Nigg is an area of

Aberdeen Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...

, Scotland, south of the River Dee. It has a population of 16,400 (2019 estimate). The area has a bay known as the ''Bay of Nigg'' or Nigg Bay, immediately south of a coastal golf course, and a farm that is also a visitor attraction, known as Doonies Farm.

History

Nigg is situated somewhat to the east of the ancient

Causey Mounth The Causey Mounth is an ancient drovers' road over the coastal fringe of the Grampian Mountains in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. This route was developed around the 12th century Anno Domini, AD as the main highway between Stonehaven and Aberdeen, a ...

trackway, which route was constructed on high ground to make passable this

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

passage from coastal points south of

Stonehaven Stonehaven ( ) is a town on the northeast coast of Scotland, south of Aberdeen. It had a population of 11,177 at th2022 Census Stonehaven was formerly the county town of Kincardineshire, succeeding the now abandoned town of Kincardine, Aberd ...

to Aberdeen. This ancient passage connected the River Dee crossing (where the present

Bridge of Dee The Bridge of Dee or Brig o Dee is a road bridge over the River Dee in Aberdeen, Scotland. The term is also used for the surrounding area of the city. Dating from 1527,Richards, J.M., ''The National Trust Book of Bridges'', Jonathan Cape, 198 ...

is situated) via

Muchalls Castle Muchalls Castle stands overlooking the North Sea in the countryside of Kincardine and Mearns, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The lower course is a well-preserved Romanesque, double-groined 13th-century tower house structure, built by the Frasers o ...

and Stonehaven to the south. The route was that taken by

William Keith, 7th Earl Marischal William Keith, 7th Earl Marischal (16141670 or 1671) was a Scottish nobleman and Covenanter. He was the eldest son of William Keith, 6th Earl Marischal. Life During the English Civil War, the 7th Earl Marischal joined James Graham, 1st Marque ...

and the

Marquess of Montrose A marquess (; ) is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German-language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman with the rank of a marquess or the wife (or widow ...

when they led a

Covenanter Covenanters were members of a 17th-century Scottish religious and political movement, who supported a Presbyterian Church of Scotland and the primacy of its leaders in religious affairs. It originated in disputes with James VI and his son C ...

army of 9,000 men in the battle of the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

in 1638. Nigg was historically a

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

Kincardineshire Kincardineshire or the County of Kincardine, also known as the Mearns (from the Scottish Gaelic meaning "the stewartry"), is a Shires of Scotland, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area on the ...

. It included Altens, Cove Bay,

Kincorth Kincorth is a suburb located to the south of Aberdeen, Scotland. The name is a corruption of the Scottish Gaelic "Ceann Coirthe", which probably refers to an old pillar or standing stone A menhir (; from Brittonic languages: ''maen'' or ...

and

Torry Torry is a suburb of Aberdeen, Scotland, lying on the south bank of the River Dee, Aberdeenshire, River Dee. It was historically part of the county of Kincardineshire and was absorbed into the city of Aberdeen in 1891. Origin People have been ...

as well as the village of Nigg itself. Torry was transferred into the

burgh A burgh ( ) is an Autonomy, autonomous municipal corporation in Scotland, usually a city, town, or toun in Scots language, Scots. This type of administrative division existed from the 12th century, when David I of Scotland, King David I created ...

of Aberdeen in 1891. The burgh of Aberdeen was made a county of itself in 1899. Kincorth and Nigg village were likewise absorbed into the county of the city of Aberdeen in 1935, as was Altens in 1970. The remainder of the parish of Nigg, covering Cove Bay and residual rural areas, was finally absorbed into the

City of Aberdeen Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeenshire, but is now separate from the council area of Aberdeenshire. Aberd ...

district in 1975 as part of the same reforms which abolished Kincardineshire County Council. Doonies Farm in Nigg had been opened in the 1990s as a working farm to showcase different rare breeds of cattle. Due to

Aberdeen City Council Aberdeen City Council is the Local government in Scotland, local authority for Aberdeen City, one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. In its modern form it was created in 1996. Aberdeen was formerly governed by a municipal corporation, corporat ...

zoning the farm for a new energy transition zone, they refused to renew the lease to the farm and it closed in 2023 as a result. It was formally wound-up in 2024.

References

{{Areas of Aberdeen Areas of Aberdeen Parishes in Kincardineshire

History

See also

References