Levenmouth
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Levenmouth is a
conurbation A conurbation is a region consisting of a number of metropolises, cities, large towns, and other urban areas which, through population growth and physical expansion, have merged to form one continuous urban or industrially developed area. In most ...
comprising a network of settlements on the north side of the
Firth of Forth The Firth of Forth () is a firth in Scotland, an inlet of the North Sea that separates Fife to its north and Lothian to its south. Further inland, it becomes the estuary of the River Forth and several other rivers. Name ''Firth'' is a cognate ...
, in
Fife Fife ( , ; ; ) is a council areas of Scotland, council area and lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area in Scotland. A peninsula, it is bordered by the Firth of Tay to the north, the North Sea to the east, the Firth of Forth to the s ...
on the east coast of
Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
. It consists of three principal coastal towns; Leven, Buckhaven, and Methil, and a number of villages and
hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...
s inland. The industrial towns of Buckhaven and Methil lie on the west bank of the River Leven, and the resort town of Leven is on the east bank. The "Bawbee Bridge" links the two sides of the river. Historically, Buckhaven and Methil were joined together as one
burgh A burgh ( ) is an Autonomy, autonomous municipal corporation in Scotland, usually a city, town, or toun in Scots language, Scots. This type of administrative division existed from the 12th century, when David I of Scotland, King David I created ...
, while Leven was separate. The area had an estimated population of 37,238 in 2006. Levenmouth's economy has traditionally been focused on heavy and traditional industries and has struggled economically since the closure of its coal mines. The main employers are Fife Scottish Omnibuses Ltd. Bi-Fab,
Diageo Diageo plc ( ) is a British Multinational corporation, multinational alcoholic beverage company, with its headquarters in London, England. It is a major distributor of Scotch whisky and other spirits and operates from 132 sites around the world ...
, Donaldson Timber, Pfaudler Balfour and Silberline.


History


Toponymy

The area is named after the
mouth A mouth also referred to as the oral is the body orifice through which many animals ingest food and animal communication#Auditory, vocalize. The body cavity immediately behind the mouth opening, known as the oral cavity (or in Latin), is also t ...
of the River Leven. The word 'Leven' comes from the Pictish word for 'flood' and was originally given to Loch Leven, the 'flood lake' at the head of the river.


Early history

The first mention of the town of 'Leven' was made in two separate records in the mid-15th century, with urgent need for repair work at the monastery at 'levynnis-mouth' and George Durie – an estate owner – became the keeper of the harbour at 'levynnismouth'.


19th century

Until 1821, the only bridge across the river was the Cameron Brig on the main Kirkcaldy - Cupar road. In that year a pedestrian
suspension bridge A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck (bridge), deck is hung below suspension wire rope, cables on vertical suspenders. The first modern examples of this type of bridge were built in the early 1800s. Simple suspension bridg ...
was built at Leven, which was replaced by a three-arched stone bridge in 1840. The toll to cross this bridge was a Scottish halfpenny, or
bawbee A bawbee was a Scottish sixpence. The word means a debased copper coin, valued at six pence Scots (equal at the time to an English half-penny), issued from the reign of James V of Scotland to the reign of William II of Scotland. They were hamme ...
. Even though the stone bridge was replaced by a single-span bridge in 1957, it is still known locally as the ' Bawbee Brig'. In 1854 the Leven Railway opened, linking the town with Thornton Junction on the
Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...
-
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 ...
main line. This helped it to become a tourist resort popular with visitors from the west of Scotland, and particularly
Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...
. Later in the 19th century the Leven Railway became part of a loop line of the
North British Railway The North British Railway was one of the two biggest of the five major Scottish railway companies prior to the 1923 Grouping. It was established in 1844, with the intention of linking with English railways at Berwick. The line opened in 1846, ...
linking Thornton Junction and
Leuchars Leuchars (pronounced or ; "rushes") is a town and parish near the north-east coast of Fife in Scotland. The civil parish has a population of 5,754 (in 2011) Census of Scotland 2011, Table KS101SC – Usually Resident Population, publ. by Nati ...
Junction via
St Andrews St Andrews (; ; , pronounced ʰʲɪʎˈrˠiː.ɪɲ is a town on the east coast of Fife in Scotland, southeast of Dundee and northeast of Edinburgh. St Andrews had a recorded population of 16,800 , making it Fife's fourth-largest settleme ...
. The railway between Leven and St Andrews closed in 1964/65. The railway between Leven and Thornton Junction closed to freight in 1966 and passengers in 1969. On 8 August 2019, the Scottish Government announced that the line between Thornton Junction and Leven would reopen within five years. With the growth of coal mining and activity at Methil docks, the two towns of Buckhaven and Methil expanded until they were merged into a single
burgh A burgh ( ) is an Autonomy, autonomous municipal corporation in Scotland, usually a city, town, or toun in Scots language, Scots. This type of administrative division existed from the 12th century, when David I of Scotland, King David I created ...
in 1891.


