Pittencrieff Park (known locally as "The Glen") is a
public park
An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a city park, municipal park (North America), public park, public open space, or municipal gardens (United Kingdom, UK), is a park or botanical garden in cities, densely populated suburbia and oth ...
in
Dunfermline
Dunfermline (; , ) is a city, parish, and former royal burgh in Fife, Scotland, from the northern shore of the Firth of Forth. Dunfermline was the de facto capital of the Kingdom of Scotland between the 11th and 15th centuries.
The earliest ...
, Fife, Scotland. It was purchased in 1902 by
Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie ( , ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the History of the iron and steel industry in the United States, American steel industry in the late ...
, and given to the people of Dunfermline in a ceremony the following year. Its lands include the historically significant and topologically rugged
glen which interrupts the centre of Dunfermline and, accordingly, part of the intention of the purchase was to carry out civic development of the area in a way which also respected its heritage. The project notably attracted the attention of the urban planner and educationalist,
Patrick Geddes
Sir Patrick Geddes (2 October 1854 – 17 April 1932) was a Scottish biologist, sociologist, Comtean positivist, geographer, philanthropist and pioneering town planner. He is known for his innovative thinking in the fields of urban plannin ...
.
The glen is an area of topographical and historical significance to Dunfermline as the original site of
Malcolm's Tower
Malcolm's Tower, also known as Malcolm Canmore's Tower, is a historic site in the Scottish city of Dunfermline, Fife. It consists of the foundations of a rubble built, rectangular tower enclosed by an oval shaped modern wall and is protected as ...
, the probable remains of which can be identified today on a strongly defendable outcrop of rock. To the eastern side of the park is
Dunfermline Palace
Dunfermline Palace is a ruined former Scottish royal palace and important tourist attraction in Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland. It is currently, along with other buildings of the adjacent Dunfermline Abbey, under the care of Historic Environmen ...
with
Dunfermline Abbey
Dunfermline Abbey is a Church of Scotland parish church in Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland. The church occupies the site of the ancient chancel and transepts of a large medieval Benedictine abbey, which was confiscated and sacked in 1560 during the S ...
and to the west it overlooks the village of
Crossford.
History
The lands of the modern park were previously known as Pittencrieff Estate.
[Hendrie ''Old Dunfermline'' p.24.] In 1902, Andrew Carnegie purchased both Pittencrieff House and
Estate from its then-owner, Colonel James Maitland Hunt, ultimately with the intention of giving these to the people of Dunfermline. The official donation ceremony occurred the following year, and a trust fund in honour of the benefactory, known as Dunfermline Carnegie Trust, was founded for the general maintenance of the glen.
[McEwan ''Dunfermline:The Post War Years'' p. 18.]
As part of the donation of the estate, the Dunfermline Carnegie Trust invited proposals for the development of the area as a
civic space. Two entries were submitted in 1903–04, one of which was by the world-renowned urban planner,
naturalist
Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...
and educationalist
Patrick Geddes
Sir Patrick Geddes (2 October 1854 – 17 April 1932) was a Scottish biologist, sociologist, Comtean positivist, geographer, philanthropist and pioneering town planner. He is known for his innovative thinking in the fields of urban plannin ...
(1854–1932). His thinking about the commission, as he saw it, to balance preservation of heritage with regeneration, was an important influence in the formation of his ideas in
town planning
Urban planning (also called city planning in some contexts) is the process of developing and designing land use and the built environment, including air, water, and the infrastructure passing into and out of urban areas, such as transportatio ...
and civic renaissance.
[Patrick Geddes, Towards Civic Renascence](_blank)
Geddes's thinking on the proposal helped lay the foundation for ideas expressed in his influential work ''Cities in Evolution'', 1915. The second entry was by the
landscape designer
Landscape design is an independent profession and a design and art tradition, practiced by landscape designers, combining nature and culture. In contemporary practice, landscape design bridges the space between landscape architecture and garde ...
,
Thomas Mawson.
Although neither scheme was adopted, both influenced subsequent work on the establishment of the park as it exists today.

More architectural features of the park, such as the huge ornate entrance gates, are by
Robert Lorimer
Sir Robert Stodart Lorimer, Order of the British Empire, KBE (4 November 1864 – 13 September 1929) was a prolific Scotland, Scottish architect and furniture designer noted for his sensitive restorations of historic houses and castles, f ...
and were built in 1908.
Pittencrieff House Museum
In the subsequent development of the modern park, Pittencrieff House was designed as a centre piece.
[Pride ''Kingdom of Fife'' pp.12–13.]
The house was originally built in the 15th century by the Wemyss family. Sir Alexander Clerk of
Stenton
Stenton () is a parish and village in East Lothian, Scotland. It is bounded on the north by parts of the parishes of Prestonkirk and Dunbar, on the east by Spott and on the west by Whittingehame. The name is said to be of Saxon derivation. T ...
bought the house and its huge estate in 1610. His eldest son styled himself as
Alexander Clerk of Pittencrieff and extended the simple laird's house with two stories and an attic around 1635.
[Gifford ''The Buildings of Scotland: Fife'' pp. 192–193] Two of the bedrooms were converted to create two long galleries for museum and art exhibition space in a restoration programme undertaken by Sir Robert Lorimar between 1911 and 1913.
The house itself served as the Pittencrieff House Museum, with exhibits about the formation of the park and its natural history, including dinosaurs, fossils and wildlife. It closed to the public after the
Dunfermline Carnegie Library expanded its exhibition space.
Park features
On the northern boundary of the park lies the prominent statue of
Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie ( , ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the History of the iron and steel industry in the United States, American steel industry in the late ...
which was built in 1914 and a dovecot, in the style of a round tower from around 1770.
The main gates to the park known as the Louise Carnegie Gates which opened in 1928 are located to the north-east.
In September 2011 a memorial bench to the rock musician
Stuart Adamson who grew up in the Dunfermline area and who died in 2001 was unveiled at the park. It was paid for by fans and is inscribed with some of his lyrics chosen by fans in an online poll.
The park houses an aviary which is home to 9 resident pet peacocks.
The park also holds a former petting zoo, a large greenhouse and three playgrounds.
Pittencreiff park has been home to the Dunfermline
Parkrun
Parkrun (stylised as parkrun) is a collection of 5K run, events for runners, walkers and volunteers that take place every Saturday morning at more than 2,000 locations in 23 countries across five continents.
Parkrun was founded by Paul Sinto ...
since its inception in July 2015.
Be Military Fit run classes in the park.
Friends of Pittencrieff Park
The Friends of Pittencrieff Park is a registered charity and a SCIO (Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation) which has been in existence sine 2004. One of their most important functions is to liaise with Fife Council and the Carnegie Trust to ensure Pittencrieff Park (or the Glen as it is known locally) remains an outstanding visitor attraction for residents of Dunfermline and visitors to the area. They undertake fund raising in order to finance projects such as renewal of play areas. They are involved in the creation and upkeep of the orchard and the sensory garden, looking after flower beds throughout the park and many other projects.
Notes
Bibliography
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External links
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Fife Council Facilities pageDunfermline ParkrunThe Dover War Memorial ProjectInformation on the figure of youth fountain created by Dovorian
Richard Reginald Goulden, and other casts from the same mould including Dover Town War Memorial
The Friends of Pittencrieff ParkOfficial site of the Friends of the park Charity
{{Areas of Dunfermline
Dunfermline
Andrew Carnegie
Parks in Fife
Museums in Dunfermline
Natural history museums in Scotland
Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes
1903 establishments in Scotland