|
Crianlarich lies on the western fringes
of Perthshire at the junction of Glen Falloch, Glen Dochart and Strath Fillan.
In the 21stC it is a junction of roads
from the north, south and east while in the 19thC it became a railway junction.
The railway from Glasgow to West Coast still passes through Crianlarich.
In the 7thC St Fillan established a
monastry in Glen Dochart. At Kirkton, 5km to the north, the foundations of
St Fillan's Priory can still be seen and legend has it that the saint is
buried there.
At Tyndrum, 8km to the north of
Crianlarich, Robert the Bruce was defeated in 1306 by the MacDougalls. The
famous Brooch of Lorne was lost by Bruce and is a treasured possession of
the MacDougalls.
Lead was discovered at Tyndrum in 1741
and was mined until 1862. More recently gold has been extracted!
2km east of Crianlarich, on an island,
lies the ruins of Loch Dochart Castle built by
Black Duncan Campbell of Glenorchy around
1620. In 1646 the castle was destroyed by the
MacNabs. The castle is often associated with
Rob Roy MacGregor but it would have been a ruin even in his times (circa.
1710).
In 1750 the roads first reached the
village as military roads from Stirling and Dumbarton following the natural
valley routes. In 1873 the east-west railway leading to Oban arrived and
in 1894 the north-south line from Glasgow to Fort William also passed through
Crianlarich. These railway companies competed to the extent that the lines
didn't initially interconnect! |
