Alloa Totally Explained

Everything about Alloa totally explained

Alloa (Allmhagh Mòr in Gaelic) is a small burgh in Clackmannanshire, Scotland, 6 miles to the east of Stirling, on the north bank of the River Forth. The town was a burgh of barony, and at one time of considerable commercial importance.

History

During the 18th century, Alloa thrived as a river port through which the products of Glasgow manufacture was exported to continental Europe. At that time, and until the 1950s, the main industry to the north and east of the town was coal mining, and an extensive waggonway existed to take the coal to the harbour. The Earls of Mar owned many of the coal mines, and Robert Bald, an unusually inventive local mining engineer, was instrumental in providing water power from the Gartmorn Dam to operate both the mines and other industries such as weaving. Many traces of the waggonway, and the Gartmorn Dam, can still be seen today, and although the dam is no longer used for energy production, or water supply, it's well used for fishing and leisure purposes.
   The town itself was known for its weaving and glassmaking industries. Alloa was long associated with the brewing industry, with at least nine major breweries producing ales. However this industry declined severely during the late 20th century.
   The town has suffered poor transport links since the Stirling-Alloa-Dunfermline rail service was closed in 1968. However the Stirling-Alloa-Kincardine rail link project was completed in May 2008. This also involved the construction of a new bypass road and bridge so that a major level crossing in the town can be removed in the interests of safety. After much preparatory work, including drainage, and grouting of a large number of shallow mine workings, laying of new track commenced in September 2006. An hourly service to Glasgow is planned, by extending the existing service from Stirling, where the trains currently terminate and spend some considerable time idle. Thus, no new trains will be required, nor any alteration to timetables south of Stirling. Alloa Athletic F.C. are based at Recreation Park in the town.
   The burgh population in a mid-19th century census was 6,440.
   Notable people from the burgh include the footballer and commentator Alan Hansen and the artists Lys Hansen and Emma Scott-Smith. The Canadian politician George Brown was born here in 1818. The founder of Forte Holdings which later merged with Trust House to become Trust House Forte, Lord Charles Forte, was raised in Alloa.
   Interesting places to visit near to Alloa include Alva, Tillicoultry, Dollar, Rumbling Bridge, Culross and Falkirk.

Buildings

Alloa's most notable visible landmark is the 14th century Alloa Tower (National Trust for Scotland), the surviving part of the ancestral medieval residence of the Erskine family, the Earls of Mar. Though much altered both externally and internally, the Tower retains its original medieval wooden roof and battlements, as well as some internal features. It is one of the largest (and earliest) of Scottish tower houses.
   The town formerly contained a large number of 17th and 18th century buildings, but these were unfortunately cleared away as 'slums' from the late 19th century on. However, Alloa does retain some historic architecture in the form of Alloa Tower, Inglewood House, Gean House and Greenfield House.
   Alloa Town Hall and Library was designed by the architect Alfred Waterhouse and built in 1886-9 at a cost of £18,008.
   Alloa is served by Iceland (supermarket), Tesco, ALDI, LIDL, Morrisons and ASDA supermarkets. The ASDA supermarket is new, and is adjacent to the site of the new railway station, which was recently opened to the public and now runs hourly services to Glasgow via Stirling.

Churches

Alloa is currently served by three parish churches in the Church of Scotland, namely the North Parish Church, the West Parish Church and St Mungo's Parish Church (the largest of the three.) In 1978 the Very Rev Dr Peter Brodie (then minister at St Mungo's) was elected Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland. Alloa is within the Church of Scotland's Presbytery of Stirling.
   In addition, the United Free Church of Scotland serves the town centre through the congregation at Moncrieff U.F. Church in Drysdale Street.
   There are churches of other denominations in the town, including a Catholic church also named St Mungo's. There are also congregations of Latter-day Saints and Jehovah's Witnesses in Alloa.
   The headquarters of Action of Churches Together in Scotland (ACTS), the ecumenical organisation linking Scotland's largest churches, is located at Inglewood House, Alloa.

Brewers in Alloa During the 1900s

There were at least nine breweries in Alloa during the 1900s producing a variety of ales for home and export trades. Alloa was well positioned, with a good water supply, close to local supplies of barley and good sea transport links. Alloa ale was sent to London and George Younger had an extensive export trade in the West Indies, Egypt and the Far East. Alloa was also famed for its lager, Alloa Brewery Co developing Graham’s Golden Lager in 1925 and renamed Skol in the 1950s. Closures and mergers in the 1950s and 1960s reduced the number of breweries to 2 and by 1999 there was one, The Forth Brewery.

Alloa Brewery
Carlsberg-Tetley Alloa Ltd
Blair & Co (Alloa) Ltd.
James Calder (Alloa) Ltd
Maclay & Company, Limited
Meiklejohn’s Brewery Ltd.
George Younger & Sons Ltd
Thomas Paterson, Forthbank Brewery
John Thompson & Co, Caponcroft Brewery

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