Forfar

Forfar (Farfar, Baile Fharfair) is a parish, town and former royal burgh of about 13,500 people in Angus, Scotland. Forfar is the county town of Angus, which was officially known as Forfarshire from the 18th century until 1929, when the ancient name was reinstated, and today serves as the administrative centre for Angus Council.

Forfar is also a traditional market town, serving the outlying lowland farms of Strathmore in central Angus. The Scottish meat pastry snack Bridie is from Forfar.

History
Chiefs met at a castle by Forfar Loch to plan how best to repel the Romans who invaded on several occasions between the 1st and 4th centuries AD. Ultimately the Romans prevailed, only to be displaced in the Early Middle Ages by the Picts. The Romans established a major Roman camp at Battledykes, approximately three miles north of Forfar; this camp was analysed to have held 50,000 to 60,000 men. From Battledykes northward the Romans established a succession of camps including Stracathro, Raedykes and Normandykes. A "claimant" to the throne, the daughter of the leader of the Meic Uilleim, who were descendants of King Duncan II, had her brains dashed out on Forfar market cross in 1230 while still an infant.

During the first war of independence, the castle of Forfar was held by the English. After Robert Bruce's victory over the Earl of Buchanan, Philip, the Forester of Platane, together with some of his friends raised ladders against the wall and, climbing over, surprised the garrison and slew them. He then yielded the castle to Bruce, who rewarded him and gave instructions for its demolition.

The Meffan Museum is in the heart of the town. It was built by a daughter of the Provost Meffan as a bequest in 1898. It is home of the Forfar story. It is also an art gallery and a meeting place for local speakers, summer clubs for children and groups. The story of Forfar takes you from the history of the little cobbler shops to the burning of the witch Helen Guthrie. There is also a good selection of Pictish stones found in and around Forfar and Kirriemuir. The Large Class I Pictish stone, with a rare carving of a flower, is called the Dunnichen Stone. It was found in the early 19th century when a farmer from the East Mains of Dunnichen was ploughing. It was initially displayed at a church in the vicinity, then at Dunnichen House. In 1966 it was relocated at St Vigeans and finally moved to Dundee museum in 1972. After the Meffan Institute had been renovated it was brought to Forfar on a long term loan where it is displayed alongside the Kirriemuir Sculptured Stones. There is also a canoe, excavated from Forfar Loch, that dates back to the 11th century (one of two that were found).

Like other parts of Angus, Forfar was home to a very successful textile industry during and after the Industrial Revolution. In the late 18th century the firm of William Don & Co. (later William and John Don & Co) was founded in the town. The firm originally bought and sold webs of linen which were woven in local cottages, although it also operated a small weaving shed. In 1865 the firm merged with A J Buist, a Dundee based firm, and began construction of St James Works in Forfar. The partnership also oporated mills in Dundee and later built Station Works in Forfar, which contained some 300 looms. Workers housing was also built by the firm in Forfar. Don Brothers, Buist & Company Ltd, as the firm was known from 1904, built another works in Forfar, at Strang Street, in 1929. In 1960 it merged with another Dundee firm, Low Brothers & Co (Dundee) Ltd, eventually becoming Don & Low (Holdings) Ltd. The firm retains premises in Forfar, mainly producing woven and non-woven polypropylene industrial textile products and plastic food packaging.

In 1911 more than 20% of workers in Forfar were employed in the jute industry. Employment levels in this industry generally dramatically declined in other parts of Angus, including Dundee, during the next four decades. Notably in Dundee, the centre of the British jute industry, more than 40.4% of the working population had worked in the jute industry in 1911, but by 1951 this had fallen to just 18.5%. In Forfar, however this trend was not followed as percentage of the workforce employed in the jute industry had actually risen to 24.4% by 1951.

In the town there is a metal plaque to General Sikorski and the Polish troops commemorating the visit of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth to the town on 7 March 1941. The metal plaque is located on a wall on Market Street below the Sheriff Court building. It was here on 7 March 1941 that the Royal couple, along with General Sikorski, took the salute in the march past of the Polish troops.

Governance
Forfar is represented within Angus Council by the Forfar & District ward, from which four councillors are elected. The members elected from this ward are, as of 2012; Lynne Devine (Scottish National Party), Glennis Middleton (SNP), Colin Brown (Independent) and Ian McLaren (Independent).

Transport
The town is located just off the main A90 Perth to Aberdeen road which now bypasses the town but once passed through the town. The town had a railway station which ran goods and passenger lines until September 3, 1967 when it closed for passenger transport as part of the Beeching cuts. The goods lines continued until the 1990s. It was located on the main line of the Caledonian Railway from Glasgow to Aberdeen, which was the furthest north link in the chain of the West Coast Main Line from London. Lines also went to Dundee, Arbroath, Brechin and Kirriemuir. The station has been demolished and replaced by a small housing estate. However, a major locomotive shed remains and is in use for vehicle body manufacture. Some bridges and cuttings still survive but the site of the goods station, which was also the town's original railway station before the one near the county buildings was built, is now mainly residential properties. There are bus services to Dundee, Arbroath, Kirriemuir, Brechin etc.

