Fintray

Fintray
Aberdeenshire
Bridge across the Don at Boat of Hatton, formerly the site of the ferry
Location
Grid reference:	NJ840163
Location:	57°14’17"N, 2°15’58"W
Data
Post town:	Aberdeen
Postcode:	AB21
Dialling code:	01224
Local Government
Council:	Aberdeenshire
Parliamentary constituency:	Gordon

Fintray is a village and parish on the River Don in Aberdeenshire. The village, more accurately referred to as Hatton of Fintray, was a textile village and its church dates from 1821, and there used to be a nearby ferry crossing the river.

History

The name of the parish is said to be derived from the Gaelic, Fionn-traigh, meaning “the white, or fair margin of coast, or boundary of coast” an appellation descriptive enough of the greater portion of the parish which lies along the left, or north bank of the Don. The parish is bounded on the south by the river Don, which separates it from the parishes of Dyce, Kinellar and Kintore, by the parish of Keithhall and Kinkell on the north and west and by New Machar on the east. The greatest length of the parish, in a direct line from south to north is 4½ miles and its greatest breadth, also in a direct line along the valley of the Don from east to west, is 5½; and its whole area is estimated to be 7,388 acres.

It is mainly an agricultural parish with very little other manufacture. The village Hatton of Fintray is typical picturesque Donside village, little changed over the last 50 years, with the exception of the addition of a number of new houses. It has three churches in the parish, but only the most recent dating from 1821 in use. A good and well attended primary school. An excellent village hall, kept very much up to date, and also well used by the community. A bar and lounge named “The Northern Lights” was established in the village in 1962 and converted from an old established shop and printing works. It has recently been brought very much up to date with the establishment of a restaurant with a reputation for good food. It also has a joiners business, and a garage selling used vehicles.

Hatton of Fintray remains one of the last bastions of tranquillity within a ten-mile radius of Aberdeen.

Local events

There are several local events known throughout Aberdeenshire that originate in Hatton of Fintray. First of all the Sheltie Stakes is a family event run by the community to raise money for a charity. The first Sheltie Stakes took place in early September 1997 and there is a larger turn out every year due to the introduction of advertising throughout Aberdeenshire. The event still takes place in early September, usually the first Sunday of the month. Much of the work is done through the primary school to encourage the children to help in the community.

The Fintray Hillclimb (full title Fintray House Hillclimb) is a speed motorsport event held near Hatton of Fintray. Each event is a separate round of the Scottish Hillclimb Championship. The venue is a working farm for the majority of the year but Grampian Automobile Club (GAC) stage two, two-day events each year. The venue has been used since the 1960s and continues to see record entries. Initially run back in the 1960s by ADMC (Aberdeen & District Motor Club), the event used to run as a National counter in the British Hill Climb Championship. The current track record of 25.72 was set by Roy Lane in a Championship runoff back in 25 June 1989.

Stewart Robb Jr finally broke Roy Lane’s long standing 25.72 hill record at Grampian MC’s short, 725-yard hill at Fintray, near Aberdeen, Saturday 8th Aug 2009. Lane’s old hill standard was set at 1989’s British Championship meeting in his Pilbeam-DFL MP58. Robb’s father, Stewart Sr, was first inside the record – by a mere hundredth – aboard their 4-litre Pilbeam-Judd MP88. But on a day when nine class records were reset, his son applied the coupe de gras on the very last run of the day with a 25.28.

Sources

• Hatton of Fintray in the Gazetteer for Scotland.

("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Fintray)