East Wemyss is a small town situated on the south coast of the Kingdom of Fife,
ScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. In the
United Kingdom Census 2001A nationwide census, commonly known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census....
the population was recorded as 1841.
East Wemyss used to be a good spot for
fishingFishing is the activity of catching fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
although the construction of a sea wall has mainly stopped shore fishing. There are, however, still boat huts which many fishermen use to fish the
Firth of ForthThe Firth of Forth is the estuary or firth of Scotland's River Forth, where it flows into the North Sea, between Fife to the north, and West Lothian, the City of Edinburgh and East Lothian to the south...
.
This coastal area is known for its caves (the place-name derives from
GaelicScottish Gaelic is a member of the Goidelic branch of Celtic languages, and is distinct from the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages, which includes Welsh, Cornish, and Breton. Scottish, Manx and Irish Gaelic are all descended from Old Irish...
uamh, 'cave'), several of which contain Pictish incised carvings.
Discussion
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East Wemyss is a small town situated on the south coast of the Kingdom of Fife,
ScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. In the
United Kingdom Census 2001A nationwide census, commonly known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census....
the population was recorded as 1841.
East Wemyss used to be a good spot for
fishingFishing is the activity of catching fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
although the construction of a sea wall has mainly stopped shore fishing. There are, however, still boat huts which many fishermen use to fish the
Firth of ForthThe Firth of Forth is the estuary or firth of Scotland's River Forth, where it flows into the North Sea, between Fife to the north, and West Lothian, the City of Edinburgh and East Lothian to the south...
.
This coastal area is known for its caves (the place-name derives from
GaelicScottish Gaelic is a member of the Goidelic branch of Celtic languages, and is distinct from the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages, which includes Welsh, Cornish, and Breton. Scottish, Manx and Irish Gaelic are all descended from Old Irish...
uamh, 'cave'), several of which contain Pictish incised carvings. The caves in East Wemyss were documented by the
Time TeamTime Team is a British television series shown on Channel 4 since 1994. Presented by actor Tony Robinson, a team of specialists carry out an archaeological dig in three days, with Robinson explaining the process in layman’s terms....
in a programme first broadcast in February 2005.
The town's most notable son is
Jimmy ShandSir James Shand MBE was a Scottish musician who played traditional Scottish dance music on the accordion.-Early life:James Shand was born in East Wemyss in Fife, son of a farm ploughman turned miner...
, the bandleader.
History
East Wemyss was traditionally a
miningCoal mining is the extraction or removal of coal from the earth by mining. When coal is used for fuel in power generation it is referred to as steaming or thermal coal. Coal that is used to create coke for steel manufacturing is referred to as coking or metallurgical coal...
community along the coast of
FifeFife is a council area of Scotland, situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire. It was originally one of the Pictish kingdoms, known as Fib, and is still commonly known as the Kingdom of Fife within Scotland.It is a...
. The pit (the Michael Colliery) was its main employer for many years until it was closed due to a fire in 1967 which resulted in the deaths of nine men. The mine has been demolished. However, a memorial to the pit and the men who died in it has been erected. East Wemyss is also home to the ruins of
MacDuff's CastleMacDuff's Castle is a ruined castle near East Wemyss, in Fife, Scotland. The site is associated with the MacDuff Earls of Fife, the most powerful family in Fife in the middle ages, although nothing survives from this period...
.
External links
See also