View source for Kinghorn

{{Other uses}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2015}}
{{Use British English|date=September 2016}}
{{Infobox UK place
| country                          = Scotland
| official_name                    = Kinghorn
| gaelic_name                      = Ceann Gronna
| local_name                       =
| population                       = {{Scottish locality populations|name|POP=Kinghorn}}
| population_ref                   = ({{United Kingdom statistics year|ScotSettlement}})<ref>{{Scotland settlement population citation}}</ref>
| os_grid_reference                = NT271869
| coordinates                      = {{coord|56.07|-3.17|display=inline,title}}
| unitary_scotland                 = [[Fife]]
| lieutenancy_scotland             = [[Fife]]
| post_town                        = Burntisland
| postcode_district                = KY3
| postcode_area                    = KY
| dial_code                        = 01592
| constituency_westminster         = [[Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath (UK Parliament constituency)|Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath]]
| constituency_scottish_parliament = [[Kirkcaldy (Scottish Parliament constituency)|Kirkcaldy]]
| edinburgh_distance               =
| static_image_name                = Bb-kinghorn.jpg
| static_image_caption             = A view across Kinghorn harbour
}}
[[File:Kinghorn Bay viewing south over the Forth Estuary.jpg|thumb|Kinghorn Bay viewing south over the Forth Estuary]]
'''Kinghorn''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|k|ɪ|ŋ|h|ɔr|n|audio=Kinghorn.ogg}}; {{langx|gd|Ceann Gronna}}) is a [[town]] and parish in [[Fife]], [[Scotland]]. A [[seaside resort]] with two beaches, Kinghorn Beach and Pettycur Bay, plus a [[fishing port]], it stands on the north shore of the [[Firth of Forth]], opposite [[Edinburgh]].
Known as the place where King [[Alexander III of Scotland]] died, it lies on the [[A921 road]] and the [[Fife Coastal Path]]. [[Kinghorn railway station]] is on the [[Edinburgh to Aberdeen Line|Edinburgh to Aberdeen]] and [[Fife Circle Line|Fife Circle]] [[railway]] lines. Kinghorn only has a [[primary school]], so high school pupils must travel by bus to [[Balwearie High School]] in [[Kirkcaldy]]. [[Burntisland]] was in the past referred to as Little Kinghorn or Wester Kinghorn.<ref>Fasti Ecclesistae Scotia p.80</ref>
The town's [[lifeboat (rescue)|lifeboat]] station is one of [[Scotland|Scotland's]] busiest &ndash; regularly getting called out to all sorts of emergencies in the Firth. Currently stationed at Kinghorn is an [[Atlantic 85 class lifeboat|Atlantic 85 inshore lifeboat]], B-836 "Tommy Niven".
The civil parish has a population of 4,201 (in 2011).<ref name= KS101SC>{{cite web|title=Census of Scotland 2011, Table KS101SC – Usually Resident Population, See “Standard Outputs”, Table KS101SC, Area type: Civil Parish 1930|publisher=National Records of Scotland|url=http://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk/ |access-date=1 March 2016}}</ref> According to the 2008 population estimate, the town has a population of 2,930.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/files/statistics/population-estimates/08mye-localities-table1.pdf|title=Mid-2008 Population Estimates|website=National Records of Scotland}}</ref>
==History==
The meaning of the name Kinghorn (or Kingorn {{IPAc-en|k|ɪ|ŋ|ˈ|ɡ|ɔr|n|audio=Kinghorn (older, local).ogg}}, with stress on the latter [[syllable]], as it was pronounced locally until at least the early 20th century) comes {{derive|gd|ceann gronn|head of the marsh}}.<ref name=tailleir>{{Cite web|url=http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Gaelic/placenamesK-O.pdf|title=Gaelic Placenames collected by Iain Mac an Tailleir (2003)}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Taylor|first=Simon|title=The Place-Names of Fife, Volume One|year=2006|publisher=Shaun Tyas|isbn=1-900289-77-6|pages=416–7|author2=Gilbert Markus }}</ref>
The historic [[Royal Burgh]] of Kinghorn lies on the coast of [[Fife]]. The former royal castle at Kinghorn was frequently visited by the [[List of Scottish monarchs|Scottish Court]] in the period of the House of Dunkeld. The King's castle, controlling the seaway, stood on the headland above Pettycur.<ref group=note>Kinghorn Castle was located at {{coord|56.0645|N|3.1751|W|display=inline|region:GB}}</ref> King [[Alexander III of Scotland|Alexander III]] was returning on horseback to Kinghorn Castle to see his new wife [[Yolande of Dreux, Queen of Scotland|Yolande of Dreux]], when he fell and was found dead on the beach of Pettycur Bay in March 1286, creating the succession crisis that led to the [[Wars of Scottish Independence]].<ref>{{cite book | title=Scottish Queens, 1034-1714 | last=Marshall | first=Rosalind K. | page=27 | year=2003 | publisher=Tuckwell Press }}</ref>
A later structure, Glamis Tower (or Glamis Castle), stood just behind the High Street.<ref group=note>Glamis Tower was located at {{coord|56.0712|N|3.1762|W|region:GB|display=inline}}</ref> When Sir [[John Lyon, Lord of Glamis|John Lyon]] married Princess Johanna in 1373, the daughter of King [[Robert II of Scotland|Robert II]], her dowry included Glamis Castle.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.scottish-places.info/towns/townhistory79.html |author=Groome, F. |author-link=Francis Groome |title=Kinghorn |work=Ordnance Gazetteer of Scotland: A Survey of Scottish Topography, Statistical, Biographical and Historical |year=1885}}</ref> Rebuilt in 1543, the castle was besieged by [[James Kirkcaldy of Grange]] in 1546 and fell. Both buildings have totally disappeared and the sites built over in modern times.
