Ballencrieff, West Lothian - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Ballencrieff is a settlement in West Lothian

West Lothian

West Lothian is one of the 32 unitary council areas in Scotland, and a Lieutenancy area. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Falkirk, North Lanarkshire, the Scottish Borders and South Lanarkshire....

, Scotland

Scotland

Scotland 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...

, situated equidistant between the towns of Bathgate

Bathgate

Bathgate is a town in West Lothian, Scotland, on the M8 motorway west of Livingston. Nearby towns are Blackburn, Armadale, Whitburn, Livingston, and Linlithgow. Edinburgh Airport is away...

and Torphichen

Torphichen

Torphichen is a small village located near Bathgate, West Lothian, Scotland. The placename may be Gaelic in origin, eg, "Tóir Féichín" , Tor Fithichean or British, eg, modern Welsh "tref fechan" .The village church is said to have been founded by St...

and seven miles south of Linlithgow. Neighbouring towns are Blackburn

Blackburn, West Lothian

Blackburn is a town in West Lothian, Scotland next to Bathgate and five miles from Livingston. It is situated about from Edinburgh along the old A8 road between Edinburgh and Glasgow.- History :...

, Armadale

Armadale, West Lothian

Armadale is a town within the district of West Lothian in central Scotland.Armadale, formerly known as Barbauchlaw, is an ex-mining town which is also known for its brick manufacturing...

, Whitburn

Whitburn, West Lothian

Whitburn is a small town in West Lothian, Scotland located halfway between Scotlands's two largest cities being about east of Glasgow and west of Edinburgh...

, Livingston and Stoneyburn

Stoneyburn

Stoneyburn is a village in West Lothian, Scotland. Nearby towns include Bathgate, Whitburn, Addiewell and Blackburn.- Geography :Stoneyburn is situated in the middle of central Scotland, some 4 miles from Bathgate in the north and 5 from Livingston in the east...

. Edinburgh Airport

Edinburgh Airport

Edinburgh Airport is located at Turnhouse in the City of Edinburgh, Scotland, and was the busiest airport in Scotland in 2010, handling just under 8.6 million passengers in that year. It was also the sixth busiest airport in the UK by passengers and the fifth busiest by aircraft movements...

is 16 miles (25 km) away, to the East. Ballencrieff is very close to the Neolithic

Neolithic

The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...

burial site at Cairnpapple Hill

Cairnpapple Hill

Cairnpapple Hill is a hill with a dominating position in central lowland Scotland with views from coast to coast. It was used and re-used as a major ritual site over about 4000 years, and in its day would have been comparable to better known sites like the Standing Stones of Stenness. The summit...

, and the surrounding area shows signs of habitation since about 3500 BC. The name Ballencrieff comes from the Scottish Gaelic Baile na Craoibhe meaning "Farm by the tree".

Medieval Ballencrieff (1300–1600)

In 1599, on the 25th of January, Alexander Hamilton became the first Baron

Baron

Baron is a title of nobility. The word baron comes from Old French baron, itself from Old High German and Latin baro meaning " man, warrior"; it merged with cognate Old English beorn meaning "nobleman"...

of Ballencrieff (and his wife Christine the Baroness), by Crown Charter from King

King

- Centers of population :* King, Ontario, CanadaIn USA:* King, Indiana* King, North Carolina* King, Lincoln County, Wisconsin* King, Waupaca County, Wisconsin* King County, Washington- Moving-image works :Television:...

James VI.

Modern Ballencrieff (21st century)

The area is dominated by agriculture and is home to farms and fisheries, such as Ballencrieff Farm. The Ballencrieff Fishery is well-known for its trout

Trout

Trout is the name for a number of species of freshwater and saltwater fish belonging to the Salmoninae subfamily of the family Salmonidae. Salmon belong to the same family as trout. Most salmon species spend almost all their lives in salt water...

, and welcomes fly

Fly fishing

Fly fishing is an angling method in which an artificial 'fly' is used to catch fish. The fly is cast using a fly rod, reel, and specialized weighted line. Casting a nearly weightless fly or 'lure' requires casting techniques significantly different from other forms of casting...

anglers in their hundreds every year. In addition, tourists are also attracted by West Lothian's famous Standing Stones monuments, which surround Ballencrieff. The quarterly magazine

Magazine

Magazines, periodicals, glossies or serials are publications, generally published on a regular schedule, containing a variety of articles. They are generally financed by advertising, by a purchase price, by pre-paid magazine subscriptions, or all three...

Lothian Life - formerly known as 'West Lothian Life' - is produced at Ballencrieff Toll.

External links

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