Cairneyhill
Cairneyhill is a small village in west
Fife,
Scotland. 3 miles west of
Dunfermline, on the A994, and has a population of around 2,600.
The village's architecture is a mix of old weavers cottages and modern suburban housing estates. Most residents work either locally or commute to
Edinburgh,
Glasgow or
Stirling. The village is sited north and west of the A985, this major trunk road provides fast travel by car or bus to the
Kincardine Bridge, the
M90 Motorway and the
Forth Road Bridge. The
Firth of Forth is located 1.5 miles south of Cairneyhill.
Cairneyhill hosts a number of local businesses and other amenities. There are two shops (one is a post office), A garden centre, petrol station, a guest house (The Maltings), local pub (the Cairneyhill Inn), a primary school, Scout hall, and a small industrial estate. There is also a golf course: "The Forrester Park Resort" which has two restaurants and a driving range.
The name is unusual in that the village is not actually on any noticeable hill, but it is about 3 miles south of the local landmark of Cairneil Hill. Why a settlement some miles away should be named after the hill is difficult to understand - there are much closer settlements. Old maps before 1800 make little mention of the name, the area usually being marked as Pitdinny or Pitdinnie, which is still found in a local farm on the eastern edge.
The village grew in the 18th century as a settlement for local weavers and was served by the parish church which was built in 1752 (still used today). This was a hotbed of
dissenters and the village was a central point for the religious disputes in
Scotland in the early 19th Century.
There is a small bridge over the Torry Burn at the west end of the village known as the "Conscience Bridge". The legend is that the name arises from the fact a murderer was caught and confessed to his crime on the bridge. The line of the road has been straightened and widened over the years with only the original north parapet remaining but the name of the bridge is carved into a plaque which can be seen by leaning over the wall.
Area code: 01383Postal code: KY12
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History of Cairneyhill Church*
View a map of Cairneyhill*[
1] Photos of the village
