Finstown

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Finstown
View of Finstown from HY3615 - geograph.org.uk - 235398.jpg
A view of Finstown from across The Ouse, a tidal inlet
Finstown is located in Orkney Islands
Finstown
Finstown
Location within Orkney
Population440 (2011 census)
OS grid referenceHY359138
Civil parish
Council area
  • Orkney Islands
Lieutenancy area
  • Orkney Islands
CountryScotland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townORKNEY
Postcode districtKW17
Dialling code01856
PoliceScotland
FireScottish
AmbulanceScottish
UK Parliament
Scottish Parliament
List of places
UK
Scotland
59°00′25″N 3°06′58″W / 59.007°N 3.116°W / 59.007; -3.116Coordinates: 59°00′25″N 3°06′58″W / 59.007°N 3.116°W / 59.007; -3.116

Finstown locally /ˈfɪnstuːn/ is a village in the parish of Firth[1] on Mainland, Orkney, Scotland.

According to travel author Eric Linklater, the homes in Finstown are tidy and well cared for.[2] This settlement is situated along the Bay of Firth, whose fringe is a shallow intertidal mudflat.[3] The village is situated at the junction of the A965 and the A966.[4][5] In 2011 it has a population of 440.[6]

History[]

Prehistoric finds have been made in the form of ancient cists, somewhat west of the primary school.[7] Further east towards Kirkwall is the Rennibister Earth House, estimated to be 3000 years old.

Finstown Gala with pipe band. Credit: Colin Smith

Formerly called "Toon o' Firth", the origin of the Finstown name is thought to come from an Irishman named David Phin who came to the area in 1811. A soldier with the 9th Royal Veteran Battalion, he married a Kirkwall girl in 1813. In 1820, he opened an ale-house which was called the Toddy Hole by arrangement with John Miller of Millquoy. Four years later they quarrelled and Phin left for Aberdeen, but his name remained. The ale-house building is now the site of the Pomona Inn hostelry, after an old name for Mainland Orkney.

The former Liberal Party leader Jo Grimond is buried in Finstown.

Community[]

Finstown has a post office, Firth Primary School, a pub called the Pomona Inn (closed at present), a shop and a garage. Most of these buildings are situated on the main Stromness to Kirkwall road.

References[]

  1. ^ "Details of Finstown". Gazetteer for Scotland. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
  2. ^ Linklater, Eric (1965). Orkney and Shetland: an historical, geographical, social, and scenic survey. p. 122.
  3. ^ Hogan, C. Michael (2007). "HY3613 : Beach and mudflats at Finstown Centre waterfront, Mainland Orkney". Geograph Britain and Ireland/United Kingdom Ordnance Survey.
  4. ^ "A965". Sabre. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
  5. ^ "A966". Sabre. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
  6. ^ "Finstown". City population. Retrieved 7 February 2019.
  7. ^ Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland. Society of Antiquaries of Scotland. 1981. p. 58.

External links[]


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