Campbeltown facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Campbeltown Scottish Gaelic: Ceann Loch Chille Chiarain Scots: Cammeltoun
Town and former royal burgh
Campbeltown Viewed from the slopes of Beinn Ghuilean
Campbeltown
Population	4,500 (2020)
OS grid reference	NR 71800 20300
• Edinburgh	101 mi (163 km)
• London	352 mi (566 km)
Council area	Argyll and Bute
Lieutenancy area	Argyll and Bute
Country	Scotland
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	Campbeltown
Postcode district	PA28
Dialling code	01586
EU Parliament	Scotland
UK Parliament	Argyll, Bute and South Lochaber
Scottish Parliament	Argyll and Bute
List of places UK Scotland 55°25′23″N 5°36′29″W / 55.423°N 5.608°W / 55.423; -5.608

Campbeltown is a town in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It sits by Campbeltown Loch on the Kintyre Peninsula. This town used to be a very important place for making Scotch whisky. It was also a busy fishing port.

In 2018, about 4,600 people lived in Campbeltown. This number was a bit lower than in 2011.

History of Campbeltown

Campbeltown was first known as Kinlochkilkerran. This long Gaelic name means 'head of the loch by the kirk (church) of Ciarán'.

The town got its new name, Campbell's Town, in the 1600s. This happened after Archibald Campbell was given the land in 1667. The Campbeltown Town Hall was finished in 1760.

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution opened its Campbeltown Lifeboat Station in 1861. The building you see today was built in 1996.

Economy and Jobs

Main street, with Campbeltown Town Hall visible

Making whisky and the tourism it brings help Campbeltown's economy. In 2018, two big companies gave many jobs to people in the area. These were Campbeltown Creamery and CS Wind UK. They offered many skilled jobs and were very important for the local economy.

However, in late 2019, there were worries about jobs. The Scottish government held a meeting to talk about how to help the local economy. They formed a "working group" to find solutions.

The Campbeltown Creamery used to get milk from many dairy farms. But the number of farms and cows went down a lot. This made the Creamery unable to keep running. Now, milk from Kintyre is sent to Lockerbie by road. The famous Mull of Kintyre Cheddar cheese is no longer made.

CS Wind UK also had to cut some jobs. The company later closed its plant in Campbeltown in 2019. Production moved to a plant in Vietnam where it was cheaper.

Whisky Making

Campbeltown is one of only five special areas in Scotland for making malt whisky. It is home to the Campbeltown single malts. Long ago, it had over 30 distilleries and called itself "the whisky capital of the world".

But many distilleries closed down. This happened because they focused on making a lot of whisky instead of high-quality whisky. Also, Prohibition (when alcohol was banned) and the Great Depression in the United States hurt their business.

Today, only three active distilleries remain: Glen Scotia, Glengyle, and Springbank. Campbeltown is a "protected locality" for Scotch Whisky. This means its whisky is special and protected by law.

There's even a folk song about the town's whisky history called "Campbeltown Loch, I wish you were whisky".

Weather and Climate

Campbeltown has a maritime climate, just like the rest of Scotland. This means it has cool summers and mild winters. The closest weather station is at Campbeltown Airport, about 3 km west of the town.

The coldest temperature recorded in recent years was -12.9°C in December 2010.

Culture and Fun

The old Library and Museum

The Wee Picture House

Campbeltown has a museum and a heritage centre. The museum shows items from Campbeltown's past. It also has very old items from around Kintyre, like axeheads and jewelry. The building is from the 1800s.

Near the museum is the Wee Picture House. This small but special cinema was built in 1913. It is thought to be the oldest cinema in Scotland built just for movies. These buildings are by the water. You can also see a 14th-century Celtic cross there.

St Kieran (also known as Ciarán of Clonmacnoise) lived in this area long before the town existed. You can visit a cave named after him when the tide is low. There is also a cave on nearby Island Davaar with a 19th-century painting of the crucifixion.

Campbeltown hosts the yearly Mull Of Kintyre Music Festival. Many different bands play there, from local groups to famous ones like Deacon Blue. The Kintyre Songwriters Festival also happens every May. It's a smaller event for people who love to write and perform their own music.

In 2006, a new building called the 'Aqualibrium' Centre opened. It replaced the old swimming pool. The Aqualibrium has Campbeltown's library, a swimming pool, a gym, and a cafe.

The Kintyre Camanachd is the local shinty team. Shinty is a traditional Scottish sport. The local amateur football team is Campbeltown Pupils AFC. They travel long distances for their games.

Argyll FM is a local radio station based in Campbeltown.

Town Connections

Campbeltown is connected by phone and internet. The first telephone exchange opened in the early 1900s. Electricity came to homes in 1935 from a new power station. Street lights changed from gas to electricity in 1936.

Getting Around

Campbeltown Ferry Terminal

Campbeltown Airport terminal building

Campbeltown Airport is close to the town. You can fly from there to Glasgow International Airport on weekdays and some Sundays in summer.

Campbeltown is at the end of a long peninsula. This makes road trips take a long time. So, people often use sea and air travel. The town is connected to the rest of Scotland by the A83 and A82 roads. Buses also run to Glasgow.

Ferries sail from Campbeltown to Ballycastle in Northern Ireland. This service runs during summer and winter months. Since 2013, Caledonian MacBrayne also runs a ferry service to Ardrossan, stopping at Brodick on Saturdays.

Long ago, Campbeltown had a canal (1794 – 1880s). Later, a railway called the Campbeltown and Machrihanish Light Railway was built. It closed in 1932. This railway helped carry coal from the mines.

Language Spoken

Campbeltown is one of the few places in the Scottish Highlands where the Scots language was mainly spoken. This is different from the Scottish Gaelic language that was common in the Highlands.

Famous People from Campbeltown

Main Street and Campbeltown Cross

Campbeltown harbour

Many interesting people have connections to Campbeltown:

• Hugh Henry Brackenridge, an American writer and judge.
• Sir William Mackinnon, 1st Baronet, a Scottish ship-owner.
• Norman Macleod, a Scottish church leader and author.
• Angus MacVicar, an author and broadcaster.
• Paul McCartney, the famous musician from the Beatles, owns a farm near the town.
• William McTaggart, a landscape artist.
• Denzil Meyrick, an author who writes novels set in Kinloch.
• Rodney Pattisson, an English yachtsman and Olympic sailor.
• Lawrence Tynes, an American football player, grew up here.

Twin Town

Campbeltown is twinned with Kümmersbruck in Germany. This means they are like friendly partner towns.

Images for kids

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  Campbeltown Loch and Campbeltown. Looking down from the top of Davaar. In the foreground is the Doirlinn, then the loch. On the western side of the loch is Campbeltown and beyond that Machrihanish Bay can be seen.

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  Unloading the catch at Campbeltown

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  Campbeltown Pier

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  Campbeltown Heritage Centre

See also

In Spanish: Campbeltown para niños