Leuchars Community Website
Home | Community Council | Forums | RAF Leuchars | St Athernase | Related Links | Comments
  
[events]
food & drink
accommodation
things to do nearby
  
[services]
businesses
organisations
community policing
neighbourhood watch
  
[local history]
historic photos
recent photos
Historic Photos

11 records were found.

East End of Leuchars Church. Printed plate. Printed plate depicting exterior perspective view of the apse and domed belfry at the east end. There are two rows of wall arches on the curved wall of the apse and the adjacent straight wall, all bear different styles of carving on the arches.<p>On the walls there is a series of animal head carvings on the corbels at the cornice level. The upper wall arches of the curved wall of the apse are carved with a toothed pattern, while those below are of a zigzag pattern.
The Queen Mother at Leuchars. Elizabeth the Queen Mother arriving at RAF Leuchars on her way to Balmoral.<p>RAF Leuchars airfield started as a site for military balloons in 1911. It has also served as a Royal Naval Air Service fleet fighter station and a Coastal Command Airfield, and has been a Fighter Command Station since World War II. The base is headquarters to 43 and 111 Squadrons, plus Aberdeen, Dundee and St Andrews University Air Squadron, as to an RAF Mountain Rescue Unit and the Air Transportable Surgical Unit. Balmoral is one of the Royal Family's highland retreats. The original castle had been leased to the Royal Family from 1848. It was bought in 1852 by Prince Albert, the Prince Consort, for Queen Victoria. Albert drew up plans for a new castle, built between 1853-56, when the old castle was demolished.
St Athernase. Leuchars Parish Church.
Main Street, Leuchars, Fife, early 20th century. Leuchars is a settlement created by railways. In 1848 the Edinburgh, Parth & Dundee Railway opened from Cupar, Fife to a temporary terminus at Leuchars. The line was extended to Tayport in 1850 and in 1852 Leuchars Junction was created at the junction with the St Andrews Railway. From 1878 this was the starting point for the new main line to the Tay Bridge. A new station was built circa 1914. The railway to Tayport and the old station closed in 1956. The St Andrews line was abandoned in 1969.
Avro Tutor two seat basic trainer biplanes lined up for the Empire Air Day show at RAF Leuchars in 1938. RAF Leuchars in common with all other RAF air stations opened its gates to the public for the Empire Air Day events held across the country in late May. The event was held from 1935 to 1938 to encourage 'air-mindedness' in the general public and to generate interest and support for the Air Defence services both RAF and FAA. These later model Avro Tutor two seat training biplanes are lined up for public display at the 1938 Empire Day event at RAF Leuchars airfield. They will probably have been used on the day to give a formation flying display by the instructors of the No 1 Flying Training School hosting the event.<p>The Avro 621 Tutor was designed as a replacement for the Avro 504 basic trainer biplane in 1929. Some 436 went into military use between 1931 and 1936. Powered by a 240hp Armstrong Siddeley Lynx radial engine its top speed was 120 mph with a cruising speed of 97 mph giving a range of 250 miles. Later models had a townend ring cowling, improved brakes and tailwheel and a tie rod between the upper and lower ailerons.
Bristol Beaufort with ground crew of No 42 Squadron RAF at Leuchars in Scotland. No 42 Squadron RAF having served in WWI re-formed in 1936 at Donibristle as a Coastal Strike unit equipped with Vildebeest torpedo-bomber biplanes. In 1941 they moved to Leuchars from Wick having been re-equipped with more modern Bristol Beauforts to conduct anti-shipping strikes and mine laying operations in the North Sea.</p> <p>This Bristol Beaufort photographed on 19 September 1941 with its ground crew, while picketed down at Leuchars, has the squadron code AW-F of No 42 Squadron RAF. The aircraft is names 'F for Freddie' by the ground crew who are captioned as "Riggers and Wops".</p> <p>The Beaufort was used widely for torpedo bombing training. It carried one 18 inch torpedo with guns in the wing, nose and dorsal turret. Maximum speed was 265mph with a crusing speed of 155mph giving it a range of 1500 miles.
The side of the castle, seen from the topiary garden.</p><p>Earlshall Castle.
Last train over Guardbridge. Seen here is engine 46464 pulling the last goods train to cross the Eden Estuary at Guardbridge before the closure of the St Andrews Line in January 1969. Photographer, Hamish Brown notes that "There wouldn't have been any trumpets blown for the last 'goods'". Whereas the closure heralded long-lasting inconvenience to passengers.</p><p>The line was built in 1852 by Thomas Bouch, engineer and manager of the EP&D (Edinburgh, Perth and Dundee Railway Company). His speciality was light railways. He was also responsible for the origional Tay Rail Bridge which collapsed on 28 December 1879 as a passanger train was crossing to Dundee. Bouch was personally blamed for the loss of over 70 people in the accident. The trauma and disgrace killed him.</p><p>The St Andrews line ran four and a half miles from the first tee on St Andrews Golf Course to Milton, near Leuchars main line station on the ED&P line. It was popular and successful but essentially a light railway, and essentially unstable. Investigations revealed that the rails were attached with wooden trenails to sleepers that were too widely spaced and neither of the wooden bridges the line crossed had been tarred. Local directors of the line employed two wrights to check the bridges. Closure of the St Andrews line was greated with "alarm" by the people of St Andrews and neighbouring areas of Fife. Provost Fordyce and the St Andrews Town Council fought long and hard to keep the line open but to no avail. The connection was severed in January 1969, along with many other lines closed throughout Britian by the then Minister of Transport, Dr Beeching.</p><p>"The St Andrews Citizen", 11 January, 1969.
The old Leuchars School. This is the infant class of 1946 with Mr Forsyth the head master, and Miss Roach the teacher. Most of the children are local families.
This is 1st Leuchars Brownies taken in 1950's in the Henderson Hall
The 1st Leuchars Girl Guides after Church Parade in the 1950's