Administration

In 1975, the burghs were replaced by a two-tier system of Regional Councils and smaller District Councils. At this time Levenmouth fell under the control of Kirkcaldy District Council as part of the region of
Fife Fife ( , ; ; ) is a council areas of Scotland, council area and lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area in Scotland. A peninsula, it is bordered by the Firth of Tay to the north, the North Sea to the east, the Firth of Forth to the s ...
. Further reforms in 1996 saw Fife Council become one of 32
unitary authorities A unitary authority is a type of local government, local authority in New Zealand and the United Kingdom. Unitary authorities are responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are ...
. Under the 1996 scheme Levenmouth is administered by an Area Committee of Fife Council. The boundaries were adjusted in 2007 to reflect the wards created for the introduction of proportional representation in local elections. Ward 22 extends the boundary east along Largo Bay, and the boundary of Ward 23 includes West Wemyss at its western end. Note that political boundaries may not match those used for planning or other purposes, notably in the Local Plan. In 2006, the population of Ward 22 (Leven, Kennoway and Largo) was 18,425 and that of Ward 23 (Buckhaven, Methil and Wemyss Villages) was 18,813, making a total of 37,238 people in the expanded committee area. Also has estimates for individual settlements. As of 2007 the Levenmouth Area Committee covers the following settlements : * Buckhaven * Methil * Leven * Kennoway * Windygates * East Wemyss * Coaltown of Wemyss * West Wemyss * Lundin Links *
Upper Largo Upper Largo or Kirkton of Largo is a village in the parish of Largo, Fife, Largo, near the East Neuk of Fife, Scotland. It rests on the southern slopes of Largo Law, half a mile north of Largo Bay and the rather larger village of Lower Largo. It i ...
*
Lower Largo Lower Largo or Seatown of Largo is a village in Fife, Scotland, situated on Largo Bay along the north side of the Firth of Forth. It is east of, and contiguous with, Lundin Links. Largo is an ancient fishing village in the parish of Largo, ...
* Drumeldrie * Bonnybank * Balcurvie


Leisure and tourism

Leven boasts two golf courses, Scoonie and Leven Links - the latter being used as a qualifying course for
The Open The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...
when the tournament is being played at the
Old Course at St Andrews The Old Course at St Andrews, also known as the Old Lady or the Grand Old Lady, is considered the oldest golf course in the world. It is a public course over common land in St Andrews, Fife, Scotland, and is held in trust by the St Andrews Links ...
. There are also several other courses in the surrounding area notably Lundin Links, Elie and
Crail Crail (; ) is a former royal burgh, parish and Community council#Scotland, community council area (Royal Burgh of Crail and District) in the East Neuk of Fife, Scotland. The locality has an estimated population of 1,630 (2018). Etymology The ...
.
Bayview Stadium MGM Timber Bayview Stadium, known formerly as New Bayview, is a football stadium in the Scottish town of Methil, Fife. It is home to East Fife. It was opened in 1998, after the club relocated from the original Bayview Park across town. The st ...
is home to First Division East Fife Football Club. There is also work being undertaking on the former Kirkland railway marshalling yard which the Kingdom of Fife Railway Preservation Society is working towards creating a heritage centre for Fife's railway heritage with the additional proposal of running a heritage railway on the current mothballed Leven Railway.


Economy

For years, Levenmouth has suffered from poor connections to the rail and main road network of Central Scotland, particularly since the closure of the last railway link in 1969, which came at the same time as the collapse of
coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other Chemical element, elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal i ...
mining. The knock-on effect virtually sealed the fate of Methil
Docks The word dock () in American English refers to one or a group of human-made structures that are involved in the handling of boats or ships (usually on or near a shore). In British English, the term is not used the same way as in American Engli ...
as a major port on the East of Scotland and the decline in tourism. However, following a community campaign, the Scottish Government announced the reopening of the Leven rail link. Leven is linked to Kirkcaldy by the A915 Standing Stone Road and Methil to Kirkcaldy through Dysart and East/West Wemyss, but the main
A92 road The A92 is a major road that runs through Fife, Dundee, Angus, Aberdeenshire, and Aberdeen City in Scotland. From south to north, it runs from Dunfermline to Blackdog, just north of Aberdeen. History The A92's original route in southern Fif ...
through Fife bypasses the area. The major employer now is the drinks manufacturer
Diageo Diageo plc ( ) is a British Multinational corporation, multinational alcoholic beverage company, with its headquarters in London, England. It is a major distributor of Scotch whisky and other spirits and operates from 132 sites around the world ...
which has its main bottling plant in Leven, and one of the largest distilleries in the world at nearby Windygates. The Fife Energy Park opened in 2008, producing wind turbines at the former oil-rig building yard in Methil which was itself built on the former Wellesley Colliery.


References

{{authority control Urban areas of the United Kingdom Geography of Fife Populated coastal places in Scotland