| Halkirk | |
| Scottish Gaelic: Hacraig | |
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Halkirk
Halkirk shown within the Caithness area |
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| OS grid reference | ND130594 |
|---|---|
| Council area | Highland |
| Lieutenancy area | Caithness |
| Country | Scotland |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | HALKIRK |
| Postcode district | KW12 |
| Dialling code | 01847 |
| Police | Northern |
| Fire | Highlands and Islands |
| Ambulance | Scottish |
| EU Parliament | Scotland |
| UK Parliament | Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross |
| Scottish Parliament | Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross constituency in the Highlands and Islands electoral region |
| List of places: UK • Scotland • | |
Halkirk[1] (Scottish Gaelic: Hacraig) is a village on the River Thurso in Caithness, in the Highland council area of Scotland. From Halkirk the B874 road runs towards Thurso in the north and towards Georgemas in the east. The village is within the parish of Halkirk, and is said by local people to be Scotland's first planned village.
It was at one time the site of the cathedral of the Diocese of Caithness, but this was moved to Dornoch in the early 13th century. There are no remains of the early church and bishop's seat.
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Halkirk has had two whisky distilleries, Gerston from 1796 to 1885, and Ben Morven (also known as Gerston II) from 1886 to circa 1911. Both were established on the banks of the River Thurso, near Gerston Farm,[2] and both drew water from Calder Burn. The Ben Morven distillery was named for the mountain, the highest point in Caithness.
The original Gerston distillery was first registered by a Francis Swanson, and was expanded by two sons, John and James, in 1825. Sir Robert Peel is said to have acquired a taste for the whisky. The distillery closed not long after it was sold to new owners in 1872, and a London company, calling themselves the Gerston Distillery Company, decided to build a new distillery.
In 1897 the new distillery was sold to Northern Distilleries Limited, who gave it the Ben Morven name. It was never very successful, and it closed circa 1911. The stillhouse is still standing.
Halkirk is the birthplace of Alexander Keith (1795 to 1873), who settled in Halifax, Nova Scotia and became established as a respected politician and brewer. He is known across Canada for his most famous beer, Alexander Keith's India Pale Ale.
On 29 September 2009, three people were killed after a train smashed into a car as it drove over an unmanned level crossing. The accident happened shortly after 2pm in Halkirk, Caithness, in the Scottish Highlands. Police and ambulance crews rushed to the scene of the scene of the accident but could do nothing to save the victims. One passenger was thrown clear of the car while the remaining two were found dead inside the vehicle.[1]
The three occupants of the car were all part of the same family. The car driver and his wife were both 81 years old and from Inverness. The third occupant of the car was the car driver’s brother. He was 66 years old and from Latheron, Caithness.
