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Dysart, Fife
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Dysart, Fife
Dysart (/ˈdaɪzərt/ ⓘ; Scottish Gaelic: Dìseart (IPA:[ˈtʲiːʃəɾʃt̪])) is a town and former royal burgh located on the south-east coast between Kirkcaldy and West Wemyss in Fife, Scotland. Dysart was once part of a wider estate owned by the St Clair or Sinclair family. They were responsible for gaining burgh of barony status for the town towards the end of the 15th century.
The first record of the town was made in the early 13th century, its initial role being to settle civil matters between the church and landowners. During the middle of the 15th century, trade with the Low Countries began for salt and coal exportation. In the 16th and 17th centuries, trade expanded to the Baltic Countries. Dysart acquired two nicknames: "Salt Burgh" and "Little Holland" as a result.
Following the sudden decline of the town's harbour caused by the closure of the Lady Blanche Pit, the town was amalgamated into the royal burgh of Kirkcaldy under an act of Parliament, the Kirkcaldy Corporation Order Confirmation Act 1930 (20 & 21 Geo. 5. c. xciii). Urban clearance during the 1950s and 1960s saw large parts of the historic town demolished for new housing. Demand from the town's residents meant that part of the historic town — most notably the 16th-century and the 18th-century houses of Pan Ha' opposite the harbour — were salvaged and preserved for future generations.
The name of the town derives from the Scottish Gaelic, dìseart, meaning "a hermitage or religious retreat", which itself was a loan-word from the Latin, desertum, meaning "a desert or deserted place". This is most likely linked to Saint Serf, who lived as a hermit in a cave in the area in the 8th century.
Prior to the 16th century, little is known about the history of the town. The earliest record of the town's existence is a document about a papal decision between Dysart Kirk and Dunfermline Abbey in 1220. Another record followed in 1245, this time about the reconsecration of Dysart Kirk undertaken by David de Bernham of St Andrews. The initial role of the town, like many communities in Scotland, was to serve the church and landowners by resolving civic matters and dealing individually with property issues.
The first port has been said to date as far back as 1450. This helped the export of coal and salt with the town's trading partner, the Low Countries. A man-made harbour was eventually built, but could only be used at low tide with limited space. The damage caused by the jetty which was commonly known as the "east haven of Dysart" temporarily cut short the function of the east pier in the mid-17th century. The harbour was later extensively rebuilt in 1829-31 with the assistance of Robert Stephenson, to include an inner basin with a nearby quarry at the harbour head and an extension of the east pier which would be raised and pointed southwards.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the town went through hard times with many residents, particularly skippers, being killed in the wars of covenanting (1644–1645) and the five-year occupation of Oliver Cromwell between 1651 and 1656. However, the salt trade prospered between the town and its two trading partners – Netherlands and the Baltic Countries with production thriving between 1570 and 1630. Subsequently, the town was given two nicknames: salt burgh (for the salt industry keeping the fish fresh for export) and later Little Holland (for the Dutch influence in Dysart's buildings inspired by the shipowners who went there). The first coal pit in the town - known as Lady Blanche - opened towards the end of the 16th century. Two new pits – Frances and Randolph – would follow by the middle of the 17th century as coal began to succeed in the salt trade. Meanwhile, the harbour was revived with the imports of wine and spirits being sent to other harbours at Leith, Dundee and Perth. The town's prosperity declined in the late 17th century and by 1715 the disrepair of the harbour was noted. Food shortages resulting from the export trade led to the town becoming a centre of the 1720 food riots, with estimates of 1,000 to 2,000 protestors on the streets and troops being overpowered and disarmed.
In the 1920s, the owners of the harbour, the Earl of Rossyln's Coal Company, put pressure on the town council to deepen the harbour for use of larger ships. The council was plunged into financial ruin after the coal company refused to pay for the work in excess of £500. Many ships went instead to Buckhaven and Methil, where they received a quicker turnaround than in Dysart. The closure of the uneconomic Lady Blanche Pit in 1929, proved to be the end of the town's coal trade from the harbour. The lack of revenue from Dysart's harbour forced the town to merge with Kirkcaldy under a local act of Parliament, the Kirkcaldy Corporation Order Confirmation Act 1930 (20 & 21 Geo. 5. c. xciii).
