Invergordon (; gd, Inbhir Ghòrdain or ) is a town and
port
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...
in
Easter Ross
Easter Ross ( gd, Ros an Ear) is a loosely defined area in the east of Ross, Highland, Scotland.
The name is used in the constituency name Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, which is the name of both a British House of Commons constituenc ...
, in
Ross and Cromarty
Ross and Cromarty ( gd, Ros agus Cromba), sometimes referred to as Ross-shire and Cromartyshire, is a variously defined area in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. There is a registration county and a lieutenancy area in current use, the latt ...
,
Highland
Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...
,
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
. It lies in the parish of
Rosskeen
Rosskeen is a parish in Ross and Cromarty on the Cromarty Firth in northern Scotland, containing the settlements of Invergordon, Bridgend and Saltburn. It lies on the A9 between Inverness and Thurso.
Notable Buildings
*Newmore Farmhouse (1845) ...
.
History
The town built up around the harbour which was established in 1828. The area became a
police burgh
A police burgh was a Scottish burgh which had adopted a "police system" for governing the town. They existed from 1833 to 1975.
The 1833 act
The first police burghs were created under the Burgh Police (Scotland) Act 1833 (3 & 4 Wm IV c.46). This ...
in 1863 and
Invergordon Town Hall
Invergordon Town Hall is a municipal building in the High Street in Invergordon in the Highland (council area), Highland area of Scotland. The structure, which is used as a community events venue, is a Category B listed building.
History
Follow ...
was completed in 1871.
The Invergordon Grain Distillery, operated by Philippines-owned whisky giant
Whyte & Mackay, was established in 1959. Connected to the distillery was the
Invergordon Distillery Pipe Band
Invergordon Distillery Pipe Band was a pipe band associated with the Invergordon Distillery. The band was characterised by the extremely high calibre of the individual players.
History
The idea of forming a band was put forward by a production ...
which was formed in 1964.
In 1971, the
British Aluminium Company, which was 47% owned by
Reynolds Metals, opened an
aluminum smelter
Aluminium (aluminum in AmE, American and CanE, Canadian English) is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately o ...
at Invergordon.
Naval Base
The naval institute was designed in 1914 by Edinburgh architect
Stewart Kaye in anticipation of the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. The naval base was the venue for the
Invergordon Mutiny of 1931. Remains of the
naval base are evidenced in the tank farm lying behind the town centre; the port used to contain fuel oil and water supplies for naval ships (see
Inchindown oil tanks).
One German bomb hit one of the tanks during the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
when a large
flying boat
A flying boat is a type of fixed-winged seaplane with a hull, allowing it to land on water. It differs from a floatplane in that a flying boat's fuselage is purpose-designed for floatation and contains a hull, while floatplanes rely on fusela ...
base occupied much of the northerly coast of the
Cromarty Firth. The naval base closed in 1956. On 27–28 May 1957 the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...
held a
fleet review in the waters off the town.
Since 1978, the former naval base has been used as a deep water port which has been visited by many large
cruise liners and allows disembarkation for
coach
Coach may refer to:
Guidance/instruction
* Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities
* Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process
** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers
Transportation
* Co ...
tours in the northern
Highlands. The port renewed its military connections in the summer of 2017, when it was visited by the new
aircraft carrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and facilities for carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft. Typically, it is the capital ship of a fleet, as it allows a ...
HMS ''Queen Elizabeth'' during her sea trials. On 19 June 2021 the last of the Batch-2
River-class offshore patrol vessel
The River class is a class of offshore patrol vessels built primarily for the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom. A total of nine were built for the Royal Navy (RN), four Batch 1 and five Batch 2. One Batch 1 (), which was the Falklands guard ...
,
HMS ''Spey'', was commissioned at a ceremony at the former naval base. The
Royal Marines Band Service was at the ceremony providing musical support.
Culture
Invergordon is now the premier mural town of the Highlands and hopes to emulate the success of her mentor in
Chemainus, British Columbia
Chemainus is a community within the municipality of North Cowichan in the Chemainus Valley on the east coast of southern Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada.
Founded as an unincorporated logging town in 1858, Chemainus is now famous ...
. Currently the town is adorned with a series of 17 murals. The paintwork created by a selection of artists tells the stories of the local community and the area. This trail is a result of a community project which was initially designed to integrate local community groups (17 in total took part). The trail, which was opened by the
Princess Royal, now acts as a major tourist draw.
Infrastructure
The town is served by
Invergordon railway station
, symbol_location = gb
, symbol = rail
, image = Invergordon railway station 2017, 7243.jpg
, borough = Invergordon, Highland
, country = Scotland
, coordinates =
, grid_name ...
which lies on the
Far North Line, and is in close proximity to the
A9 trunk road.
