|
 Pitlochry is the
tourist centre of Highland Perthshire.
Famous for it's scenery and hydro-electric
dam with salmon ladder. Here the salmon don't actually jump up the ladder
but swim through interconnecting pipes. An observation chamber allows visitors
to watch the salmon underwater through a large plate glass window.
The present town is relatively new
by Perthshire standards dating mainly from the mid 19thC. Queen Victoria
visited in 1844 and it quickly grew into the tourist town of today.
Nearby Moulin has a more ancient history.
The Earl of Atholl granted Moulin Church to Dunfermline Abbey in 1180. In
1511 Moulin became a burgh of barony. The Kirk was rebuilt in 1613 and the
Moulin Arms dates from 1695.
In common with much of Perthshire,
Pitlochry was a centre of flax growing and home based linen weaving by the
end of the 18thC. The Blair Atholl whisky distillery in Pitlochry
was founded in 1798. In 1821 the post office was opened, later than
in most Perthshire villages. In 1835 the MacNaughton family opened water
powered wool mills which produced tweed cloth from raw wool.
The first modern highland games took
place in 1852. The combination of the forested hills, lochs & rivers
and the coming of the railway in 1863 guaranteed Pitlochry's success as a
Victorian resort. In 1878 a Hydropathic resort opened.
It possibly has a higher proportion
of hotels and guesthouses than any other town of comparable size. In 1947
the town became a burgh. Between 1947-50 an extensive hydro-electric scheme
was built upstream of the town with the lowest dam and power station being
that on the River Tummel at Pitlochry itself.
In addition to the scenery and dam,
there is the Festival Theatre built in 1981, 2 distilleries, nearby
Blair Castle at Blair Atholl with summer
horse trials, Killiecrankie (battle 1689) and a wide selection of tourist
shops and restaurants.
Just north of Pitlochry is the House
of Bruar retail complex offering quality Scottish shopping on a grand scale.
Check out
Pitlochry self catering and
hotel accommodation. |
