Lochgilphead
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
  Map sources for Lochgilphead at grid reference NR8688
|
Lochgilphead (Scottish Gaelic: Ceann Loch Gilb) is a burgh in Scotland, with a population of around 3000 people. It is the administrative centre of Argyll and Bute. The town lies at the end of Loch Gilp (itself a branch of Loch Fyne) and lies on the banks of the Crinan Canal.
The council is based at Kilmory Castle, around which is located a woodland park and an Iron Age fort. The Forestry Commission also have an office there.
Lochgilphead's facilities include a swimming pool, sports centre, bank, supermarket, Renault dealership, a community hospital run by the local GPs, psychiatric hospital, 9-hole golf course, a regional landfill site at Duncholgan and Lochgilphead High School.
The town is home to shinty team Kilmory Camanachd.
[edit] History
As a planned settlement, Lochgilphead was created in 1790 shortly after the completion of a road from Inveraray to Campbeltown. After the completion of the Crinan Canal in 1801 the town became more important as a link across the Kintyre peninsula.
[edit] Claims to fame
- In July 1982, Lochgilphead competed against teams from Perth and Oban in the then highly popular BBC Television children's series It's a Knockout, presented by the often hilarity-struck Stuart Hall. The town's team won their round and later competed in the international version of the series, 'Jeux Sans Frontieres', which was recorded in Switzerland.
- In the World War Two movie, 633 Squadron (1964, directed Walter Grauman), Lochgilphead's main street features for a brief second in an aerial shot, as the bombers of 633 Squadron fly over the "unnamed" town en route to the bombing target in Norway.
- The Argyll Turbo GT sportscar was built by Bob Henderson in Manse Brae.
[edit] External links
http://www.argyllshireadvertiser.co.uk - The Argyllshire Advertiser for Lochgilphead and Mid Argyll news
 This Argyll and Bute location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