Local sport
The town has a second division football club, Forfar Athletic, who play at Station Park, as well as two junior clubs, Forfar West End and Forfar Albion. Dundee United Reserves also play at Forfar Athletic's ground, Station Park. Youth and Women's Football is also available in the town, with Forfar Boys F.C (boys only), Lochside Boys F.C (boys only) and Forfar Farmington F.C (boys, girls and women's) All the clubs have SFA Quality Mark Award at some level.

Rugby Union is represented in the town by Strathmore Rugby Football Club, who play their home games at Inchmacoble Park, beside Forfar Loch. Strathmore Cricket Club, founded in 1862, has played at Lochside Park since 1873. Forfar Loch is home to Forfar Sailing Club

The town has a swimming pool and a separate dedicated leisure centre. It also has an ice rink which was built in the early 1990s and this is home to the local curling club. There are also many bowling clubs, and the Forfar Golf Club which is situated at Cunninghill to the east of the town. Angus Gliding Club operates at Roundyhill, between Glamis and Kirriemuir.

It also has a newly built skatepark which is near the towns leisure center.

Education
Forfar has recently seen a major change in its education structure, due to the Forfar-Carnoustie Schools Project.

There are currently three primary schools:


 * Whitehills Primary School in Service Road. Whitehills contains a Gaelic Medium Unit where pupils are educated exclusively through the medium of Scottish Gaelic. The Head Teacher is Brenda Davie.


 * Strathmore Primary School in St James' Road. The head teacher is Dawn Archibald.


 * Langlands Primary School in Glamis Road. (Reopened in May 2009 after the original school buildings were demolished and an extensive period of rebuilding and relandscaping was carried out.)

There is one secondary school in the town:


 * Forfar Academy in Taylor Street, which has a roll of around 1,200 pupils making it one of the largest schools in Angus.

Previous primary schools in the town included:

Chapelpark Primary School in Academy Street (formerly the old Forfar Academy). This school was closed in 2007 and pupils were re-located to both Strathmore Primary and Whitehills Primary. However, the building is still in use as a school and was used by Whitehills Primary until their new school was completed in early 2008. It was home to Langlands Primary School, until the new school on that site was completed in May 2009. It is unknown what will happen to the Chapelpark building after this date, however it is considered to be one of the most beautiful and historic buildings in the town. Many locals believe it would make a great library/museum.

Kirkriggs Primary School in St. James' Road, which was closed in 2007. Pupils were originally re-located to Langlands until the new school on this site was completed in early 2008. It has pupils from Chapelpark, Kirkriggs and Wellbrae Primaries and is known as Strathmore Primary School.

Wellbrae Primary School, which closed in 2007. Pupils were sent to Chapelpark Primary School, which has now been moved to Whitehills Primary School. The play areas of Wellbrae were all concrete.

Healthcare
The local community hospital, the Whitehills Health and Community Care Centre, was built on the site of the old Whitehills Hospital building (the former hospital for infectious diseases) and opened in Spring 2005.

The new hospital replaced Forfar Infirmary, formerly the town's main hospital, as well as Whitehills Hospital. The Forfar Infirmary site has since been completely demolished, and sold off to developers.

The Fyfe-Jamieson maternity hospital closed some time ago; it was across the road from the Forfar Academy, but the site has since been built over with houses.

Places of worship
Forfar has three Church of Scotland congregations:
 * East and Old Church, originally the parish kirk, with a tall slender spire, with steeple clock overlooking the town centre.
 * Lowson Memorial Church, off Montrose Road. This is a category A listed church in late Scots Gothic style built in 1914 by A Marshall Mackenzie, who also designed Crathie Kirk. The church contains notable stained glass windows by Douglas Strachan. The church serves the east side of Forfar, and provides a mix of traditional and contemporary styles of worship.
 * St Margaret's Church, in the West High Street, originally a Free Kirk.

It had been decided (by a Church of Scotland arbiter) that the East and Old Parish Church would close, and the congregation would be moving to St. Margaret's Church. This was brought back for discussion at Angus Presbytery due to a large vote against this decision. Now the East and Old and St Margaret's are to remain individual churches as they have always have been.

The East & Old Church is built on the site of the original place of worship that some of the monks of Restenneth Priory built hundreds of years before the one today. The adjoining graveyard has famous 'residents' such as botanist George Don, quite a few scholars and a man who blamed the witches of Forfar for poisoning him after ill words were exchanged between them. The steeple is a focal point of Forfar, visible when entering the town from any direction. Although abutting the East & Old building, it is owned by the 'Town' and is not formally part of the church property; it is all but certain to be retained following any disposition of the church building.