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Dysart, Fife
Dysart (/ˈdaɪzərt/ ⓘ; Scottish Gaelic: Dìseart (IPA:[ˈtʲiːʃəɾʃt̪])) is a town and former royal burgh located on the south-east coast between Kirkcaldy and West Wemyss in Fife, Scotland. Dysart was once part of a wider estate owned by the St Clair or Sinclair family. They were responsible for gaining burgh of barony status for the town towards the end of the 15th century.
The first record of the town was made in the early 13th century, its initial role being to settle civil matters between the church and landowners. During the middle of the 15th century, trade with the Low Countries began for salt and coal exportation. In the 16th and 17th centuries, trade expanded to the Baltic Countries. Dysart acquired two nicknames: "Salt Burgh" and "Little Holland" as a result.
Following the sudden decline of the town's harbour caused by the closure of the Lady Blanche Pit, the town was amalgamated into the royal burgh of Kirkcaldy under an act of Parliament, the Kirkcaldy Corporation Order Confirmation Act 1930 (20 & 21 Geo. 5. c. xciii). Urban clearance during the 1950s and 1960s saw large parts of the historic town demolished for new housing. Demand from the town's residents meant that part of the historic town — most notably the 16th-century and the 18th-century houses of Pan Ha' opposite the harbour — were salvaged and preserved for future generations.
The name of the town derives from the Scottish Gaelic, dìseart, meaning "a hermitage or religious retreat", which itself was a loan-word from the Latin, desertum, meaning "a desert or deserted place". This is most likely linked to Saint Serf, who lived as a hermit in a cave in the area in the 8th century.
Prior to the 16th century, little is known about the history of the town. The earliest record of the town's existence is a document about a papal decision between Dysart Kirk and Dunfermline Abbey in 1220. Another record followed in 1245, this time about the reconsecration of Dysart Kirk undertaken by David de Bernham of St Andrews. The initial role of the town, like many communities in Scotland, was to serve the church and landowners by resolving civic matters and dealing individually with property issues.
The first port has been said to date as far back as 1450. This helped the export of coal and salt with the town's trading partner, the Low Countries. A man-made harbour was eventually built, but could only be used at low tide with limited space. The damage caused by the jetty which was commonly known as the "east haven of Dysart" temporarily cut short the function of the east pier in the mid-17th century. The harbour was later extensively rebuilt in 1829-31 with the assistance of Robert Stephenson, to include an inner basin with a nearby quarry at the harbour head and an extension of the east pier which would be raised and pointed southwards.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the town went through hard times with many residents, particularly skippers, being killed in the wars of covenanting (1644–1645) and the five-year occupation of Oliver Cromwell between 1651 and 1656. However, the salt trade prospered between the town and its two trading partners – Netherlands and the Baltic Countries with production thriving between 1570 and 1630. Subsequently, the town was given two nicknames: salt burgh (for the salt industry keeping the fish fresh for export) and later Little Holland (for the Dutch influence in Dysart's buildings inspired by the shipowners who went there). The first coal pit in the town - known as Lady Blanche - opened towards the end of the 16th century. Two new pits – Frances and Randolph – would follow by the middle of the 17th century as coal began to succeed in the salt trade. Meanwhile, the harbour was revived with the imports of wine and spirits being sent to other harbours at Leith, Dundee and Perth. The town's prosperity declined in the late 17th century and by 1715 the disrepair of the harbour was noted. Food shortages resulting from the export trade led to the town becoming a centre of the 1720 food riots, with estimates of 1,000 to 2,000 protestors on the streets and troops being overpowered and disarmed.
In the 1920s, the owners of the harbour, the Earl of Rossyln's Coal Company, put pressure on the town council to deepen the harbour for use of larger ships. The council was plunged into financial ruin after the coal company refused to pay for the work in excess of £500. Many ships went instead to Buckhaven and Methil, where they received a quicker turnaround than in Dysart. The closure of the uneconomic Lady Blanche Pit in 1929, proved to be the end of the town's coal trade from the harbour. The lack of revenue from Dysart's harbour forced the town to merge with Kirkcaldy under a local act of Parliament, the Kirkcaldy Corporation Order Confirmation Act 1930 (20 & 21 Geo. 5. c. xciii).
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