In 1817 George Robinson, the greatest of Banff’s Provosts, after 34 years of running the town’s affairs, presented the Head Court with a statement of what had been achieved in that time. It was an impressive list, and what was more, everything was costed, and the town was still solvent. Not everything had been plain […]
Crossing the Deveron Bridge, what first attracted me to Banff was the prospect of the Old Banff Academy facing east on a rise above the High Street, overlooking the approach from the bridge. The Neo Greek, single storey, 15-bay classical frontage by William Robertson (1837-8) of Elgin, spoke of Banff as a town which valued culture […]
Everyone living in Banff will be familiar with the name Canal Park, being the area of ground that was, for many years, the home to Deveronside football team. Where did the name come from? There are no canals around Banff. The following quotes from the Minutes of Banff Town Council shed a bit of light […]
We all know that people muddle Banff in Scotland with Banff in Canada. But there’s another Banff in Scotland, more normally spelt ‘Bamff’, which is just as we pronounce it round here. This is near Alyth in Perthshire. The Bamff estate there has belonged to the Ramsays since 1232. The first Ramsay was physician to […]
Those of you who are observant will have noticed a stone cross, built in to the wall at the corner of Sandyhill Road and Bellevue Road. The date carved around the cross is 1864. This cross marks the site of the Episcopal female school, opened in 1864. Thanks to old copies of the Banffshire Journal […]
You have probably never heard of Colin Grant Mackenzie (1832-1913); me neither, until recently. It turns out he was famous for his woodcut printing skills, and somewhat of a poet to boot. Mackenzie was born in Banff in 1832; the only census entry I could find showed one Colin Mckinzie, 8 years old, present at […]
On the Southwestern edge of Banff is the site of the old Colleonard Nurseries. What surprised me is that this was also the original site for the sport of Curling in Banff. The Curling pond was opened in 1887 on the site of the old Mill of Banff distillery dam. It is described as follows […]