Peterhead Scottish Week

Peterhead known locally as the "Blue Toon" is the most easterly mainland town in Scotland and with 18,500 inhabitants, the largest centre of population in Banff and Buchan area.

Peterhead lies near the mouth of the River Ugie and was originally called Peterugie, the name changing after the land was acquired by the Keiths, Earls Marischal of Scotland, in 1560. In 1587 King James VI granted the town Royal Burgh status and the first harbour was begun shortly thereafter in 1593.

Peterhead has always been intrinsically linked with fishing and it is perhaps appropriate that the oldest surviving building in the town is a 400 year old salmon fish house. The first local fishermen used lines to catch cod and ling while, offshore, fleets from Holland and Flanders pre dated the efficient trawling operations of today.

The locals took some time to adopt the fishing techniques of the continentals but whale fishing began out of Peterhead in 1788 and the town became the leading whaling port in Britain until 1893 when the last whaler returned to Peterhead harbour.

By 1818 the herring industry brought boom years to Peterhead. By 1836 there were 260 boats fishing out of the town. By the 1850's this had risen to over 400 boats, making Peterhead the second largest herring port in Scotland. The herring industry was encouraged by the development of extensive harbours throughout the 19th century. As larger fishing boats became more prevalent these vessels centralised their activities on a few deep water harbours such as Peterhead. Consequently, the town was able to enjoy continued prosperity when smaller ports fell into decline.

As the herring industry declined in the early years of the 20th century, white fish developed into the main catch. Peterhead is now the busiest white fish port in Europe and the largest fishing port in the European Community. Annual catches valuing over L75,000,000 are landed and, despite recent problems with quotas, over 400 boats still fish out of the port. The harbour has been extended to cater for the North Sea oil industry which uses Peterhead as an important services centre and industries such as textiles, engineering and food processing have varied the town's industrial base.

Today Peterhead is a busy town with a wide range of entertainments and amenities. It lies close to miles of quiet sandy beaches and is handy for exploring the surrounding farmlands. It also offers a very wide choice of excellent accommodation to suit all pockets.

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