During the [[Scottish Reformation]], French troops commanded by [[Henri Cleutin]] and [[Corbeyran de Cardaillac Sarlabous|Captain Sarlabous]] sailed from Leith and fought with the [[Lords of the Congregation]] at Pettycur Bay on 7 January 1560. Kinghorn Castle remained an important possession of the Scottish Crown, and this was recognised by the creation of the [[Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne|Earldom of Kinghorne]] in 1606.
In October 1589 the minister of Kinghorn parish, [[John Scrimgeour (minister)|John Scrimgeour]], was chosen by [[James VI and I|King James VI]] to accompany him on his voyage to meet his bride, [[Anne of Denmark]], in Norway.<ref>[[William King Tweedie]], [https://archive.org/details/selectbiographi01twee/page/308/mode/2up ''Select Biographies'', vol. 1 (Edinburgh, 1845), p. 308]</ref>
A [[Burn (topography)|burn]], fed from the freshwater Kinghorn [[Loch]] above the town, once provided the town with its water and subsequently provided the source of power to drive the machinery of [[flax]] mills.
The old town was dramatically transformed in 1846 by the construction of the railway viaduct across the valley of the burn and the opening of Kinghorn Station by the [[Edinburgh and Northern Railway]] which had its terminus at [[Burntisland]] for ferries across the Forth to [[Granton, Edinburgh|Granton]]. Much of the former horse ferry traffic from Pettycur Bay was lost to Burntisland. The huge viaduct (mainly solid) splits the original town in two and totally dominates the lower (southern) section.
Following the opening of the [[Forth Railway Bridge]] in 1890, the [[North British Railway]] started to promote Kinghorn's picturesque sheltered bay and beach as a [[resort]], which led to considerable development of the town.
==Buildings of Note==
[[File:Kinghorn Townhouse, Fife.png|thumb|upright|[[Kinghorn Town Hall]]]]
[[File:Early 18th century houses on North Overgate, Kinghorn.jpg|thumb|Early 18th-century houses on North Overgate, Kinghorn]]
[[File:Kinghorn War Memorial.png|thumb|upright|Kinghorn War Memorial]]
*[[Kinghorn Town Hall]] by [[Thomas Hamilton (architect)|Thomas Hamilton]] 1830.
*Kinghorn Parish Church (1774) with a dramatic tower added in 1895 by [[Sydney Mitchell]]
*Kinghorn War memorial (1923) designed by William Williamson of [[Kirkcaldy]] and sculpted by [[Alexander Carrick]]
The town contains a number of 18th-century houses in the Scots vernacular style, but the integrity of the streetscapes are seriously compromised by the "town planning" of the 1960s and 70s, which failed to respect the original character and form.
