Places Canada * Elgin County, Ontario * Elgin Settlement, a 19th-century community for freed slaves located in present-day North Buxton and South Buxton, Ontario * Elgin, a village in Rideau Lakes, Ontario * Elgin, Manit ...
and located on the east bank of the
River Spey The River Spey () is a river in the northeast of Scotland. At it is the ninth longest river in the United Kingdom and the third longest and fastest-flowing river in Scotland. It is an important location for the traditions of salmon fishing an ...
. 1,728 people live in the village, which enjoys a rich musical and cultural history. The village is also home to
Baxters Baxters Food Group Limited, also known as Baxters of Speyside or Baxters, is a food processing company, based in Fochabers, Scotland. It produces foods such as Soup, canned soups, canned meat products, Pickling, sour pickles, sauces, vinegars, a ...
, the family-run manufacturer of foodstuffs. The present village owes its existence to the 4th Duke of Gordon (1743–1827). During the late eighteenth century, during the
Scottish Enlightenment The Scottish Enlightenment (, ) was the period in 18th- and early-19th-century Scotland characterised by an outpouring of intellectual and scientific accomplishments. By the eighteenth century, Scotland had a network of parish schools in the Sco ...
, it was fashionable for landowners to found new towns and villages; these can be recognised all over Scotland, because unlike their predecessors they all have straight, wide streets in mainly rectangular layouts, a central square, and the houses built with their main elevations parallel to the street. Fochabers was founded in 1776, and is one of the best examples of a planned village. It is a conservation area, with most of the buildings in the High Street listed as being of historical or architectural interest, as is
Bellie Kirk Bellie Kirk is a Georgian church of neoclassical design in Fochabers, Scotland, built in 1798 for the 4th Duke of Gordon. It has been in continuous use as a place of worship within the Church of Scotland, and is designated as a Category A liste ...
, the Roman Catholic church St. Mary's Fochabers, which houses works by notable craftsmen, and the Episcopalian church, Gordon Chapel, which boasts the largest collection of Pre-Raphaelite
stained glass Stained glass refers to coloured glass as a material or art and architectural works created from it. Although it is traditionally made in flat panels and used as windows, the creations of modern stained glass artists also include three-dimensio ...
in Scotland. Electricity was brought to the village in 1906 by the 7th Duke of Richmond, supplied from a small hydro-electric generating station built in 1905 in the Quarters district on the banks of the fast-flowing Spey. For a time in the mid-twentieth century, Fochabers was the home of three duchesses – Hilda, Duchess of Richmond and Gordon; Ivy, Duchess of Portland and Helen, Duchess of Northumberland. Between 1893 and 1966 the village had a railway station, Fochabers Town, although after 1931 this was open only to freight. For nearly three decades, the people of Fochabers campaigned for a bypass, as the village is situated on the A96, the only direct route from
Aberdeen Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...
to
Inverness Inverness (; ; from the , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness") is a city in the Scottish Highlands, having been granted city status in 2000. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highland ...
, and consequently suffered from serious traffic problems. Construction work on a bypass for Fochabers and the neighbouring village of
Mosstodloch Mosstodloch () is a small village in Moray, Scotland, lying near the A96 between Fochabers and Elgin on the west bank of the River Spey. The village was served by Balnacoul Halt railway station from 1893 to 1931. Education It has a primary sc ...
started on 2 February 2010 and was completed in January 2012, at a cost of £31,500,000. The project was significantly delayed due to conflict regarding the proposed route, and discovery of a
Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...
settlement on the site of the bypass.


Education

There are two schools in Fochabers, Milne's Primary School (formerly Milne's Institution) and Milne's High School, which currently serves approximately 300 pupils from Fochabers itself and the surrounding villages and farms. Milne's Institution was originally built in 1846, in accordance with Alexander Milne's Last Will and Testament, using £20,000 (~£2,700,000 today) he left for this purpose.


Notable people

* John M. Caie (1878–1949), civil servant and poet, author of ''The Puddock'' * Sir James Cantlie FRCS KBE (1851–1926), co-founder of the
Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene The Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, more commonly known by its acronym RSTMH, was founded in 1907 by Sir James Cantlie and George Carmichael Low. Sir Patrick Manson, the Society's first President (1907–1909), was recognised as ...
* George Chalmers (1742–1825), antiquarian and political writer *
Arthur Robertson Cushny Arthur Robertson Cushny Royal Society, FRS FRSE LLD (6 March 1866 – 25 February 1926), was a Scottish pharmacologist and physiologist who became a Fellow of the Royal Society. Life Cushny was born on 6 March 1866 in Fochabers, Moray, Scotl ...
FRS (1866–1926), professor of pharmacology at Universities of Michigan, US; London and Edinburgh; pioneer in the study of human renal function * Fiona Mackenzie (b. 1961), Gaelic singer and Mòd Gold Medal winner from Orton, Fochabers *
Fish A fish (: fish or fishes) is an aquatic animal, aquatic, Anamniotes, anamniotic, gill-bearing vertebrate animal with swimming fish fin, fins and craniate, a hard skull, but lacking limb (anatomy), limbs with digit (anatomy), digits. Fish can ...
(b. 1958), lead singer of
Marillion Marillion are a British neo-prog band, formed in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, in 1979. They emerged from the post-punk music scene in Britain and existed as a bridge between the styles of punk rock and classic progressive rock, becoming the mo ...
, acquired his nickname while living in Fochabers *
William Marshall (Scottish composer) William Marshall (27 December 1748 – 29 May 1833) is regarded as one of the greatest composers of Scottish fiddle music. Marshall was born in Fochabers, Scotland. He entered the service of the Duke of Gordon, eventually becoming the facto ...
(1748–1833), composer of Scottish fiddle music * Jane Maxwell (1748–1812), fourth Duchess of Gordon * Alexander Milne (1742–1838), Scottish-American entrepreneur and philanthropist * George Muirhead FRSE (1845–1928), naturalist and Commissioner to the Duke of Gordon * Sir James Sivewright KCMG (1848–1916), telegraph and railway pioneer in South Africa; Cape Colony politician and member of Cecil Rhodes' cabinet * Allan Wilson (1856 – 1893), major in the Victoria Volunteers and commander of the infamous
Shangani Patrol The Shangani Patrol (or Wilson's Patrol) was a 34-soldier unit of the British South Africa Company that in 1893 was ambushed and annihilated by more than 3,000 Matabele warriors in pre-Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), during the First Mata ...
, whose last stand fighting overwhelming odds made him a national hero in Britain and Rhodesia. * Kyle Macaulay (b. 1986), aka K-Mac born in Dr. Gray's Hospital, Elgin. Grew up in Fochabers playing Championship Manager 97/98 and signing many talents like Evor Moas, Txomin Nagore and Matthias Sammer. He has since moved into real life soccer recruitment and is an advocate for live scouting and environmental issues.


References


External links


A96 Fochabers and Mosstodloch BypassScotland Census 2011
{{authority control Villages in Moray River Spey