The town also has churches of other denominations, including:
 * St John the Evangelist Scottish Episcopal Church, East High Street, designed by Sir R Rowand Anderson and consecrated in 1881. Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, later to become Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, was confirmed in this church.
 * St Fergus Roman Catholic Church.
 * Forfar Community Church at Wellbraehead on part of the old school site.

Other items of interest
The town is home to the renowned Forfar bridie, popular with locals and visitors. The Forfar bridie has been featured on many TV programmes. A recipe for the Forfar bridie was also featured in "Maw Broon's Cookbook".

Another feature of the town is the Forfar Loch Country Park, which is popular amongst locals as a walking venue. It is said that the Forfar Loch extended over much more of Forfar in the 1800s, going as far up as Orchardbank and Wellbrae. A drainage project brought the water level down. In about the same time period the loch was used to dump raw sewage; thankfully this practice is no longer continued: it is now treated sewage.

Her Majesty The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh visited the town and surrounding area in 2004 (the first time in around 30 years)and again in 2011. HRH Prince Charles, the Duke of Rothesay, visited the town in April, 2012 to take the salute of the Black Watch during the regiment's homecoming parade, marking its return from a six-month tour of duty in Afghanistan.

The town lies in Strathmore and is situated just off the main A90 road between Perth and Aberdeen, with Dundee (the nearest city) being 13 miles (21 km) away. It is approximately five miles (8 km) from Glamis Castle, seat of the Bowes-Lyon family and ancestral home of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, and where the late Princess Margaret, younger sister of Queen Elizabeth II, was born in 1930.

The town is near to the Angus Glens, including Glen Doll, Glen Clova and Glen Prosen, that are popular with skiers and hill walkers. The area is notable for the beautiful scenery of the mountains and Strathmore.

The town holds many events throughout the year such as the bi-annual Forfar Mara-Fun, which raises money for charity, and the annual Forfar Food Festival highlighting some of the local food. There is also a monthly farmers' market.

Agriculture and tourism are some of the town's major industries. It also acts as an administrative centre for Angus Council, with a new multi-million pound office complex currently on the outskirts of the town.

Forfar is also home to the Strathmore Mineral Water Co., Ltd., a bottled mineral water producer now run by AG Barr. The company's products are shipped worldwide.

Forfar is also known the "coo o Forfar". A householder left a tub of beer in the doorway to cool, and a passing cow drank it. When the owner of the cow was charged for the beer, a baillie ruled that if the beer was drunk at the doorway it was "deoch an doras" or "stirrup cup", to charge for which would be an insult to Scots hospitality. This became a byword: "Be like the coo o Forfar, an tak a stannin drink".

Public services
Forfar and the surrounding area is supplied with water by Scottish Water from Lintrathen and Backwater reservoirs in Glen Isla. Electricity distribution is by Scottish Hydro Electric plc, part of the Scottish and Southern Energy group.

Waste management is handled by Angus Council. There is a kerbside recycling scheme that has been in operation since September 2005. Cans, glass, paper and plastic bottles are collected on a weekly basis. Compostable material and non-recyclable material are collected on alternate weeks. Roughly two thirds of non-recyclable material is sent to landfill at Angus Council's site at Lochhead, Forfar and the remainder sent for incineration (with energy recovery) outside the council area.

A recycling centre is located at Queenswell Road. Items accepted include, steel and aluminium cans, cardboard, paper, electrical equipment, engine oil, fridges and freezers, garden waste, gas bottles, glass, liquid food and drinks cartons, plastic bottles, plastic carrier bags, rubble, scrap metal, shoes and handbags, spectacles, textiles, tin foil, wood and yellow pages. Angus council publishes details of where and how each product is processed. There are also glass banks at the Abbeygate and Tesco car parks. The Angus Council area had a recycling rate of 34.7% in 2007/08.

Healthcare is supplied in the area by NHS Tayside. The nearest hospitals with accident and emergency departments are Arbroath Infirmary and Ninewells Hospital, Dundee. Primary Health Care in Forfar is supplied by several practices, based at Ravenswood Surgery on New Road, Academy Medical Centre in Academy Street and Lour Road Group Practice. Forfar, along with the rest of Scotland is served by the Scottish Ambulance Service.

Law enforcement is provided by Tayside Police and Forfar is served by Tayside Fire and Rescue Service.

Notable people

 * Bon Scott, the legendary rock n' roll singer from the band AC/DC.


 * Eilley Bowers, in her time, one of the richest women in the United States, and owner of the Bowers Mansion, one of the then largest houses in the western United States. She was a Scottish farmer's daughter who emigrated, after converting to Mormonism as a teenager.
 * Peter Ritchie Calder
 * A. S. Neill
 * Jack Lorimer, well known comedian and father of Max Wall
 * Peter Reid, confectioner and philanthropist
 * Joseph Wedderburn, mathematician, modern algebra, born in Forfar
 * David Potter, sports author