==Ministers==
*William Gardine Dobie [[Volunteer Officers' Decoration|VD]], served 1887&ndash;1907
*Alexander Hannay McIlwraith, served 1908&ndash;1926
*John Heriot Ballingall, served the Free Church 1845 to 1879<ref>Ewings Annals of the Free Church</ref>
==Provosts==
*John Sim served 1899 to 1908 &ndash; manager of Kinghorn Gas Works<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://digital.nls.uk/directories/browse/archive/90692862?mode=transcription|title=(215) - Scotland > 1882-1915 - Slater's Royal National Commercial Directory of Scotland > 1903, Part 2 - Slater's Royal National Commercial Directory of Scotland ... (Royal National Directory of Scotland.) With ... map, etc - Scottish Directories - National Library of Scotland|website=digital.nls.uk}}</ref>
==Notable people==
*[[William Barron Coutts]], military scientist<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.royalsoced.org.uk/cms/files/fellows/biographical_index/fells_indexp1.pdf|title=Biographical Index|publisher=Royal Society of Edinburgh|access-date=17 November 2015|archive-date=24 January 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130124115814/http://www.royalsoced.org.uk/cms/files/fellows/biographical_index/fells_indexp1.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>
*[[John McAulay]], recipient of the [[Victoria Cross]]
*[[Jimmy Frew (footballer, born 1892)|Jimmy Frew]], footballer
*[[George Sanders (painter)|George Sanders]], Scottish portrait painter
*[[Christina Robertson]], portrait painter in the UK and Russia<ref>V. Remington, ‘Robertson , Christina (1796–1854)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/40406, accessed 12 Oct 2015]</ref>
*[[John Scrimgeour (minister)|John Scrimgeour]], minister put under house arrest for not requiring his congregation to take the knee for Holy Communion
*[[Sharon Small]], actress
*Professor [[Neil Campbell (chemist)|Neil Campbell]], chemist
==Education==
Kinghorn Primary School is the only school in Kinghorn.<ref name="a list of primary schools in Fife">{{cite web |url=http://www.fifedirect.org.uk/topics/index.cfm?startRow=51&OBJECTID=xxx&ORDERBY=location&FUSEACTION=Facility%2EList&SUBJECTID=0AB411F8%2D508B%2DDE79%2D478BA07C673E89C9 |title=A list of all primary schools in Fife |publisher=Fife Council |access-date=2011-02-16}}</ref> The school is housed in a building that was built in 1986. The school has currently achieved three of the four "green flags" available under the [[Eco-Schools]] scheme, with the third flag being achieved on 27 May 2009.<ref>[http://www.fife.gov.uk/atoz/index.cfm?fuseaction=facility.display&facid=F60150F2-E4A6-4206-BC822F37DF2D78F6 Kinghorn Primary School], Fife Council website, accessed 19 April 2009</ref> The school has a long history. The original Parish School building of 1823 designed by [[Thomas Hamilton (architect)|Thomas Hamilton]] is now a library and community centre that retains the original octagonal Museum vestibule with replicas of the [[Elgin Marbles]].<ref>[http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/sc-36250-rossland-place-public-library-and-communi#.Vr5VZOZK3OU Public Library and Community Centre (formerly Kinghorn Primary School)] British Listed Buildings, accessed 12 February 2016</ref>
==Culture and sport==
An annual attraction is the Black Rock '5' Race, commonly referred to as the "Black Rock '5'" or the "Black Rock Race", a road and beach running race of about {{convert|4.5|mi|km}} that has been held in Kinghorn each year since 1987. Its distinguishing feature is the loop around the Black Rocks, over a mile from the shore, and largely under water except at [[low tide]]. The race is held on a suitable Friday in May or June, when the tide is out and the water is no more than knee deep. Over the years it has changed from a simple race into a full-blown social night in Kinghorn's calendar.
The inaugural Black Rock '5', held in 1987, was won by Gifford Kerr, ahead of 66 other finishers; a very small field by today's standards - in 2005 there were over 600 participants, of a wide variety of abilities. The race has been staged every year since 1987, apart from 1991, and throughout the years the numbers have increased significantly, as did the quality of the top end of the field, with recent winners including Neil Renault and Ross Houston.
In the 21st century the race has been dominated by Edinburgh running club Hunters Bog Trotters (HBT) with both Phil Mowbray and Don Naylor having taken the spoils. The course record belongs to Ian Harkness, also of HBT, in a time of 22:03.
== See also ==
*[[Kinghorn (Parliament of Scotland constituency)]]
== Notes ==
{{Reflist|group=note}}
==References==
{{Reflist|2}}
==External links==
{{Commons category|Kinghorn}}
* [http://www.kinghorn.org.uk/ Kinghorn lifeboat]
* [http://www.blackrock5.org/ Black Rock race]
* [http://www.fifefhs.org/Photos/kinghornpics.htm Old and new Kinghorn pictures at Fife Family History]
* [http://www.alexandercarrick.webeden.co.uk/#/kinghorn/4518164935 Alexander Carrick, sculptor of the war memorial] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130916022731/http://www.alexandercarrick.webeden.co.uk/#/kinghorn/4518164935 |date=16 September 2013 }}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:Kinghorn| ]]
[[Category:Seaside resorts in Scotland]]
[[Category:Towns in Fife]]
[[Category:Parishes in Fife]]