Perth's History
Until 1956 it was thought that the first settlement at Perth was that of the Romans in 80AD but in that year, archaeologists unearthed the remains of a hut and a dugout canoe 20 feet below street level at the foot of Perth High Street.
The first mention of Perth as a burgh was in a document from the reign of
David i when there was probably a simple castle on a mound where the museum now stands.
The town lade which brought water to the city mills dates back to at least 1153.
In 1293 Edward laid claim to Scotland and removed the stone of destiny from Scone then 11 years later built Perths first substantial city wall, later re-fortified in 1336 after Bruce had removed the original walls. A supposed portion of the wall survives in a close on the north side of George St.
The city of Perth still has a large number of churches, but prior to the destruction of monasteries which followed John Knox's 1559 sermon in St Johns church there were a number of monasteries in Perth - Whitefriars, Blackfriars and Greyfriars still being represented by street names. The nature of Perths industry and the old trades are reflected in street names - some unfortunately now gon at the hands of self interested local authority decisions; names such as 'Meal Vennel, Skinnergate, Horners Vennel, Glover Street, Cutlog Vennel, Guard Vennel and the like all had something to tell us of the cities origins and trades.
In 1569 Perth received a charter from James vi to provide for the poor a hospital - the King James vi Hospital - within the burgh. This was duly built and then totally destroyed by Cromwell's soldiers who used the stone from the hospital, churches, 140 houses and even gravestones to build his citadel at the north west corner of the south inch. Of this no trace remains. A new King James vi hospital was built 100 years after Cromwell's criminal acts - it still stands restored at the top of South Street.
James vi was a frequent visitor to Perth
until in 1600 an attempt as assassination was made in the Gowrie House which stood at the
end of South St near the Tay.
In 1809 Gowrie House was demolished to allow the South St to be extended to the Tay where a new bridge was built to replace the older delapidated bridge at the foot of the High St. The 1809 bridge was replaced in the mid 1900s with the present concrete structure.
Perth had always had a great weaving centre and by the mid 1700s many flat areas around Perth were used as 'c'. Bleaching without modern chemicals was almost akin to the brewing process; the cloth was teeped in water with various ashes added, heated and then left to ferment. It was then washed and steeped in milk which also was allowed to ferment. The last part of the process was to lay the cloth out in the fileds to dry in the sun - hence the word 'bleachfields'. John Pullar's the cleaners and dyers came to Perth in 1824 and became a major employer in Perth until the late 20c when the business slowly faded to a handful of dry-cleaning outlets.
Perth was once the headquarters of the 'Black Watch' regiment which was raised originally in Aberfeldy. The Barracks were at Dunkeld Road and were occupied until late 20c. The presence of the army barracks was even edident in the local swimming pool near the barracks where the 'second class' pool was known locally as the 'soldiers pool'.
Although Perth is a historic and important city, very little visible evidence of its
past remains. It could be said that the destruction of any building of note began with
Cromwell and in modern times was continued by local
authorities. - The last remaining interesting 'vennel' - Meal
Vennel, which was too narrow for a car and whos buildings almost met overhead was
destroyed courtesy of Perth Town Council. A property developer wished to flatten the area
between High St and South St to build a shopping mall. Local people protested as Meal
vennel - a public road and right of way - was to be flattened and was to dissappear. The
wished of the populace were ignored with the explanation that 'access on the line of Meal
Vennel will still be available by progressing from High Street via the Mall's main
entrance, and then via the front and rear doors of a certain gent's outfitter. The Mall
was built! Local people still exercise their right to walk between High St and South St
via the gent's outfitter - an ongoing protest.
Places to see
- Perth Museum
- Balhousie Castle
- Perth City Mills
- Perth Fair Maid's House
- St John's Kirk
- Blackfriars graveyard
- Huntingtower Castle
- Scone Palace
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