As of 2012, there is a controversial scheme for a waste incinerator at the Cromarty Firth Industrial Park in Invergordon, which the Scottish government are now reviewing following protests by the local community. The £43 million plant would be built by Combined Power and Heat (Highlands) Ltd.
Education
Invergordon has one secondary school, Invergordon Academy, which is fed by four primary schools, Newmore Primary School, Park Primary School, South Lodge Primary School and Milton Primary School.
In 2013 the Highland Council announced plans for a new "super school" to serve Ross-shire with the preferred option being that it be built in Invergordon. This has seen much protest by locals and is currently under review. If it went ahead Alness and Tain academies would close and there would also be a change to the local primary schools.
In popular culture
In Season 3 of Amazon Prime motoring series
The Grand Tour,
Jeremy Clarkson,
James May and
Richard Hammond
Richard Mark Hammond (born 19 December 1969) is an English journalist, television presenter, mechanic, and writer. He is best known for co-hosting the BBC Two motoring programme ''Top Gear'' from 2002 until 2015 with Jeremy Clarkson and Jame ...
visited Invergordon as part of their journey along the
NC500.
Notable residents
*
Jimmy Andrews
James Patrick Andrews (1 February 1927 – 12 September 2012) was a Scottish footballer who played as a left winger.
Biography
Andrews was born on 1 February 1927 in Invergordon, Scotland.
He was signed by English club West Ham United from D ...
, footballer
*
Robert Brough
Robert John Cameron Brough ARSA (1872 – 21 January 1905) was a Scottish painter born near Invergordon, Ross and Cromarty.
Life
He was born on 20 March 1872. at Garty Cottage, Kilmuir Easter, near Invergordon. His mother was Helen Brough, ...
. painter.
*
John D. Burgess
John Davie Burgess (11 March 1934 – 29 June 2005) was an eminent Scottish bagpipe player.
Life
He was born in Aberdeen on 11 March 1934, and first learned to play the practice chanter at the age of four from his father John, who was also a ...
, piper.
*
Allan Cameron, curler
*
Bryan Gunn, footballer
*
James MacBain
Sir James MacBain (19 April 1828 – 4 November 1892) was a politician in colonial Victoria (Australia), President of the Victorian Legislative Council.
MacBain was the youngest son of Smith MacBain, of Invergordon, Ross-shire, Scotland, and ...
, Australian politician
*
Rob MacLean
Robin "Rob" Maclean (born 1958 in Invergordon) is a Scottish television presenter, football commentator and sports writer. He currently works for BBC Scotland and BT Sport.
Maclean began his career with the Highland News Group in Inverness before ...
, football commentator.
* Admiral of the Fleet
Sir John Julian Robertson Oswald
*
Cheryl Paul
Cheryl Paul is a Scottish broadcast journalist, currently working with STV News.
Born in Staffordshire, she moved to Invergordon in the Scottish Highlands aged 9 where her parents ran a hotel. After attending Invergordon Academy she joined the ...
, newsreader
*
Sir Charles Ross, inventor of the
Ross Rifle
*
William Ramsay Smith, doctor and activist for Indigenous Australian rights.
*
Luke Stoltman
Luke Stoltman Luke Bernard Stoltman (born 22 November 1984) is a Scottish professional strongman competitor, 5 time winner of Scotland’s Strongest Man and 2021 Europe’s Strongest Man champion. Renowned for his static shoulder strength, Lu ...
. five-time winner of Scotland's Strongest Man,
2021 Europe's Strongest Man
*
Tom Stoltman
Tom Stoltman (born 30 May 1994) is a Scottish professional strongman competitor, reigning two time World's Strongest Man and Britain's Strongest Man from Invergordon, Scotland. Nicknamed "The Albatross" due to his sizeable arm span, Stoltman is ...
, winner of the
2021 World's Strongest Man
The 2021 World's Strongest Man was the 44th edition of the World's Strongest Man competition, an event that took place in Sacramento, California from June 15 to June 20, 2021. The defending champion was Oleksii Novikov of Ukraine, however, he f ...
competition.
References
External links
Invergordon Community OnlineInvergordon ArchiveInvergordon NewsCromarty Firth Port AuthorityPark Primary SchoolInvergordon Football ClubInvergordon Junior Football Club* http://www.invergordonoffthewall.com
{{Authority control
Populated places in Ross and Cromarty
Ports and harbours of Scotland
Royal Navy bases in Scotland
Towns in Highland (council area)