Auchterarder
| Auchterarder | |
| Perthshire | |
|---|---|
 Auchterarder High Street | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | NN945125 |
| Location: | 56°17’35"N, 3°42’22"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 3,945 (2001) |
| Post town: | Auchterarder |
| Postcode: | PH3 |
| Dialling code: | 01764 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Perth and Kinross |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Ochil and South Perthshire |
Auchterarder is a small town found north of the Ochil Hills in Perthshire. The famous Gleneagles Hotel is at Auchterarder. The High Street of Auchterarder is a mile and a half long and this gave the town its popular name of "The Lang Toun" or Long Town.
The town’s name is from the Gaelic ‘’Uachdar Àrdair’’, meaning “Upper Highland”.
In the Middle Ages, Auchterarder was known in Europe as 'the town of 100 drawbridges', a colourful description of the narrow bridges leading from the road level across wide gutters to the doorsteps of houses. The name appears in a charter of 1227 in a grant of land transaction to the Convent of Inchaffray [1] The Jacobite Earl of Mar's army torched the town in 1716, but it quickly rose to prominence again thanks mainly to the handloom industry.
In 1834, a controversy over patronage in the selection of a parish minister was the first in a chain of events which would ultimately lead to the Great Disruption of 1843, a schism in the Church of Scotland. The remains of this church – the tower – have recently been renovated, and there is a plaque explaining what the church used to look like.
The Burgh (Police) Scotland Act of 1892 bestowed Burgh status upon the town and a provost, two bailies, an honorary treasurer, Dean of Guild and six councillors were appointed to manage its affairs.[1]
In 1983, Auchterarder and Aberuthven were bypassed by the A9.
The 31st G8 summit was held in the town in July 2005 at the five-star Gleneagles Hotel. The neighbouring golf courses are world-renowned.
Outside links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Young, Alex F. (2003). Old Auchterarder, Blackford and Braco. Catrine, Ayrshire: Stenlake Publishing. p. 3. ISBN 978-1-84033-261-2. http://www.stenlake.co.uk/books/view_book.php?ref=327.