Fintry is a small riverside village in Stirlingshire, central Scotland. It is located south-west of Stirling and around north of Glasgow.
Landscape
The village of Fintry sits by the Endrick Water in a strath between the Campsie Fells and the Fintry Hills.
The village of Fintry is overlooked by Stronend, the culmination of the Fintry Hills, which forms the western end of a range of hills which stretch east to the city of Stirling, Scotland.
The Loup of Fintry, is a notable 94ft waterfall on the Endrick Water around 2 miles to the east of a Fintry. This is best seen after prolonged rain or snowfall. The total height of the waterfalls is 28.6 m (94 ft). Lowp or "Loup" means leap in Scots.
Preservation
Local Landscape Area (LLA)
180px|thumb|left|The Loup of FintryThe name Fintry is said to have derived from the Old Gaelic for "Fair Land" This designation is with the aim of protecting the village and its surroundings outstanding natural environment.<br><br>
Conservation Area
180px|left|thumb|Main Street, Fintry
Stirling Council has classified Fintry as a Conservation Area in order to preserve the settlement's particular historical shape and character.
Fintry Conservation Area is centred on its long Main Street, which is located on the river's south bank, across the Fintry Bridge from the historic Culcreuch Mill site. 150 of the 700 strong population living within the Fintry Conservation area. There is also an attached council run nursery, Fintry Nursery. Both the nursery and primary school serve Fintry and the surrounding rural district.
Fintry Nursery
The Nursery has two rooms and a kitchen,
Fintry Primary School
Fintry Primary School is at the foot of Dunmore Hill, and has five classrooms, one of which is adapted into a library, with and an assembly hall. The school has grounds, incl. a school garden, an all-weather pitch, a trim trail and a woodland area.
Balfron High School
Fintry is within the catchment area of Balfron High School, for which a school bus is provided.
Sport & Strathendrick RFC
The village has a Sports Club, which includes a 4-rink indoor bowling hall, squash club and gym.
The rugby pitches adjacent are home to Strathendrick Rugby Football Club, a rugby union side founded in 1975 and based in the village. Strathendrick RFC 1st XV play in West Division One and has a tradition of touring; and it has toured in Kansas (1992) and Toronto (2001).
They have an active mini and midi set up which works closely with local schools, including Fintry Primary School.
Fintry Public Hall
Fintry resident Sir Walter Menzies MP built the Menzies Hall to celebrate the coming of age of his son, James, in 1907.
On 9 October 1908, Fintry Public Hall opened to the public. The building still operates under its current name ‘Menzies Hall’ in dedication to the man who gave it to the village.
Menzies Hall is a community building run by local residents for the benefits of the village and surrounding area. The hall is still used as a village hall and hosts events, and clubs, including Fintry Amateur Dramatic Society.
Fintry Kirk
The Village of Fintry is served by Fintry Kirk, a Church of Scotland Parish in the Presbytery of Stirling. The kirk is located to the East of the village, in "Old Fintry". The parish minister for Fintry is shared with Balfron with the Manse located there.
Public Transport
There is no regular bus or train service in Fintry. Public transport is provided by the Stirling Council Demand-responsive transport (DRT) "Taxi" Service.
Economy
The Fintry Development Trust
The Fintry Development Trust (FDT) was created in 2003 by residents who wanted to "do something with renewable energy" in their community. When plans to establish a wind farm in the area were announced, they created Fintry Renewable Energy Enterprise (FREE) in 2003 and secured the addition of one community-owned wind turbine.
In efforts to move the village towards zero-carbon and zero-waste, FDT has established several energy-saving activities, including a car-sharing programme, as well as a farming initiative and a communal orchard.
The Inn is said to be haunted by a non-threatening female ghost.
Fintry Sports Club
As well as being home to Strathendrick RFC, Fintry's Sports Club has a restaurant/cafe and bar, a shop (for essentials) and a gym with sauna.
Knockraich Farm
Home to The Courtyard Cafe, Katy Rodgers Artisan Dairy and The Tin Shed wedding venue, Knockraich Farm has been owned and managed by the Rodgers family since 1955.
History
Neolithic and Bronze Age
There is evidence of people living in the area as early at the Bronze Age, up to 4,000 years ago.
- Todholes Cairn, Fintry Hills - double ring cairn of the late Neolithic/earlier Bronze Age (3500 to 4500 years old)
- Machar/Waterhead Stones - pair of Neolithic standing stones
"Old Fintry"
"Old" Fintry was formed around the Church area or Clachan of Fintry in the early 13th century.
From 1699, the Barons of Culcreuch resided there. The castle was converted into a hotel in the 1980s and operated as such until early 2020, bringing its 700-year lifespan to an end. Until 2020, it was Central Scotland's longest-inhabited castle.
Culcreuch is a three-story, attic-topped rectangular tower house with a parapet and slate roof. The Napier family built the north and east expansions to the old tower about 1721, which match the original tower in style. The Castle is accessible by path from the village and is a popular local walk.
"New Fintry"
The small industrial ‘new town’ of Fintry (or "Newton of Fintry") developed north-west of the original clachan following the establishment of
the Culcreuch cotton spinning mill by Peter Spiers in 1795. The mill and two small settlements were recorded in the mid-eighteenth century. the village had retained examples of former mill workers’ housing alongside traditional buildings from the later eighteenth and turn of the nineteenth centuries.
Local Government
The village is within the Forth and Endrick ward of Stirling Council. The Stirling Council Council Ward (Forth and Endrick) representatives are: Rosemary Fraser (SNP), Gerry McGarvey (Labour), Paul Henke (Conservative) Fintry is in the Stirling Scottish Parliamentary Constituency, and the Mid Scotland and Fife Scottish Parliamentary region.
This means that Fintry has one Stirling MSP, Evelyn Tweed MSP (SNP), and seven Mid Scotland and Fife Scottish regional list MSPs.