Avoch

Avoch
Scottish Gaelic: Abhach
Avoch  Avoch shown within the Highland council area
Population	891  (2001 census) est. 1,000 (2006)
OS grid reference	NH699553
Council area	Highland
Country	Scotland
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	AVOCH
Postcode district	IV9 8xx
Dialling code	01381 62
Police	Scottish
Fire	Scottish
Ambulance	Scottish
EU Parliament	Scotland
UK Parliament	Ross, Skye and Lochaber
Scottish Parliament	Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch
List of places UK Scotland

Avoch harbour

Looking back east to Avoch from the harbour

Avoch (ⁱ/ˈɒx/ OKH; from the Scottish Gaelic: Abhach – meaning mouth of the stream) is a harbour-village located on the south-east coast of the Black Isle, on the Moray Firth.

Ormond Castle or Avoch Castle was a stronghold built on the site and served as a royal castle to William the Lion; passed on to the Morays of Petty then Archibald the Grim, Lord of Galloway, upon his marriage to Joanna de Moravia in 1362. Descendants of Archibald, were to take the title of Earl of Ormonde from the castle. Legend has it that the village was founded by survivors of the Spanish Armada.

Intrepid Scottish-Canadian explorer Sir Alexander Mackenzie, the first European to explore the great Canadian river now known as the Mackenzie River, crossing North America twice, to the Arctic Ocean in 1789 and Pacific Ocean in 1793, retired to Avoch in 1812 where he died in 1820 and was buried in the old Avoch Parish churchyard.

Avoch was the location of Rosehaugh (Pittanochtie) House, an imposing mansion house until it was demolished in 1959. A substantial house existed on this site since 1790.

Craigie Well at Avoch on the Black Isle has offerings of both coins and clouties. Rags, wool and human hair were also used as charms against sorcery, and as tokens of penenace and fulfilment of a vow (Sharp 1998).

Much of Avoch's wealth has come from its fishing industry, and it remains a significant contributor to the village economy, with several large fishing boats owned or crewed from Avoch and an active fishermen's co-operative based there. The harbour is no longer used by the larger boats for landing but is used by leisure craft and boats taking visitors to see the dolphins in the inner Moray Firth at Chanonry Point. In addition to the fishing industry, commuting to Inverness and tourism provide income to the village. Lazy Corner, named for the youngsters who gathered there to pass the time, has been moved by the road widening in the Eighties, and spruced up by a sculpture intended to add character to the village. It is still a gathering place.

See also

• Clootie well
• Chanonry Point
• Moray Firth

External links

• Sir Alexander Mackenzie at the Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online