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'Grangemouth' is a town and former burgh in the council area of Falkirk, Scotland, and formerly in the County of Stirling. It is on the Firth of Forth, 3 miles east of Falkirk. It is twinned with La Porte, Indiana and with Creteil, Paris, France as part of Falkirk District. Grangemouth is currently known for its large petrochemical plant, one of the largest in Europe.

Contents

History

Grangemouth today

Youth Activities

Famous residents

References

External links

History

Grangemouth was founded by Sir Lawrence Dundas in 1777 and was built in conjunction with the eastern end of the Forth and Clyde Canal. Its original name was Sealock referencing its proximity to where the canal flowed into the Forth. It became prominent due to the canal traffic that passed through. High tariffs at the port of Leith caused much traffic to come to Grangemouth instead. The re-opened canal no longer passes through the old part of Grangemouth, but joins the tidal River Carron, which has been deepened to allow access to the River Forth for canal traffic. The town's current name refers to its position at the mouth of the Grange Burn (or stream) which flows into the River Forth at this point.
During World War II, Inchrya Road was used as a runway, Canadian and Polish citizens were based there. Immediately prior to the outbreak of WWII the runway was an integral part of the Central Scotland Airport.
The Soap Works building which was used to manufacture soap and glycerine and owned by the Scottish Co-operative Wholesale Society was established in 1897. This was the largest works of its kind in Scotland and employed a considerable number of local people.

Grangemouth today

The soap works, a local landmark at the end of Wood Street opposite the Old Bus Garage, was demolished in November 2005 to make way for a new Whyte and Mackay blending and bottling plant. The town has new shopping facilities being built in response to its increasing popularity as a commuter town for Edinburgh.
Grangemouth Port is also one of the main ports in the UK with the largest container terminal (the first in the UK) and the busiest deep water port in Scotland. There are also links to the inter-modal freight facilities elsewhere in the town which use the town's motorway connections. The town is virtually equidistant between the two largest cities in Scotland - Glasgow and Edinburgh - which has led to a number of motels and hotels being set up to satisfy the demand for convenient but lower cost tourist and business accommodation servicing these popular destinations.
Grangemouth has an international-standard sports stadium and sports centre. Grangemouth Stadium was built for the citizens of Grangemouth, partly- funded by BP. The stadium has been extended to host a 150m running track, physio room, and weight lifting. The stadium is of international-standard, and is used as the National Indoor Sports Stadium. A park is also situated in the center of the town next to Grangemouth Sports complex. Grangemouth Golf Club is actually located in the neighbouring village of Polmont.
Grangemouth was notable for many years for having a three tier school system - the only area in Scotland to do so. (See main article.) This system ended in 1988. The High School is due for a re-build in 2008. There is also a primary school providing Catholic-focused education - Sacred Heart.

Youth Activities

Grangemouth has its own Air Training Corps Squadron, 1333 (Grangemouth) Squadron (Located at the TA Center in Central Avenue) An Army Cadet Detachement (Also Located in Central Avenue) and a Sea and Marine cadet corps (located at Grangemouth Docks). The Town also has a Boys Brigade, Girls Brigade, Cubs, Scouts, Brownies and Guides unit. There are also many football (soccer) teams, like Bowhouse FC

Famous residents

★ Robin Guthrie, Will Heggie and Elizabeth Fraser of the Cocteau Twins.

★ Steve Frew - Commonwealth Games gold medal winner, gymnastics.

★ Alan Davie - artist

★ George Young (footballer) - ex-Rangers and Scotland football captain

★ Stuart Kennedy - ex-Aberdeen and Scotland footballer

★ Kaye Adams - television presenter

★ Sir David Tweedie - chairman of the International Accounting Standards Committee

References

1. Falkirk Council / 2001 Census, [1], retrieved August 24 2007

External links

★ ''Parish of Grangemouth'' by Rev. Hugh R. Thom

★ Historical perspective, drawn from the ''Ordnance Gazetteer of Scotland''

★ Grangemouth Branch of the Scottish National Party