Town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland
Stonehaven
Every Hogmanay, Stonehaven swings blazing fireballs through its streets, a ritual that sends flame-twirlers down the High Street and the embers into the harbour.
Key information
- County
- Aberdeenshire
- Nation
- Scotland
- Population
- about 11,150 (2020 estimate)
- Known for
- Fireballs Ceremony, Dunnottar Castle, the open-air Stonehaven Heritage Pool, the Stonehaven Tolbooth
- What locals are called
- Stonehavians
- Famous people
- Robert Barclay of Urie, who planned the new town in the 1790s
- Football clubs
- Stonehaven Football Club (Stonehaven Juniors historically)
About Stonehaven
The town that swings fire on New Year's Eve
At midnight on 31 December, a pipe band marches down Stonehaven's High Street and behind it come around 50 men and women, each whirling a wire cage of burning material on a long cable above their heads. It is the Fireballs Ceremony, and it is one of the great sights of the Scottish winter. The balls are packed with paper, sticks and rags, soaked in paraffin or similar fuel, and lit on the High Street in the old town as the Town House clock strikes midnight. The swingers walk the length of the street, then hurl what's left into the harbour as the old year goes out. The tradition is usually linked to fishing communities and to older ideas about burning away bad luck and warding off evil spirits for the year ahead. Whatever its precise origins, the fireballs are a fixture in the town's calendar, and thousands turn out to watch.
A castle on a cliff that hid the crown jewels
Just south of the town, Dunnottar Castle stands on a rocky headland with the North Sea on three sides. It looks like a film set, and it has been used as one, famously in Franco Zeffirelli's 1990 film of Hamlet. Its real story is wilder. In 1652, with Oliver Cromwell's army sweeping through Scotland, the Honours of Scotland, the country's crown, sceptre and sword of state, were hidden here. They were smuggled out under the noses of the besieging English, reportedly hidden in a bundle of flax carried by a local woman, and buried in nearby Kinneff church. The castle has a darker chapter too. In 1685, 167 Covenanters, men and women who had refused to accept the king as head of the church, were crammed into a cellar now known as the Whigs' Vault. Several died there. William Wallace is also said to have burned an English garrison here in 1297.
Why the county town moved, and a harbour that built a town
Stonehaven was once the county town of Kincardineshire, and its Tolbooth, a sturdy stone building on the harbour, dates from the late 16th century. It began as a storehouse for the Earl Marischal, whose castle was Dunnottar, and later served as a prison. Today it houses a museum and a restaurant over the water. The present-day town grew in two parts: the old fishing community around the harbour and the planned new town laid out by Robert Barclay of Urie in the 1790s, centred on the Market Square. Fishing, especially herring, kept the harbour busy for generations, and pleasure boats and the occasional visiting craft use it today.
A swimming pool with a view of the North Sea
Stonehaven's open-air pool is a Scottish oddity. Opened in 1934, it is a heated saltwater pool on the seafront, one of very few of its type still in use in the country. It was built in the interwar boom for seaside leisure, and a local group saved it when funding stalled. The beach, the promenade and the play areas make the front a favourite for families from Aberdeen, just a short train ride away. Cold water lovers also take to the sea itself, particularly in the depths of winter.
What to eat: the deep-fried Mars bar claim
Stonehaven is widely credited as the home of the deep-fried Mars bar, said to have been first dished up at the Carron Fish Bar in the 1990s. The claim has been repeated in newspapers and guidebooks for decades, and the chip shop has traded on it ever since. The town also has a strong tradition of fish and seafood from the harbour, along with good bakeries and cafés on the High Street. Visitors often pair a walk to Dunnottar with a bag of chips on the front.
Cliff walks, a war memorial and a town on the move
The town's war memorial stands on Black Hill, overlooking the bay. Its Greek-style columns are a landmark visible for miles around, and the climb offers one of the best views in the area. Stonehaven's mainline railway station sits on the route between Aberdeen and the south, putting the town within easy commuting range of the city and helping it grow. The coastal path to Dunnottar is a favourite stroll, taking walkers along clifftops above seabirds and surf.
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