Fintry, Dundee
Encyclopedia
Fintry is a housing scheme in Dundee
Dundee
Dundee is the fourth-largest city in Scotland and the 39th most populous settlement in the United Kingdom. It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firth of Tay, which feeds into the North Sea...

, 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...

. Fintry is located in the north of the city with Claverhouse
Claverhouse
Claverhouse is an area of Dundee, Scotland. John Graham of Claverhouse , known to history as "Bonnie Dundee" or "Bluidy Clavers" by his supporters and detractors respectively, was the laird of Claverhouse, although he was born at Glen Ogilvie, near Glamis....

 and Mill o' Mains to the west and Whitfield
Whitfield, Dundee
Whitfield is a residential area in the north of Dundee, Scotland to the east of Fintry and north of Douglas. The area was built in the 1960s to accommodate Dundee's expanding population...

 to the east. On the north, Fintry is bordered by farmland, including the Powrie Farm and Powrie Castle (from which one of the pubs in the area derives its name). Local parks include Powrie Park (at the north of the scheme), Finlathen Park (in a deep valley to the south of the scheme), and Caird Park to the immediate southwest of the scheme.

Customarily, the borders of the scheme are accepted as being: Forfar Road on the west side with Mill O'Mains, Longhaugh Road on the east side with Whitfield and the Dighty Burn on the southern side (inside Finlathen Park). On three of the four sides, and (formerly) half of the north side (see section on Cheviot Crescent and Grampian Gardens), Fintry's borders are defined by three to four storey high tenement
Tenement
A tenement is, in most English-speaking areas, a substandard multi-family dwelling, usually old, occupied by the poor.-History:Originally the term tenement referred to tenancy and therefore to any rented accommodation...

 blocks.

Fintry is served by bus routes 26A, 32, 32B, 33, 33A and 33B known as the Fintry Shuttle. Fintry is in the new North East ward of Dundee City Council, represented since May 2007 by Councillors Andy Dawson and Willie Sawers of the Scottish National Party
Scottish National Party
The Scottish National Party is a social-democratic political party in Scotland which campaigns for Scottish independence from the United Kingdom....

, and Brian Gordon of the Scottish Labour Party
Scottish Labour Party
The Scottish Labour Party is the section of the British Labour Party which operates in Scotland....

.

Fintry has two bars, the Powrie Bar at Cheviot Crescent and the Dolphin on Fintry Road. Fintry also has two chip shops, a Chinese takeaway known as the Blue Lagoon and three Indian takeaways, often referred to as the Tartan Tandoori, the Tasty Point and the Mirch Massala. There are two churches, Fintry Parish Church of scotland
Church of Scotland
The Church of Scotland, known informally by its Scots language name, the Kirk, is a Presbyterian church, decisively shaped by the Scottish Reformation....

 and Our Lady of Sorrows Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...

.

History

Construction of the scheme began in the 1940s; previously the area had been farmland. Two buildings from this time survive, one being a former farm cottage on Longhaugh Road which is in private ownership, the other being a farmhouse which now sits on Fintry Road as the Fintry Nursery. At the time of construction, part of the plan was that all streets in Fintry would begin with the prefix "Fin". However, since the scheme was built there have been some deviations from this plan; all of these are detailed in the section below.

Cheviot Crescent and Grampian Gardens

Cheviot Crescent (formerly Fincraig Street) and Grampian Gardens (formerly Fingarth Street) were renamed in the early 1970s due to their poor image (these two streets were blocks of densely-populated tenements with a poor reputation and the name made it difficult for the council to attract new tenants into the flats).

Some time after their construction, surveyors found that the tenements had been built with inadequate foundations for the ground conditions, and were beginning to subside. After all the tenants were moved out to houses elsewhere in the city, almost the whole north side of Cheviot Crescent was demolished (two blocks were left standing at the east end of the street). Several blocks on the south side, and in Grampian Gardens, were also demolished.

Since these demolitions some limited rebuilding involving small bungalows has taken place on parts of the land formerly occupied by the tenements. Amond Way and Amond Gardens, built in the early 2000s, are named after the late PC Trevor Amond who was known in the area for his community work. These occupy land where nos. 7-12 Grampian Gardens once stood. Cheviot Rise is a small back street behind Cheviot Crescent, where the access road and part of the car parks were behind 45/47/49 Cheviot Crescent. Grampian Close is situated at the west end of Grampian Gardens.

20 Grampian Gardens used to be a community block that allowed teenagers of the area hang out and this was run by tenants such as (Anne Feltham, Cathy Sandeman, Carole Lawson) and also Councillors (George Mason) and Tayside Police (PC Trevor Amond). This was a successful community area until the teenages started to reduce and they spoilt the area.

Famous Fintronians

  • The Grahams of Fintry
    Grahams of Fintry
    The Grahams of Fintry were a sept of the lowland Clan Graham based in the county of Angus Scotland.-Origins:The family were descended from Sir William Graham lord of Kincadaine and his wife Lady Mary Stewart m. 1406, daughter of King James III of Scotland...

    , local landowners until the 19th century
  • Derek Johnstone
    Derek Johnstone
    Derek Joseph Johnstone is a former Scottish association footballer.Johnstone played mainly for Rangers during his career. He also had a spell at Chelsea and a brief stint in management with Partick Thistle. He mainly played as a striker but could also perform in central defence, and in midfield...

     was born in Fintry and lived there when he was signed by Rangers. Famously, he scored the winning goal for Rangers against Celtic in a Scottish Cup Final at the age of 16. He went on to represent Scotland and became a TV soccer pundit for a time. At age 12, he played for a team named Fintry Celtic.
  • Brian Molko
    Brian Molko
    Brian Molko is a songwriter, lead vocalist, and guitarist of the band Placebo. He is known in particular for his high-pitched vocals, androgynous appearance, and unique, Sonic Youth-influenced guitar style and tuning.-Early life:Born to an American father of French-Italian heritage and a Scottish...

     (lead singer of Placebo
    Placebo (band)
    Placebo are a British rock band from London, England, formed in 1994 by singer and guitarist Brian Molko and bass guitarist Stefan Olsdal. The band was joined by drummer Robert Schultzberg, who was later replaced by Steve Hewitt after conflicts with Molko. Hewitt left the band in October 2007 and...

    ) spent the first few years of his childhood in a closey in Fintry Crescent.
  • Stephen Glass
    Stephen Glass (footballer)
    Stephen Glass is a Scottish professional footballer currently playing for Carolina RailHawks in the North American Soccer League....

    , former Newcastle United player hailed from Fintry.
  • Charlie Adam
    Charlie Adam
    Charles Graham "Charlie" Adam is a Scottish footballer who plays as a midfielder for Liverpool and the Scotland national football team....

     was born and grew up in Fintry, where his family still reside (including Charlie Adam (footballer born 1962) Snr.


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