Turriff

Turriff
Scottish Gaelic: Baile Thurra
Scots: Turra
Turriff
Turriff  Turriff shown within Aberdeenshire
Population	5,708 (2001)
OS grid reference	NJ725505
- Edinburgh	160 miles (257 km)
- London	569 miles (916 km)
Civil parish	Turriff
Council area	Aberdeenshire
Lieutenancy area	Aberdeenshire
Country	Scotland
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	TURRIFF
Postcode district	AB53
Dialling code	01888
Police	Scottish
Fire	Scottish
Ambulance	Scottish
EU Parliament	Scotland
UK Parliament	Banff and Buchan
Scottish Parliament	Aberdeenshire East
List of places UK Scotland

Turriff is a town and civil parish in Aberdeenshire in Scotland. It is approximately 166 feet (51 m) above sea level, and has a population of 5,708.

Turriff is known locally as Turra in the Doric dialect of Scots. The name appears to be Scottish Gaelic in origin, from "torr" meaning a mound or round hill, or "tur" meaning a tower.

Services and amenities

There are four Churches in Turriff, St Ninian's (Church of Scotland), St Andrew's (Church of Scotland), St Congan's (Episcopal Church), and a Baptist church.

Turriff has a primary school (Markethill Primary School) and a secondary school (Turriff Academy). People from the surrounding areas, including the villages of Cuminestown, Fyvie and King Edward attend the secondary school.

Bank of Scotland, Royal Bank of Scotland, Alliance & Leicester, Clydesdale Bank and Lloyds TSB have branches in the town. The main supermarket chains are Tesco (which moved into the former Somerfield store in Autumn 2009) and Co-op and there are numerous specialist shops including two dispensing pharmacies. The town has a library, a sports centre and a recently renovated swimming pool.

Turriff has a football team called Turriff United F.C. who now play in the Highland League, having been voted into membership on 26 February 2009. The club made its Scottish Cup debut in the 2012-13 season, advancing to the fourth round to become the last surviving non-SFL side in the competition.

An annual two-day agricultural show is held in Turriff called the "Turriff Show", which is Scotland's largest two day agricultural show.^{[citation needed]}

The town has its own weekly newspaper, the Turriff Advertiser, established in 1933 and commonly nicknamed The Squeak.

A farmers market, relaunched in 2013, takes place on the third Saturday of each month.

History

Turriff mercat cross

The Knights Templar appear to have had a base in the area, and a nearby site is still known as "Temple Brae".^{[citation needed]}

Turriff was notable as the scene of the very first engagements of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms (1639–51). Early in 1639, the Marquis of Huntly assembled his forces here, and thereafter went to Kintore in lower Aberdeenshire, eventually marching from there to Aberdeen itself. The Marquis — being informed shortly after his arrival in Aberdeen that a meeting of Covenanters was to be held in Turriff on the fourteenth of February — resolved to disperse them, by occupying the town with 2000 men. The incident was known as the "Raid of Turriff" and was followed a few days later by a minor engagement known as the "Trot of Turriff".

Statue commemorating the Turra Coo

More recently, the 1913 Turra Coo incident in the parish was the result of a local refusal to pay National Insurance when this was introduced by Lloyd George's government. A statue of the "coo" (cow) was erected in 2010 in the town centre at the junction of High Street and Main Street and has become a popular emblem for the town.

External links

• The Turriff Show
• MyTurriff
• Turriff Mountaineering & Hillwalking Club
• Ainmean-Àite na h-Alba ~ Gaelic Place-names of Scotland